24 Jan 2020

Time Travel on Ross Island

Our In the Wake of Scott & Shackleton expedition has notched up yet another success with voyagers exploring both of Captain Robert Falcon Scott's Cape Evans and McMurdo Sound Huts within six hours.

Making the most of the excellent weather and ice conditions we arrived at Cape Evans, the location of Scott's second hut built in 1911, late this afternoon. A short Zodiac ride later we were exploring the volcanic hillscapes including the memorial atop Wind Vane Hill dedicated to the three men who perished during Shackleton's Aurora expedition and Scott's hut, resplendent in its meticulous preservation by the Antarctic Heritage Trust.

Indeed, such is the condition of the hut upon entering you get the feeling you have not only cheated the time space continuum, but Wilson, Ponting or Scott himself might swing open the door at any moment and catch you trespassing.

The hut and its surrounds, where dog skeletons remain tethered to chains, stacks of preserved seal blubber look remarkably intact and hay still greets you on the nose in the stables are a stark reminder of the hardships these heroic legends endured.

After signing the guest book and groping for words to express our emotions in the comments, we head back aboard Akademik Shokalskiy where we celebrate Chinese New Year with an epic banquet from our master chefs Tom and Matt, a far cry from the rations so well maintained in the humble kitchen we just explored.

Following a recently cut channel in the ice into McMurdo Sound and Scott's Discovery Hut expeditioners join us in the bridge, unsure where to point their cameras, as close to 100 Orca/Killer Whales are observed cruising the ice edge in pods and two Emperor Penguins uneasily note their dorsal fins from the safety on the ice.

Landing at Hut Point at 0130 hours, after exploring the relics of Scott's Discovery Hut and paying respects at Vince's Cross, many are happy to find a quiet place where they can take in the view and reflect, firmly under Antarctica's spell and the challenges and conquests of her early explorers.

Image © I. Wilson, Heritage Expeditions