Not a whole lot of news coming out of Antarctica over the weekend, but the biggest story is of course that the Shackleton Centenary Ice Team reached their destination at long last. The boys spent 66 days out on the ice trekking from the Shackleton Hut, across the Ross Ice Shelf, through the Beardmore Glacier, and on to the Pole itself. This course has only been successfully completed on two other occasions, and is 200 miles longer than the traditional South Pole expedition setting out from Patriot Hills.
The main team, or the "Ice Team" as they are referred to, are made up of Henry Worsley, Will Gow and Henry Adams. These three men made the entire journey, and completed it on schedule over the weekend. But their teammates who are part of the "97 Mile" Team are still making their way in, and at the last report were some 19 nautical miles from the Pole. The members of that second team, consisting of Tim Fright, David Cornell, and Andrew Ledger joined the original trio 97 miles away from the Pole, the spot where Shackleton and his team turned back a century ago.
For Worsley, Gow, and Adams, this completes "unfinished family business". The three men are direct descendants of Shackleton's team, with Woresley being related to Frank Worsely, the captain of the Nimrod, Adams is a great-grandson of Jameson Boyd-Adams, the second in command of the original expedition, and Gow being related to Shackleton by marriage. Cornell on the 97 Mile Team are also great-grandsons of Jameson Boyd-Adams, while Fright is a great-great-nephew of Frank Wild, the only man to join Shackleton on all of his adventures.
The Ice Team will be setting out for home very quickly, while the 97 Mile Team will likely not reach the Pole until tomorrow. For the original members, it's been a long, tough road, and I'm sure they are looking forward to some rest and visiting their friends and family. Enjoy the down time boys and congratulations!
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