Team members say

We all said an emotional goodbye to the Antarctic yesterday in glorious sunshine. Like most days we still had a wind chill of minus 30, but the more time we spend here we somehow seem to get used to it. The crew who have been travelling here every Summer season for years kept saying that we had been so lucky experiencing the best of everything that the Antarctic has to offer – smooth crossing over the Drake Passage, perfect weather, sightings of every wildlife we could wish for…..so I guess it was inevitable that we had to experience a true Drakes Passage crossing on our way home, and that is exactly what happened last night. I have now had no sleep for nearly 48 hours so a quick note from me to everybody who´s still checking out what we´re up to.

We tried to have some dinner and all linked hands at the table but still couldn´t stop ourselves falling over. We had spend most of the day hanging onto the most secure parts of the ship but had now resorted to crawling everywhere to prevent more accidents. When a 10m high wave hit the boat side on in the middle of the night I was well prepared as I´d been hanging on to the metal post supporting our bunk beds since 10pm. The winds were gusting at 90mph, this was extraordinary, even for the Drake Passage and George our Captain who would normally be tucked up in bed stayed awake all night to keep us on course. The crew have not been able to serve any food in these rough conditions, but we´re still hopeful for dinner tonight before the Pirates of the Antarctic farewell party. Everything on the boat that is not tied down was thrown across the boat when the huge wave hit us, so now only 40 miles to go before arrive at Cape Horn and have some protection from land. Now I can´t wait to step onto dry land!

It doesn´t feel like we´ve spent a week out here, it feels like a year or more. Strange to think that such a short time in Antarctica can fundamentally change your view of the world.

I started the trip by reading about Shackleton´s adventures which may have prepared me for the journey to the most unpredictable and inhospitable continent in the world. But I think also spending 7 days and nights on a small boat with a team of inspirational people from over 24 countries in the world; small & large companies, students, teachers; all their experiences contribute to a fascinating melting pot of ideas on how each of us can each contribute to making a difference to the world we live in, and preserve this planet for future generations.

I´ve survived on surprisingly little sleep during this week. Every day of our expedition has been packed with adventure - up at 6am to see sunrise, land on Chilean and Argentinian Bases, share expertise in environmental initiatives, listen to Robert Swan´s amazing adventures and tireless endeavours to protect the planet, and so much more. The fact that the crew are also out on deck (with a minus 30 wind chill) taking pictures of Orcas, Whales, Seals, Pengiuns shows how rare some of these sitings actually are and also how blessed we are with such glorious sunshine and wild skies. Every time I lift up my new digital camera I think the results are brilliant, but even a video would not truly capture the beauty of this constant 360 degree panorama.

Over the last few nights we´ve been camping at Dorian Bay, a rare opportunity in the Antarctic. But a real challenge to remove every single thing we brought onto the ice cap in order to protect this environment! We survived the experience, managed to get some sleep and enjoyed the climb up to the ridge where we camped. This morning at 6.30am we headed off again on a RIB with10 of us, only visible with the full moon, to land again at Dorian Bay. I joined the ´extraction´ crew to climb to the ridge where the 2nd team had camped. With ´Jumper´ on board the Zoadiac I felt like a member of the SAS. It was a wet landing in the darkness, we scrambled ashore and climbed up the glacier to rescue our team who had spent the night camping in strong winds. The sight before us was a huddle of 8 or so tents which looked like Igloos. They had all built walls of ice round each tent to protect them from the wind and snow. When we had ´extracted´ them from their Igloos, the most beautiful sunrise I have ever seen signaled a new day from behind the mountain range. So in a few minutes we had melted from SAS adventurers, to be transfixed once more to our Antarctic expedition; determined to preserve the future of peace and science this continent so rightly deserves.

As we left Ushuaia, at dinner we talked about the ‘Space Invaders’ TV series and wondered if we were truly going to Antarctica.

With a relatively ‘smooth’ crossing for The Drakes Passage, there were still a surprisingly high number of casualties for Doctor Constantine to visit with his magic injection to cure their seasickness. I on the other hand mastered the art of walking in a straight line without bumping into anything or anybody, as the boat rolls back on forth. In the deepest room on the ship we all receive our briefings by day and it becomes a TV room at night. Last night we watched ‘Trapped at the end of the World’ about Dr Otto Nordenskjold’s expedition in 1901. We saw his boat crushed by ice, not very far from where we are landing later today.

On our way to the biggest wilderness on earth we have just seen the majestic grace of Fin whales (2nd largest in the Antarctic) This I will never forget as long as I live, especially as few minutes later we encountered an Ice Berg. I doubt any picture I take could truly capture what I see before me now……

Jackie’s initial thoughts on climate change…

My travels in South America 10 years ago inspired me to make the western world aware of climate change – I have organized a number of charity events to raise awareness and funds for the charities.