The Sinking of Southern Quest: May Day M’aider, Part 2
It often seems that when people launch an endeavor, the universe responds with obstacles and a terse challenge: “How badly do you want it?” I’ve experienced that on many occasions, and odds are good that you have, too. While I don't subscribe to universal malevolence, it's painfully true that the best-made plans almost always go awry. And when they do, you have to ask, "How badly do I want this?"
The sinking of Southern Quest is a prime example of plans going incredibly wrong. Yet intense preparation and determination ended up saving the day -- and a ship's entire crew.
In Episode 2 of Thin Ice, Robert Swan and William Fenton share what happened after their ship, Southern Quest, was trapped in Antarctic pack ice in 1986. They also recount the James Bond-style resistance from government agencies that opposed the first private expedition to the South Pole in the modern era.
In spite of all obstacles, the “In the Footsteps of Scott” expedition team members lived up to Robert’s promises to Jacques Cousteau and the sons of Ernest Shackleton and Robert Falcon Scott. It’s a tale of incredible perseverance that continues to encourage and inspire people to this day.
I’ll let the pictures here tell their own story, and you can hear the details on Episode 2 of Thin Ice. Thanks for tuning in. Until next time: Keep Earth wild. Be kind. And chill out.
-- Dan
Southern Quest crew: Steve Broni, Giles Kershaw, Graham Phippen, Peter Malcolm, Rebecca Ward, John Elder, Ted Addicott, Kurt Czech, Sarah Robert-Tissot, Edi Frosch, Bruno Klausbruckner, Peter Robb, Lynn Davis (sitting), Thea de Moel, Wolfgang Axt, William Fenton, Ric Mason (front), Andrew Robert-Tissot, David Iggulden, Daryl (Dibble) Jones, Ed Saunier, Tim Lovejoy. (All photos are from "In the Footsteps of Scott" by Roger Mear and Robert Swan, published by Jonathan Cape, 1987. Out of print but copies still available.)
Southern Quest and the Cessna at the ice flow runway – January 1986
The Southern Quest crew tried all the Antarctic mariner tricks to free their ship from the worst pack ice in 30 years, ultimately to no avail.
On January 11, 1986, while Southern Quest is trapped in ice, the expedition pole walkers spot the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, after 70 days of a grueling march.
Left: Pilot Giles Kershaw took this photo of the hole left behind by Southern Quest, while a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter ferried the evacuated crew to their temporary haven at a penguin rookery on Beaufort Island. Later, crew members were transported to McMurdo Station, about 50 km away.