The first part of Janey’s talk focused on the first 20 years of the 20^th century when four men literally put the Antarctic on the map: Scott, Shackleton, Mawson and Amundsen. Using the men’s own diaries as well as maps and photographs taken by expedition photographers at the time, Janey traced the expeditions of these early polar heroes, giving us a glimpse of their extraordinary stamina and determination as well as the physical conditions they experienced and overcame – or not. We heard of course about Scott’s ill-fated expedition to get to the pole, and how and why he was beaten to it by five weeks by the Norwegian Amundsen in December 1911. We also learned about more personal things: Scott’s determination to be the first and to keep Shackleton (initially his third officer) in his place and Shackleton’s impeccable decision to save his team’s lives in 1909 even though it meant turning back within striking distance of the pole. On Shackleton’s 1914 Endurance expedition their ship sank, crushed in the ice, and we heard about the men’s escape to Elephant Island, the extraordinary 16 day crossing to South Georgia in 1914 in an open boat, and the heroic trek across that island to seek help from an isolated whaling station. Janey also talked about the valuable contribution of the Australian Mawson, whose expedition to map the interior of the continent in 1912 resulted in the deaths of his two companions and a 200-mile struggle back to winter quarters, a journey that Janey described as the greatest solo survival story of the Antarctic. It was intriguing to have Deb Mawson at this WISE meeting – the explorer’s great-niece, who later said the talk was ‘inspiring, inspirational and fabulous’.

It was in the early 2000s that Janey had her first opportunity to travel to Antarctica and to see for herself the physical challenges of the men who had made Antarctic history. By this time the continent had been extensively mapped and studied, and was on the cusp of opening up to mass tourism. Janey went at the invitation of Exodus, the travel company, to write some travel pieces about this new destination (she is a novelist in her other life). It was immediately clear however that this was not a trip for the fainthearted; the group sailed from Patagonia in an aged Russian icebreaker without mod cons, and in enormously high seas that made most people seasick. Not being prone to seasickness stood Janey in good stead for this and future voyages. Her photographs and commentary indicated what a fierce landscape this is, but also its spectacular beauty. On her second trip – now with a novel in mind – she spent six weeks with a Bulgarian research team and helped with penguin research. ‘I have never been so sad to leave anywhere in my life’, she recalled. And then a third opportunity came up: she was invited to join an expedition to recreate Shackleton’s journey from Elephant Island and across the route he pioneered over South Georgia. This was with seven British surgeons (all men), a surprisingly coherent team that now reunites for further adventures at least once a year. But even this journey sounded relentlessly exhausting, not least the sailing rota: three hours on watch and six off in ferocious seas for four and a half days. As for the island traverse itself – Shackleton and two companions did it in 30 hours, their emulators took six days. But, as Janey said, she and the surgeons were on holiday.

Janey ended with a ray of hope for the Antarctic despite what she saw as the potentially devastating long-term impact of factory fishing and mass tourism. Last month an agreement was signed between 24 countries to create a 1.5 million square mile marine park in the Ross Sea; this will be the largest marine park in the world and it means no fishing for 35 years. It should help towards the protection of this incredible continent.

Thank you Janey, for an extraordinary journey.  (Summary: Sarah Ladbury)