Photo by Frank Hurley - State Library of New South Wales, PXA 715, Public Domain

Dave Pinion s a retired BT engineer who worked on International Optical Fibre Submarine Cable Systems.   Following his passion for the Heroic Age of Exploration, Dave first went to Antarctica in 2023 and fell in love with it – he caught the “Polar Bug”. Beware, this bug is contagious and he has now returned to Antarctica four more times.

“Antarctica is an incredible place. Writing this now brings back amazing memories and my passion for the continent, which I hope comes out in my presentations. I encourage questions afterwards”.

We start in South Georgia where we pay our respects at Shackleton’s resting place Grytviken.  We walk with thousands of King and Gentoo Penguins and dodge crowds of curious fur seal pups. We then sail in the wake of the Endurance, past the South Sandwich Islands and deep into the Weddell Sea where the Endurance became trapped in the ice in 1915. We meet with curious Emperor Penguins, walk on icebergs, fly to the top of the Antarctic Ice Cap and sail with Humback Whales.  We visit inhospitable Elephant Island where 22 men lived for four months whilst Shackleton and five others sailed a 21 foot lifeboat 800 miles to South Georgia to get help.  All were rescued at the fourth attempt.