In Search of the South Pole

On the Centenary of the Amundsen-Scott race to the South Pole, this book traces our search for the Pole, from the earliest encounters with Antarctica’s icy waters, through the Heroic Age to modern times. In addition to the words of Scott and Amundsen, vivid descriptions from the logbooks, journals and narratives of pioneers such as Carsten Borchgrevink, Ernest Shackleton and Douglas Mawson provide first-hand experiences of this enigmatic and unforgiving region. In our own times, there is commentary from modern explorers and travellers, writers and scientists, who explain what the South Pole means to them. Among those featured are Edmund Hillary, Vivian Fuchs, Ranulph Fiennes and Børge Ousland. Stunning images by Herbert Ponting and Frank Hurley, and from the personal collections of explorers and adventure photographers, as well as contemporary ephemera and artefacts illustrate the hardships of life on the ice. Herbert is the daughter of the great polar explorer Sir Wally Herbert and Lewis-Jones is former Curator at the Scott Polar Research Institute. A nicely illustrated book.