Sail & Ski – Crossing South Georgia in Shackleton’s footsteps – key facts
The routes shown above are a rough plan, one possibility of many. The ski expedition will focus on crossing South Georgia on Shackleton’s historic route. Apart from a few fixed points on the planned route, we will decide our course and possible landings on site depending on the wind and weather. In the Southern Ocean and the (sub)Antarctic, nature alone sets the course. We don’t follow a rigid programme, don’t keep to any order and don’t tick off any bucket lists.
In the footsteps of Shackleton across South Georgia – ski expedition with Thomas Ulrich
Wild places, unspoilt natural landscapes and sometimes crazy stories are among the factors that make up an adventure for Thomas Ulrich. The mountain guide and photographer has been travelling on expeditions for many years, especially in the polar regions. Thomas is happy to share the knowledge and experience he has gained with guests.
I am happy to have him as the expedition leader for one of our projects – the crossing of South Georgia on the Shackleton Route. Would you like to have been born in the 19th century as an explorer, polar researcher or seafarer like him? Then this expedition with Thomas is just right for you.
South Georgia became the scene of an unprecedented story 110 years ago. Sir Ernest Shackleton, who had set out to be the first to cross the Antarctic, finally found rescue here at a whaling station in Stromness at the end of a long odyssey. He had left most of his men behind on Elephant Island, where they had rescued themselves after losing their ship – the Endurance – in the pack ice and being stuck there for more than a year. With a small crew in an open lifeboat, he travelled 800 nautical miles on the stormy South Atlantic and eventually had to cross the island and the glaciated central mountain range to reach help. This incredible march by him and two of his companions – an unimaginable feat and the first ever documented crossing of South Georgia – was the key to the ultimately happy ending of his Endurance expedition. With his unimaginable perseverance, his leadership and thanks to the support of such great personalities as Worsley, Wild, Crean and Co, Shackleton had saved the lives of his entire crew. It is no coincidence that the story of Sir Ernest Shackleton is one of the great adventures of the age of polar exploration.
Our journey takes us to many stations in this story.
Stanley (East Falkland) is the planned port of departure for this 26-day skiing and sailing expedition.
We will sail from the Falkland Islands to South Georgia on the Selma. The crossing takes around 6 to 7 days. We cross the Antarctic Convergence Zone. The water temperature drops rapidly from 5° to 1° Celsius. Nutrient-rich water rises to the surface. This attracts a large number of seabirds (albatrosses, shearwaters, petrels). At this time of year in particular, we encounter ice and the first icebergs – harbingers of the Antarctic.
From King Haakon Bay, where Shackleton also went ashore, we will follow his route over the glaciated central mountains to Stromness, the now abandoned whaling station. The ski expedition with pulka and tent through the fantastic mountain landscape will last five days. On the tour, we will be travelling over glaciers and sometimes have to walk on ropes. Everyone pulls a sledge with their luggage and some of the group’s equipment. Thanks to a special development by Thomas Ulrich, the polar sledge we use is much easier to pull than other sledges.
The Selma will be waiting for us in Stromness. The next few days will be the more leisurely part of the trip, during which we will explore South Georgia, the remains of the old whaling stations and the unique wildlife on several shore excursions. Behind the beaches, which are populated by countless penguins, fur seals and elephant seals, petrels and albatrosses breed hidden in the high tussock grass.
A visit to the whalers’ cemetery at the old whaling station of Grytviken is also a must: Here you will find the grave of Shackleton, who died here of a heart attack in 1922 on his way to his fourth Antarctic expedition aboard his ship Quest. At his side lies the man who always stood by his side in life on several expeditions, including the Endurance Expedition: his right-hand man Frank Wild.
The success of the crossing, as well as all landings, depends heavily on the weather. We may also explore the glaciers and mountains of the sub-Antarctic island on further ski tours.
We will bid farewell to one of the last untouched nature reserves on Earth as we set sail back to the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), accompanied by petrels and albatrosses.
The final destination of the expedition is Port Stanley.
Realisation and equipment
The partner – in addition to the boat and skipper team from Selma Expeditions – for the organisation of this ski expedition and expedition leader of the Shackleton Traverse is the adventurer and mountain guide Thomas Ulrich.
He will also be responsible for the execution of the journey and is the point of contact for further questions.
Thomas Ulrich also provides a large part of the equipment.
This material, which has been tried and tested on many expeditions, has been perfected by Thomas himself, partly through years of development work – as a participant, you will be travelling here like the best polar explorers of today on their expeditions.
Only a few items of equipment need to be brought by the participants themselves. Thomas and Sailing SOUTH will be happy to provide a detailed equipment list for this.
Contact and further information about Thomas Ulrich:
