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January 29, 2014

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Local students visit with modern Antarctic explorer

By Lu Feiran | January 29, 2014, Wednesday | Print Edition

The age of famous polar explorers traveling on foot may have ended a century ago, but a group of local students got to meet a modern version of those brave souls in the person of newly graduated British marine biologist Henry Evans.

Evans, 23, spoke with students from the Shanghai High School International Division recently about his taking part in a two-person expedition in Antarctica on skis.

Evans finished his expedition in 14 days in December 2012 with an accomplished British polar explorer, 63-year-old Geoff Somers. Their mission was to ski the last two degrees to the South Pole in homage to the ill-fated mission of British navigator Robert Scott (1868-1912).

“The journey was life changing and inspiring, and it followed the footprint of Captain Scott,” said Evans, who graduated from Plymouth University in the UK, obtaining a scholarship from the university for outstanding achievement. “Besides, as a marine biology major, I am fully aware of the value of the continent on scientific research.”

Captain Scott and his team attempted to reach the South Pole first, and finally reached their destination on January 17, 1912, only to find that they were beaten by a Norwegian team by 33 days. On their way back, Scott and the four others on the expedition died from exhaustion, starvation and cold. Still, Scott is regarded as a great polar explorer, despite the tragedy.

In 2010, the British charity organization ISCE Ltd organized the Scott Centenary Expedition. When Evans learned about the expedition on television, he signed up for it. Evans eventually was selected for the expedition.

“Captain Scott was born and raised in Plymouth, and I, as a student of Plymouth University then, never felt any closer connection with him than when the centenary celebration of the expedition was approaching, so I decided to register,” said Evans.

Evans said he prepared for the expedition for about half a year. The first session of training was done with the British Royal Navy, where Evans and other candidates received circuit training and a sea survival course. They had physical fitness tests and a mental agility test. After that, the candidates went to Norway for polar training.

“We had a seven-day, cross-country ski across Finnmarksvidda, one of Norway’s largest mountain plateaus,” said Evans. “This brought home to me for the first time the demands of a polar environment.”

The Evans-Somers duo reached Antarctica after flying from England to Miami, then to Chile. It was spring on the continent, which presumably is the best season to ski. They, however, had to wait for about a week to depart for the starting site of the expedition due to bad weather.

After the polar expedition began, Evans skied for seven hours a day in Antarctica. He had to drag his tent, sleeping bag and other supplies with him, and the load was about 65 kilograms. “It was like dragging my brother along the way,” Evans said.

That was the season when the sun never set, and it caused some problems with sleep. Evans said at first he was not able to sleep even though he covered his face with a mask, but several days later, he went out like a light and slept for seven straight hours.

“I think partly it was because my body started to get used to the environment, and partly just because I was too exhausted,” he said.

The expedition was not as interesting as people might imagine, he said. For the entire journey, he saw no animals: no penguins, not even an insect. There was only sky and snow, and Evans said it almost drove him insane. He said his mental state seemed to vary from hour to hour. One moment he felt very sane and the next he was in complete madness.

Hotdog in the sky

“At one point I had the hallucination of a hotdog hanging from the sky, and it freaked me out,” said Evans. “I think it was because my mind couldn’t bear the emptiness and it had to be filled with something."

The food during the expedition was rather simple. Cheese, salami, oatmeal with raisins and soup comprised all their meals. Meanwhile, going to bathroom was also a tough task. They had to urinate in a bottle and keep the bottle warm when they were sleeping.

“Geoff told me that if the bottle was frozen, it would take a very long to unfreeze, so we had to cradle the pee bottle to prevent it from being frozen,” he said.

During the expedition, Evans also conducted a scientific project for Plymouth University. He collected snow samples to be analyzed by the British Antarctic Survey.

They completed the journey after two weeks, reaching the South Pole. Evans said his mind was a little bit blank by then. When he saw more than 10 people at once, he seemed to lose the ability to speak, since he had only one companion during the expedition.

“I hadn't talked to so many people for so long and I was a bit confused, but I was also thrilled that I made it,” said Evans. “When I first signed up for the activity, I knew I would never give up no matter what difficulties I was about to be faced with.”

Evans said while the expedition was amazing, he also has had many other experiences. When he was in the university, he took part in hundreds of hours of marine-based volunteering, including working with the Shark Trust, the National Marine Aquarium, the Marine Biological Association and Wembury Marine Centre. He also became the global ambassador of Plymouth University.

Evans is going around the world to share his experience with students. At the Shanghai High School International Division, the students were very curious about the supplies he took to the Antarctica. They even tried tasting what remained of the oatmeal, he took on the trip.

"I hope to inspire and educate all ages about science and exploration, and of the important role the great expeditions of a bygone age have played in defining our understanding of the global environment,” said Evans.

 

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