Londonward

There’s something alluring about the cold white harshness of Antarctica. It’s the literal end of the world, the most inhospitable and majestic landscape, composed of aeons-old rock and covered in ice. For a long time, I’ve dreamed of being able to visit there. For as long as I’ve wanted to go to the Antarctic, I’ve had a problem with my desire - any trip down to the ice would compound the problems faced by the fragile biogeochemical systems in the area. Why would my desire to go down to the Antarctic be any worse than any of the other tourists visiting? That’s the thing - I wouldn’t want to see the place transformed into a tourist destination. That would demystify it in addition to physically affecting the landscape.

A solution would be to get a position with an organization such as the British Antarctic Survey and actually contribute constructively to the arguably valuable research being done down there. What’s needed for that is a relevant and required skill, as well as the capability (both mental and professional) to work “down south” for anything up to 18 months. I should have been a plumber, they’re always in demand.

Another solution for a more sustainable trip down to the ice would be to go in a reinforced sailboat. That requires lots of money and is ultimately a tourist cruise to the most hospitable parts of the Antarctic peninsula. And, to be honest, the last thing the place needs is more tourists, no matter how “sustainable” their itinerary. Also, somehow I feel that touching land at the peninsula or some of the outer islands wouldn’t be as satisfying as actually managing to make it to the continental ice shelf. This musing is completely unrelated to the serious work that would have to go into financing an actual trip should I not go in a professional capacity.

One thing I would never want to end up seeing myself do is end up in an Antarctic base as some guest of honour traipsing ceremonially in oversized gear like Al Gore in An Inconvenient Truth. That kind of posturing is needed even less than light-footed visits by limited numbers of high-paying visitors (assuming the prices they pay reflect the effects they have, and are used to offset any negatives). An official getting a photo opportunity in front of a snowcat for the purpose of “raising awareness of the plight of the continent” and climate change just makes me angry. Why not actually use that money, fuel and time for actual productive research, mitigation or adaptation?