Antarctica
A party of twelve pupils, staff and parents spent the Christmas holidays sunning themselves in the mid-
summer sunshine of the Antarctic continent whilst the rest of us struggled with the cold, fog and wind.
The ten-day expedition saw the party encountering weather that ranged from bright, clear sunshine to bitter, freezing winds, snow and ice. The wildlife of the world’s last true wilderness were out in force to greet the intrepid explorers; penguins, albatross, whales, krill and seals all put in multiple appearances and even an emperor penguin that had got lost (by about five hundred miles!) showed up to entertain the party.
All of the pupils, Mr Hillary & Mr Howls went for a dip i
n the sea in answer to the ‘polar plunge’ challenge, and yes, sea water with ice floating in it is as cold as you might imagine.
This was a stunning trip, and puts Eltham College in the unique position of being the only school in the UK that has so far sent an expedition to the Southern-most land on the planet.