Arctic Adventure
Three competition winning Eltham students, (Nathan Allen, Jess Fok and Chris Balding photographed below) spent this summer on an environmental adventure of a lifetime in the High Arctic. Braving temperatures as low as minus 40 degrees centigrade, they travelled further north than anyone their age had ever been before - all the way to the polar pack ice. Voyaging aboard a Russian icebreaker, they sailed from the Norwegian islands of Svalbard to the ice at 82 degrees north; a thousand miles north of the Arctic Circle, and a mere 500 miles from the North Pole.
Highlights of their two week trip to the land of the midnight sun included visiting the world’s most northerly settlement, dog sledding, swimming among icebergs in the freezing Arctic Ocean, being attacked by polar bears, and featuring on BBC News 24. The expedition culminated with them standing on the Arctic pack ice - as the most northerly people in the world at that time and sharing the barren but beautiful landscape with only polar explorers and polar bears. Jess said "It was a truly awe-inspiring experience that words will never do justice to".
Working with Arctic scientists, they looked at some of the devastating effects that climate change is having on the ecosystem of this fragile region, and have returned as members of the Upper Sixth feeling empowered to help conquer climate change and protect this incredible environment.
Links
Extracurricular Activities