The Shackleton Society: George Bullard OE
Friday, 2nd November 2012
The Shackleton Society recently had the pleasure of hosting George Bullard OE. George began his talk by explaining how his adventuring career started with group trips to the Amazon and the Antarctic, before he was approached by Alex Hibbert. His account of his expedition with Alex to the Arctic, attempting to make the longest fully unsupported journey in a polar region, formed the basis for the rest of the evening. We were introduced to his skis, Pumba and Simone, and he showed us some photos of the staggering beauty and desolation of his surroundings. Despite some issues towards the end, when the expedition food supplies began to run short, they were able to complete their journey and extend the record to 1,400 miles. Throughout his talk, George emphasised that he was by no means a hardened traveller before his Polar trip-he was simply able to take hold of an opportunity that came his way. In the same vein, he warmly encouraged current Etonians to capitalise on the opportunities they are presented with.
George also brought two original journals written by a member of Ernest Shackleton’s Nimrod expedition to the Antarctic. These were fascinating, but also helped to place his own 113 days on the Greenland Icecap into context as we heard about the two years Shackleton's men spent in the Antarctic!
We are very grateful to George, not least because his talk will certainly have helped to inspire a new group of Etonian adventurers. Further information on the trips available through British Exploring can be found at www.britishexploring.org.
Tom Rawlinson OS (AW)
