Expedition South, a fund-raising tractor journey to save Sir Edmund Hillary’s hut in Antarctica, has been put together by the Antarctic Heritage Trust to pay tribute to the historic journey Hillary led from Scott Base to the South Pole aboard Ferguson tractors, effectively the first expedition to reach the South Pole by motor vehicle.
Spanning 2012km as did Hillary’s trail, the expedition was launched by Hillary’s son Peter Hillary this morning from Piha Beach. He drove one of the expedition’s three tractors the first kilometre along the beach.
Peter says the expedition is a remarkable undertaking as two of the three tractors are vintage TE-20s like those that Sir Ed and his team drove. “And while they won’t have ice and crevasses to contend with, they’re likely to face all sorts of weather and challenges… it’s a long way.”
He adds that Piha has always been one of his family’s favourite places. “Our bach is there and, of course, it’s part of the Hillary Trail – it’ll be a poignant moment, particularly given what this expedition is setting out to achieve.”
During the journey, the expedition will request donations from the public at various schools, Hillary hotspots and events. If all goes to plan, the expedition will arrive in Aoraki Mount Cook to finish the journey in sight of the Hillary Ridge on September 20 2016 against the backdrop of Hillary’s arrival on January 4 1958.
Nigel Watson, executive director of the Antarctic Heritage Trust, specifies that the money will be used to save Scott Base’s first building Hillary’s Hut, also known as Hut A or the Trans-Antarctic Expedition Hut.
“This hut is an important slice of kiwi history – it was where Sir Ed wintered over on the ice in 1957 and from where the historic South Pole expedition began. We have a plan to save it, and the artefacts inside it, and to preserve them for the next 25 years. But it will cost a million dollars to do it.
“We have already raised over half of that and now need New Zealanders to come onboard to help us get closer to our goal. We’re calling on kiwis to give us a fiver – the $5 note has Sir Ed’s face on it and we can’t think of a better use for it than saving his Antarctic legacy.”
