A blend of extra strong tea as supped by the legendary Captain Robert Falcon Scott during his expedition to the South Pole has been brought back into circulation by Tescos, for a charitable cause. The tea will be stocked at Tesco from November, with 5p from each box sold going straight to the Antarctic 
Heritage Trust. This is great news for the campaign to raise millions to save the huts, which are in desperate need of restoration. Captain Scott's Hut at Cape Evans is an incredibly special place and is listed in the 100 most endangered historical sites in the world.
Scott and four of his fellow explorers died on their return trek from the South Pole in 1912, after discovering that the Norwegian Roald Amundsen had won the race to the Pole. The Strong Blend tea had been carried south with the courageous explorers and must have provided slight comfort during those frozen and dark hours on the Antarctic ice. Let's hope that as a nation of tea drinkers we can get behind the new race to restore our historic polar legacy. I agree wholeheartedly with Sir David Attenborough who said that it would be a 'scandal' if Britain failed to preserve the huts.
Our new Polar Journeys brochure will be out in the next few weeks, and will feature epic voyage itineraries to visit the historic huts in the Ross Sea region aboard the powerful Icebreaker the Kapitan Khlebnikov. Pre-order yours now. Alternatively, you can visit Bransfield House, Port Lockroy, on the Antarctic Peninsula which is part museum, part post office (!) and part base for research into penguins.
I totally agree with the preservation of the huts and keeping the spirit of the great British explorers alive.
Since the demise of Scott and his team, nobody has ever actually succeeded in completing the return journey on foot with no assistance or support. Later this year, I'm heading South on the Last Great Challenge expedition to try to complete the mission that Scott started.
Justin Miles
www.lastgreatchallenge.com
Posted by: Justin Miles | March 22, 2010 at 10:36 AM