Fireside Chats with Patrick Woodhead

Patrick, so wonderful to have you join us around the campfire. What was it that first inspired your desire to venture out into the great white desert of Antarctica as a polar explorer?

When I was a teenager, I heard Sir Ran Fiennes speak at the Royal Geographical Society. He talked of all these different expeditions including polar traverses and I felt an overriding sense of jealousy – I wanted that kind of extraordinary life. After leaving University and having no idea what I wanted to do, for about 10 years, I went off and did these expeditions.

We had to raise money from sponsors or from writing books or articles and we went off to these unmapped places. And then inevitably we got focused on Antarctica because there is so much in the Continent that has never been done before. Going somewhere new was the exciting part, not doing what everyone else had already achieved.

I imagine you have some harrowing tales from your time spent in the icy wilderness (much like your friend and polar explorer, Ben Saunders). Can you share a particularly memorable tale with us?

The most uncomfortable moment in my whole career as an explorer is dangling upside down in a 60 foot crevasse, trying to rescue a friend who had been stuck down there for 6 hours and being told by the Russian doctor on the top that I had to take a needle and inject something into his neck to stop him going into shock as we tried to rip him out of the crevasse on a big rope.

I was trying to explain to the Dr that I’d never given an injection before and him going – it doesn’t really matter as he’ll be dead in half an hour anyway if we don’t get him out. And that was definitely a weird and surreal and yeah, scary moment. Luckily we got him out!

You and Robyn are a formidable team. How did you meet? And what made you decide to set up White Desert?

Robyn and I met in the UK. She’s South African and I’m British. We both had a similar desire to explore the world. The moment of inspiration for White Desert came during a 1,850km expedition on foot across Antarctica with three teammates. For four days a storm had raged outside and all of us were feeling a little defeated – we were getting low on supplies and even worse, starting to tell the same stories! Then we began to wonder why only scientists and the occasional polar explorer ever got to see the real Antarctica, the interior of the Great White Continent.

By then, Robyn and I had both spent time in Antarctica and envisioned sharing this region with people, possibly influential change-makers, other than scientists and explorers obviously. We wanted to guide people on a personal journey to what we felt was the last true wilderness on Earth.

Your most recent addition to the White Desert family is Echo camp – an extraordinary collection of six space-inspired luxury pods. What can guests expect from an experience at Echo that sets it apart from the other two camps?

Traditionally people have looked towards the past and made camps harking back to the golden age of exploration, with brass and leather and inspiration from the likes of Shackleton. Elements of our Wolf’s Fang and Whichaway camps reflect this. We had all these fabulous conversations about Mars and living on the moon with Buzz Aldrin and Colonel Terry Virts who ran the International Space Station. So with Echo we looked to the future and said let’s build something with a design that feels more forward looking. This is an ultra-modern concept which looks far more akin to the interior of the Millennium Falcon than it does to an old explorer camp. We have these cutting edge fiberglass domes that look like something out of a lunar or Martian outpost.

Antarctica is considered to be one of the last remaining wilderness regions on the planet and sustainability is at the very heart of White Desert’s mission. What are some of the steps you are currently taking in your ongoing climate strategy to reduce emissions?

You’ve traversed polar regions, summited mountains, kayaked down uncharted rivers, written bestselling books – the list goes on. What is next on your list of achievements?

You’re allowed to invite three guests – dead or alive – for a night of good food, good wine, and great conversation around the campfire. Who are they and why?

If you could describe Africa in three words, what would they be?

Immense. Surreal. Wild | Beyond your imagination | Complex operating environment

Keep an eye out for more conversations and inspiring stories from bold achievers from both in and out of the travel industry with Ker & Downey® Africa’s Fireside Chats. There’s plenty more in store to whet your adventure appetite!