TEN DOOMED EXPEDITIONS
North face of the eiger Led by: Toni Kurz and andreas hinterstoisser Date: 1936
Kurz and Hinterstoisser both lost their lives during this famous attempt on the formidable swiss peak, the former tragically dying from exhaustion just metres from his would-be rescuers.
Imperial Trans-Antarctic expedition Led by: ernest Shackleton date: 1914–17 shackleton’s attempt on a land crossing of Antarctica ended in disaster when his ship, endurance, became trapped in ice and sank. the story of his epic rescue mission is legendary.
the Donner party led by: the reed and Donner families date: 1846–47
When a party of pioneer families and their employees got trapped in the mountains of the sierra nevada, this journey west to california descended into cannibalism.
Polaris expedition led by: charles Francis hall Date: 1871 it wasn’t the cold that scuppered Hall’s attempt on the north Pole, but arsenic poisoning, suggesting that he may have been murdered by another member of the expedition.
Attempt to navigate the Northwest Passage Led by: John Franklin date: 1847 franklin’s entire party died of starvation, hypothermia, tuberculosis, lead poisoning and scurvy after being forced to abandon their icebound ships.
Terra Nova expedition led by: robert Falcon scott Date: 1912 five members of scott’s party reached the south Pole – 33 days after their norwegian rivals led by roald Amundsen became the first to do so – but all perished on the return journey.
the search for the city of Z led by: percy harrison Fawcett date: 1925 British explorer fawcett’s obsession with finding el Dorado, the legendary ‘city of Gold’, was to prove his undoing. He disappeared without trace in the Brazilian jungle.
Mount everest expedition Led by: George Mallory and ‘Sandy’ Irvine date: 1924 Did mallory and irvine become the first men to conquer everest? We’ll probably never know for sure – mallory’s body was recovered in 1999, but with no evidence to show whether he had reached the summit.
Flying to the North Pole Led by: Salomon August Andrée Date: 1897 Andrée’s mission to fly to the north Pole ended in tragedy when his hydrogen balloon was blown off course. the swedish engineer and two colleagues died attempting to trek back to civilisation.
Round-the-world flight led by: amelia earhart Date: 1937 the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic, intrepid aviator earhart disappeared somewhere over the Pacific ocean during her pioneering round-the-world flight. Her body has never been found.
Kurz and Hinterstoisser both lost their lives during this famous attempt on the formidable swiss peak, the former tragically dying from exhaustion just metres from his would-be rescuers.
Imperial Trans-Antarctic expedition Led by: ernest Shackleton date: 1914–17 shackleton’s attempt on a land crossing of Antarctica ended in disaster when his ship, endurance, became trapped in ice and sank. the story of his epic rescue mission is legendary.
the Donner party led by: the reed and Donner families date: 1846–47
When a party of pioneer families and their employees got trapped in the mountains of the sierra nevada, this journey west to california descended into cannibalism.
Polaris expedition led by: charles Francis hall Date: 1871 it wasn’t the cold that scuppered Hall’s attempt on the north Pole, but arsenic poisoning, suggesting that he may have been murdered by another member of the expedition.
Attempt to navigate the Northwest Passage Led by: John Franklin date: 1847 franklin’s entire party died of starvation, hypothermia, tuberculosis, lead poisoning and scurvy after being forced to abandon their icebound ships.
Terra Nova expedition led by: robert Falcon scott Date: 1912 five members of scott’s party reached the south Pole – 33 days after their norwegian rivals led by roald Amundsen became the first to do so – but all perished on the return journey.
the search for the city of Z led by: percy harrison Fawcett date: 1925 British explorer fawcett’s obsession with finding el Dorado, the legendary ‘city of Gold’, was to prove his undoing. He disappeared without trace in the Brazilian jungle.
Mount everest expedition Led by: George Mallory and ‘Sandy’ Irvine date: 1924 Did mallory and irvine become the first men to conquer everest? We’ll probably never know for sure – mallory’s body was recovered in 1999, but with no evidence to show whether he had reached the summit.
Flying to the North Pole Led by: Salomon August Andrée Date: 1897 Andrée’s mission to fly to the north Pole ended in tragedy when his hydrogen balloon was blown off course. the swedish engineer and two colleagues died attempting to trek back to civilisation.
Round-the-world flight led by: amelia earhart Date: 1937 the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic, intrepid aviator earhart disappeared somewhere over the Pacific ocean during her pioneering round-the-world flight. Her body has never been found.
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