South Hill WI member Harriet Curtis poses with a dog sled
Members of South Hill WI were treated to a wonderfully interesting talk by John Killingbeck about ‘The Last Huskies in Antarctica’.
John brought many artefacts from his 1960s and 1990s surveying trips to Antarctica. These included sealskin boots, clothing, dog harnesses and a very long Nansen dog sled which he brought with him on a trailer to show the group.
His stories about life for both him and his teammates in extreme conditions were riveting and the photographs of Antarctica were stunning. Huskies were banned in the Antarctic by international agreement as a non-indigenous species and were all flown out in the 1990s to be eventually returned to the Inuits in northern Canada.
John showed the women pictures of the last Huskies, explained how they lived and something of their characters, including how they loved a good fight!
Everyone present and those watching by Zoom agreed that this was one of the most interesting speakers they have ever had.
I’m the person who arranges talks at Wilcove WI. This sounds very interesting and I’d like to contact John to see if he can visit us to give a talk. I have tried looking online via the usual routes but can’t find an email address . Can you help?
Hi Liz! If you check the CFWI Yearbook, you should be able to see the contact details for South Hill WI. I would say that’s your best bet! You can find the Year Book (no longer available in printed form) on the front page of this website, in the tabs on the right side.