It’s the most remote, desolate place on Earth, and undoubtedly one of the coldest as well – but did you know that Antarctica is also purportedly the most haunted place on the planet? Okay, sure, that statistic is based on how many people actually live in Antarctica (not many), but there’s no doubt that the freezing isolation would be the perfect location for paranormal activity.
Antarctica’s two prime locations for creepiness are McMurdo Station on Ross Island and Scott’s Hut at Cape Evans. Ross Island has a sad backstory to it: a sightseeing flight crashed into a mountain there in 1979, killing all 257 people on board the plane. As you might expect, the island is now super haunted by the victims of this tragedy, where their spirits wander the frozen tundra. Visitors to McMurdo Station – the United States’ settlement on Ross Island – have described an intense feeling of “wrongness” while being there. That might be because the recovered bodies from the crash were stored in McMurdo Station before they were returned to New Zealand. Brrrrrrr.
Inside Scott's Hut at Cape Evans. Photo courtesy of Sergey Tarasenko.
Conversely, Scott’s Hut was built at Cape Evans in 1911 for an ultimately failed mission by the Terra Nova Expedition, and then used by the Ross Sea Party from 1915 to 1917 after their ship went adrift. There’s a cross near the cabin that this party built in memorial to three men who died near the hut, so not only do you have those ghosts to deal with, but Scott’s Hut also seems to attract spirits of explorers who perished trying to reach the South Pole. Apparently voices and footsteps have been heard in the cabin, as well as a pervading feeling of being watched.
Cross at Hut Point in memory of George Vince, a member of the Scott expedition, who died in the vicinity. Photo courtesy of Sergey Tarasenko.
Not literal enough for you? There are even ghost mountains – the “ghost range” has never been seen by people, as it lies under four metres of ice and has only been mapped by radar. They were created during a giant uplift in the planet’s geography about a hundred million years ago, and began to be encased in ice about 34 million years ago. Maybe not quite spooky, but definitely makes one wonder what freaky monsters might be lurking under the ice.
Are you in the mood to explore the bottom of the world? Tap into the spirit of Shackleton — and who knows, maybe you'll meet the spirit of Shackleton.
Getting There
G Adventures runs a number of departures to Antarctica encompassing a wide range of dates and activities to cater for different tastes. We’re thrilled at the prospect of showing you this big blue planet of ours — check out our expeditions.
