Welcome to Shackleton Challenges.

We exist to help adventurers like you discover the thrill and achievement of proper exploration.

From Antarctica to Greenland, Oman to the Himalayas, our epic and life-affirming Challenges are designed and delivered by our record-breaking team of professional guides with with safety, skills development and enjoyment prioritised.

The calendar is carefully configured to appeal to all levels of fitness and experience, from the novice adventurer to the advanced endurance athlete. Whichever Challenge you choose, we look forward to welcoming you to an unforgettable expedition that combines an invigorating balance of arduous achievement with breath-taking environments and well-earned luxury.

Book a call or contact us to find out more.

Onwards!

- Ian Holdcroft, Co-founder

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Testimonials in the Press

“It was probably the best experience of my life so far.”

“Inarguable proof that my physical and mental strength is far more than I ever gave myself credit for.”

“It had only been a short expedition but I was already planning my next – it turns out there’s no turning back once you’ve had a taste of real adventure.”

“The journey is as much inward as it is outward.”

“I felt a huge appreciation for the natural world and people who encompass the spirit of endurance.”

AUTHENTIC EXPEDITIONS

Every Shackleton Challenge has a central mission designed to develop the physical, mental and emotional strength required to access our untapped performance potential and build essential skills in three extreme environments: Polar, Mountain and Desert.

We’ve selected the world’s best exemplars of each, tailored to suit a range of experience and endurance levels. All are stunning, and will stay with you.

At day’s end, nothing trumps the feeling of a Challenge well met, and we celebrate accordingly. Elation enhances everything. Spectacular settings appear more vivid; extraordinary food and service are appreciated on an exalted level.

SHACKLETON SPIRIT

Shackleton Challenges embody the enlightened leadership so central to the Boss’s own ethos, with empathy and encouragement at the core. The idea is that while all challenges will stretch us, none will defeat us. As in 1916, we come through as a team.

Our in-field preparation is exemplary, our location scouting meticulous, our local relationships rock-solid – thanks in large part to the Shackleton lineage.

The contrast between hard-won daytime achievement and team-wide conviviality in the evenings is a distinctive feature of Shackleton Challenges that marks us out as different in kind.

LIFELONG REWARDS

The trials overcome will evolve into resources that you’ll draw on for the rest of your life, applicable to all kinds of situations where you’ll need to take the lead.

A sense of quiet self-esteem will emanate to all who meet you in the aftermath. You may not return an inch taller, but you’ll feel it.

Challenges alumni report having a firmer handle on their own resilience and resources, with greater confidence that they can step it up when needed. If you can ski across a glacier and sleep at minus twenty, most things seem do-able.

Memories made will abide. Like most of our Challenges alumni, you’ll probably stay in touch with the rest of the team.

Our Expedition Challenges

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Kungsleden Ski Challenge - 2
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Kungsleden Ski Challenge

Embark on an epic 100km Arctic hut-to-hut ski expedition along one of the polar world's iconic routes: Sweden's legendary King's Trail.

Physical Requirement
1
Level
Explore
Time of Year
Feb-Apr
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Winter Mountain Skills Challenge - 1
Winter Mountain Skills Challenge - 2
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Winter Mountain Skills Challenge

Develop the technical skills required to operate in a winter alpine environment and apply them on an expedition across the Sunnmøre mountains.

Physical Requirement
1
Level
Discover
Time of Year
Feb-Apr
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Women's Polar Skills Challenge - 1
Women's Polar Skills Challenge - 2
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Women's Polar Skills Challenge

Ski-tour into a pristine polar wilderness and camp out in sub-zero temperatures

Physical Requirement
1
Level
Discover
Time of Year
Feb-Apr
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Polar Pioneers Challenge - 1
Polar Pioneers Challenge - 2
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Antarctica

Polar Pioneers Challenge

Journey from Union Glacier into the wilderness of the Heritage Mountain Range to summit a pristine Antarctic peak.

Physical Requirement
3
Level
Pioneer
Time of Year
Nov-Jan
Duration
2-14 days
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Antarctica Last Degree Challenge - 1
Antarctica Last Degree Challenge - 2
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Antarctica

Antarctica Last Degree Challenge

Ski the last 60 nautical miles to reach the most southerly point on Earth.

Physical Requirement
3
Level
Pioneer
Time of Year
Nov-Jan
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Midnight Sun Challenge - 1
Midnight Sun Challenge - 2
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Lofoten, Norway

Midnight Sun Challenge

Traverse Norway's majestic Lofoten archipelago by foot and by boat, culminating in the knife-edge crossing of a high ridge.

Physical Requirement
1
Level
Discover
Time of Year
Jun-Jul
Duration
2-8 Weeks
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Himalayan Challenge - 1
Himalayan Challenge - 2
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Himalayas, India

Himalayan Challenge

Traverse a 1000 mile route across the Indian Himalayas, with 12,000m of accumulative ascent, to an altitude higher than Everest Base Camp. By motorbike.

Physical Requirement
1
Level
Explore
Time of Year
Sep
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Finse Polar Skills Challenge - 1
Finse Polar Skills Challenge - 2
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Finse, Norway

Finse Polar Skills Challenge

Acquire the fundamental skills of polar travel and camp out in sub-zero temperatures in the majestic Norwegian high plateau.

Physical Requirement
1
Level
Discover
Time of Year
Feb-Apr
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MEET OUR GUIDES

We work with the very best guides and expedition partners, ensuring the highest possible safety, tuition and expertise on every expedition.

Our expedition team is led by our Director of Expeditions, record breaking polar explorer Louis Rudd and our Expedition Manager, Amelia Rudd.

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FOUNDATIONS PROGRAMME

Foundations is a world-class expedition preparation programme designed to inspire, prepare and equip Shackleton’s clients for the Challenge. The programme is delivered via a combination of personal consultations, online webinars and unique experiences by Shackleton’s expert performance partners in endurance, expeditions and extremes.

Expedition Preparation

BESPOKE EXPEDITIONS

Shackleton provides a comprehensive bespoke expedition service to clients with wide-ranging ambitions. From highly experienced solo explorers seeking a progressive training path to the South Pole, through to groups of first-timers looking for the experience of a lifetime, our record-breaking expedition leaders will make it happen.

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