“Dear Aurora friends,

I’d like to tell you about a very special film, ‘The Great White Whale’, that Aurora Expeditions is proud to be partnering with for some upcoming cinema screenings.

Sixty years ago, a yellow schooner sailed from Sydney on a 4,000-kilometre journey through the roughest of seas, bound for Heard Island. Its brave passengers hoped to make the first ascent of the island’s icy volcano, Big Ben – Australia’s highest mountain. It is 500 metres higher than Kosciuszko. This expedition was decades ahead of its time, was captained by none other than the legendary Bill Tilman.

When I sailed from Sydney on another small boat some decades later, bound for an ascent of Mount Minto, we were inspired by these men. And inspired by earlier voyages of equally adventurous men, like Sir Douglas Mawson, who also happened to be the first Australian to extensively explore Heard Island.

It was this same spirit of adventure that helped me to start Aurora Expeditions, so we could share these remarkable places with like-minded souls.

Late last year, my dear friend Michael Dillon, who filmed our 1984 Everest Expedition, showed me his almost completed film about the voyage of that little yellow boat. Even in its unfinished state his film was brilliant, winning the Grand Prize at the International Mountain Film Festival in Bilbao Spain. It has since won many other International and Australian awards.

I really recommend seeing this brilliant film, for its wonderful music score, its unforgettable characters, its humour and the incredible story it tells.

Hopefully it will afford the chance to catch up with old friends from past voyages and inspire us all to do more ocean adventuring of our own.”