To the ends of the Earth: Announcing Ben Saunders as our new Scout Adventurer

Ben, who was a Scout as a young person, holds several records for his polar exploits, including the longest solo Arctic journey and longest human powered polar journey in history – at 1,795 miles.

In 2013–14, Ben successfully completed the route to the South Pole and back that defeated both Captain Scott and Sir Ernest Shackleton in the early 20^th century. Having stood at both the North and South poles, he’s a genuine trailblazer in the world of exploration and adventure, and is now a sought after speaker, writer and consultant, while also planning new adventures.

A Fellow of the Royal Geographic Society, he’s supported several charities over the years, including Scouts at a local level. He’s now looking forward to sharing his stories and insights at a national level with young people and volunteers, inspiring the next generation of adventurers.  

‘Adventure is central to everything I’ve done,’ says Ben, ‘and the lessons which set me on that path we learnt in Scouts. I want to encourage and inspire other people to live more adventurously. This doesn’t mean going on expeditions – but just being a bit braver. We are all astronauts on the same bit of rock flying at 66,000 miles an hour round the sun, and if that isn’t an extraordinary, shared adventure then I don’t know what is!’

Ben also has some fond memories of being a Scout himself: ‘We used to do wide games, which I loved. Some of the best things we did were pioneering competitions with poles and ropes to see how high we could get a person off the ground. Scouts was definitely the highlight of the week.’  

Read our interview with Ben, and join him for a special Scouts Facebook Live at 6.30pm on Thursday 25 March on our Facebook page. 

Find out more about Ben: bensaunders.com and @polarben