I have been obsessed for years with Artic explorers! Why, I wonder? Maybe the horror, the terror, the bravery matched with British courage and nobility and their admiration of amateurism in the classic sense.. Although, of course, I adore Shackelton as well.
I am there too!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Francis_Hall
When I was a child, there was a special on Charles Francis Hall, an American explorer who was looking for Franklin, but, ended up leading an expedition that sailed up to “almost” the Arctic ocean, going up the west coast of Greenland.
While there, he slowly sickened and died. Supposedly his last words were “How do you spell ‘Murder’?”
He was buried in the permafrost and (the point of the special) his body was found and analyzed. He had massive doses of arsenic in his system. Either he was taking some quack medicine (considered unlikely by his friends), or, he was poisoned by the ships doctor.
After that, I read what I could about Franklin, whenever I could.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Falcon_Scott
At the bottom of this article there is a discussion about the revision of Scott’s reputation.
A cruise thru’ the North West passage is about to finish!
A thrill for me on a cruise a few years ago was our stop in Oslo where I got to see,and board,the famous polar ship Fram.