Macdonald & Lawrence Timber Framing Ltd.

The classic age of heroic geographic discovery may be over. Airplanes and satellites have made the world a very accessible place so super-human strength and endurance are no longer required to reach isolated places.

But Gordon Macdonald, a Cobble Hill carpenter specializing in historical restoration, is determined this passing of an age remains marked by preserving a monument to a giant among the heroic explorers and a personal hero of his own - Sir Ernest Shackleton.

He has recently returned from a trip to the Antarctic where he was part of a team restoring the hut used by Shackleton in his 1907 to 1909 'Nimrod Expedition,' named after the ship that took them there.

While he was there he met visitors like Sir Edmund Hillary, who can also be counted as a heroic explorer in his own right, being one of the first people to reach the summit of Mount Everest (May 29,1953). Hillary has always taken a keen interest in Antarctic exploration, and happens to be another longtime hero of the 40-year-old Macdonald.

That was a highlight of the trip for me, he said.

Macdonald said he has always been fascinated by tales of heroic exploration, in particular Antarctic explorers like Shackleton. These were men who were willing to spend years of their lives in some of the world's most inhospitable locations and endure some of the worst torment, to achieve their goals. These were tough, tough guys, he said.

Gordon Macdonald

Macdonald said he first heard of the expedition to repair Shackleton's hut while working in England. He immediately sought out the New-Zealand based Antarctic Heritage Trust, the group organizing the trip, and offered his services as a specialist in traditional carpentry and the restoration of heritage buildings.

On Dec. 28 he flew to Christchurch, N.Z., and boarded the one ship headed each year to the Antarctic. Macdonald was there until Feb. 9.

He said the hut used by Shackleton, one of a number of buildings, was actually constructed in England, an early pre-fabricated construction effort. And it cost then the considerable sum of 158 pounds, which in those days could buy someone a respectable house.

Its walls were insulated with shredded cork but, surprisingly, no attempt was made to insulate the ceiling or roof.

Despite what seems like a huge oversight - heat after all rises and would escape through the ceiling and roof - the hut has a nice feel, or vibe to it. Other buildings exist, including two built by expeditions led by the ill-fated Robert Scott, but they don't have the same warmth.

Macdonald put this down partly to the success of Shackleton's expedition and the fact he lost no men during the Nimrod trip.

This place, it really is a place of success, he said.

Macdonald also recounted Hillary's own reaction when he first walked into the hut. Opening the door Hillary was met with a vision of Shackleton himself, rising and walking toward him, arm outstretched to shake his hand.

There is also almost all the gear taken on the expedition still intact and still in the hut, including things like scientific instruments, clothing, sleeping bags and boots.

These items were all left behind by a party of men who decided they had served their purposes and it made more sense to leave them. But for visitors to what is now considered a World Monument they make the place an artifact-filled treasure trove.

Macdonald said working on the hut was like working on a museum.

He said the Antarctic climate, sub-zero for most of the year, means there is no bacteria or fungus to rot the wood in the hut. But relentless winds pick up the volcanic ash from the nearby Mount Erebus and fling it at the structure. It's like sandblasting anything that is there. It just scours the wood, said Macdonald.

He agrees few people are likely to visit the Antarctic. Tourism is growing, however. Ten years ago the people who had visited the continent could be measured in a few thousand. Now 2,000 people a year make the pilgrimage.

But Macdonald believes preserving a structure like Shackleton's goes beyond its worth to visitors. It is about preserving and paying mindfulness to an age of true heroes. Their value is iconic, they have a relationship to these historic tales, said Macdonald.