Young Explorers have been needed since the time expeditions began. In early Europe and America the youngest explorers were called "cabin boys." Of course girls are young explorers as well!
Throughout the areas of Unicornia Isle and Northeastern Greenland, young girls and boys have been key parts of entire expeditions. Navarana, for instance, is the famous Inuit girl who was a highly valued team member of the Thule Expeditions. She expertly cared for the sled dogs, clothing, food and equipment and was heavily relied upon for the team's survival. Navarana was thirteen years old when she went on her first Thule expedition. The famous explorer Peter Fruechen not only valued Navarana as a teammate, they later fell in love and married. (See Wikipedia).
Navarana and Peter Fruechen Thule, Greenland 1910
Henry Collins Walsh is the founding member of the Artic Club of America (1894) and nominal founder of The Explorers Club, New York City (1904). He took an expedition from New York City to Greenland on the ship Miranda, to map the glaciers of Greenland and visit the Peary camp.
Henry Walsh took Carl Garrison who was "a boy of but thirteen years of age." Henry writes of Carl saying, "through all our various trials, dangers, and rough experiences he showed a courage and discretion far beyond his years and accepted all manner of hardships with cheerfulness and calm philosophy." (Henry Collins Walsh, The Last Cruise of The Miranda, pages 12-13).
Drawing of Ship Miranda in Greenland, Late 1800's.
Peter Fruechen's partner in the Thule Expeditions is Knud Rasmussen. In 1908 in a weeklong journey by dogsled Knud took as his only teammate a twelve year old boy named Ajako. This started Ajako's career as an explorer. Ajako later became "a famous adventurer who accompanied Rasmussen on several lengthy journeys." (Stephen R. Brown, White Eskimo, Knud Rasmussen's Fearless Journey into the Heart of the Artic).
In todays modern world of exploration we have advanced technology, such as satellite vision. We have far easier modes of transportation such as cars, trains and airplanes. Therefore young explorers can start an expedition at a far younger age than twelve.
