what do explorers do?
I have been musing recently on a definition for what counts as modern exploration. At first I got into the idea that it was all about finding new things- lost cities, river sources, forgotten tribes. But then there were all those polar explorers who only really found new routes. Or new ways of following old routes. And this made me realise that all the sexy things explorers find are like the cream on the cake, the real substance is the new route.
Explorers find new ways to get from A to B. They are the modern version of the guide figure for a tribe of hunter gatherers seeking out new pastures. Explorers sometimes find new stuff along the way. But sometimes they don’t. No lost cities in the Antarctic.
This is why there will be always be explorers. Because there are an infinite number of ways to get from A to B.