When Patrick Soprovich and Sabrina Clark plan to travel south in the winter, they aren’t thinking of warm, sandy beaches.

Rather, the former Vanier Catholic Secondary School graduates have their sights set on being part of a major expedition that will take them to the Antarctic.

They are continuing to raise funds for the Dec. 26 to Jan. 8 journey after being accepted into the Students On Ice program.

At a cost of more than $14,000 per person, the two deferred their participation in the program last year to raise enough money to go.

An earlier online auction, crowd-sourcing at indiegogo and a public presentation scheduled for tomorrow evening at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre are all part of the effort by the pair to both raise funds and let people know about the program.

Students On Ice provides an Arctic and Antarctic expedition each year. Approximately 70 high school and university students from around the world take part in each program where they are joined by artists, scientists, musicians and others looking at the two regions.

As it states on the studentsonice.com site: “Each day will be filled with exploration, discovery, presentations, workshops, hands-on research, hikes and lots of adventure!

“Activities will include wildlife encounters, a visit to a research station, as well as first-hand knowledge and insight into the dynamics of climate change, the rich Antarctic biodiversity, the importance of the Antarctic Treaty, scientific research, policy, and other important Antarctic and global topics.”

This year’s session will begin with two days of pre-travel activities in Argentina to connect the students and staff who will be part of the voyage. The expedition will journey to Elephant Island and learn of the region’s importance to Sir Ernest Shackleton’s 1913 expedition.

An abandoned whaling station and dormant volcano will also be visited as part of the journey there.

A number of Yukoners – including musician Remy Rodden and a number of local students – have taken part in the program and made public presentations about their experience following the expedition.

Wednesday’s event at the Beringia centre will feature a presentation about the program, including the experience of past participants like Rodden. It’s set to begin at 7 p.m.

Involved in the experiential science programs offered at the Wood Street Centre as well as a number of extra-curricular activities focused on the environment, Clarke said she’d heard about Students On Ice from a number of former participants who urged her to apply.

“It felt like a pretty natural fit,” she said.

While she’ll soon be entering her second year at Montreal’s McGill University studying chemical engineering, she doesn’t know yet exactly where her career may lead. She’s hoping to be able to tie in her Students On Ice experience with her future career.

Soprovich is studying biology and chemistry at Dalhousie University. He applied to the Students On Ice program after he learned Clarke, who he knew in high school, had been accepted.

Like Clarke, he said he wants to come away with as much knowledge of the Antarctic and climate change as he can.

He also said he hopes to advocate for its protection armed with that knowledge and use it as he moves through university and into his future career.

With the two set to be part of the same expedition they’ve been partnering on fund-raising efforts since last year, each hoping to have the $14,500 required for the journey by an Aug. 31 deadline.