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• 'A pretty fantastic challenge'
• Unexplored territory
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SCOTT'S BASE CAMP, Antarctica (CNN) -- Three adventurers, including the son of Sir Edmund Hillary, have embarked on a 100-day trek across the bottom of the world -- the frozen peaks of Antarctica -- in an attempt to recreate the ill-fated 1911 expedition of British explorer Robert Falcon Scott.

Dragging sleds with their provisions, the three set out Wednesday for what aims to be the longest unsupported ice trek of the century. They plan to ski nearly 1,875 miles (3,017 kilometers) from New Zealand's Antarctic Scott Base to the South Pole and back with no outside assistance.

The group's progress can be followed on the Internet at a Web site that includes biographies, maps and photographs plus video and audio clips.

Scott and his team of four men, who set out with ponies and sled-dogs, died of starvation and weakness only a few miles from a supply dump, and just days from journey's end. The animals also died.

This time, New Zealander Peter Hillary, the son of the man who conquered Mount Everest, and Australians Jon Muir and Eric Philips are banking on modern technology to see them through the adventure, which is expected to take about 100 days.

Their gear includes super-lightweight equipment, an Iridium satellite telephone and paraglider-style kites.

The three departed early Wednesday, watched by 60 staff members from Scott Base and the nearby U.S. base, McMurdo Station. The men were delayed several days by a driving wind, but Wednesday's weather was calm with the temperature a relatively mild 11 degrees below zero.

"An unsupported return trip has never been accomplished. ... It looks like a pretty fantastic challenge to take on,'" Hillary said.

"Going one way to the Pole is like being helicoptered off the summit of a mountain. You've got to get there and back," said Hillary, who, like his father, has climbed Mount Everest, the world's tallest peak.

Each member of the group will haul 396 pounds (180 kilograms) of food, fuel and equipment on the trip.

Some areas the team plans to trek, such as the 88-mile-long (142 km) Shackleton Glacier, are thought never to have been crossed before. They expect that using the route will speed up their journey.

"The crevasse fields are intimidating; I think of them as human mousetraps," Hillary said. But team member Muir described the trio's mental attitude as healthy.

With tail winds, the quadrofoil kites will allow the men to double their speed, mostly on the return trip. They hope to average 9 mph to 15 mph (14-24 km/h) with the kites.

Blizzard conditions could delay them up to a week at a time, and Hillary said they are relying on the kites to help make that up. He described the odyssey across the frozen southern continent as a mix of "Old World expeditionary values" and modern know-how.

"We will be man-hauling our sleds most of the way ... so many aspects of the expedition will be very similar to those (Scott) had. Let's face it, Antarctica hasn't changed," Hillary said.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.