antarctic explorers_ ernest shackleton

7/12/12 Antarctic Explorers: Ernest Shackleton

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Ernest H. Shackleton1874-1922

Ernest Henry Shackleton was born at Kilkea House, CountyKildare, on February 15, 1874. The Shackletons cameoriginally from Yorkshire. The founder of the family wasAbraham Shackleton, a Quaker, who moved to Ireland earlyin the eighteenth century and started a school at Ballitore,near Dublin. Henry Shackleton, Ernest's father, wasAbraham's direct descendant in the fourth generation. Henrytried to enter the army but his poor health prevented him.Becoming a farmer instead, he settled in the green, fertile,rolling fields of County Kildare at a place called Kilkea.Ernest's mother, born Henrietta Letitia Sophia Gavan,married Henry in 1872, bringing a touch of Irish blood into anotherwise pure Anglo-Irish lineage. Ernest's birth happenedto coincide with the disastrous potato crop failure, so mucha part of Irish history. This meant an agricultural depressionand difficult times for farmers. Henry Shackleton was asurvivalist and therefore abandoned his farm before it was toolate. At the age of 33, Henry left his farm to Trinity College inDublin and started a new career in medicine. In 1884, Dr.Shackleton crossed the water and settled in England. It wasin suburban London that Ernest Shackleton spent theremainder of his boyhood years. Ernest's mother becamemysteriously an invalid and remained so for the last fortyyears of her life. Dr. Shackleton, with help from his mother-in-law and various female relatives from Ireland, raisedErnest and the other children.

Until the age of eleven-and-a-half, Shackleton was educated at home by a governess. He then went toFir Lodge Preparatory School, down the road from his home, Aberdeen House, in West Hill. In 1887Ernest left Fir Lodge to go to Dulwich College. Henry desired for his son to enter the medical field butErnest would have no part of it. Longing for the sea, Ernest left Dulwich at the end of the Lent term in1890 and on April 19, at the age of sixteen, went to Liverpool and joined the full rigger HOGHTONTOWER, owned by the North Western Shipping Company of Liverpool. Ernest's first experience at seabelongs to sailor's folklore. The HOGHTON TOWER was bound for Valparaiso round Cape Horn. Theyreached Cape Horn in the middle of winter and fought against storms for nearly two months before finallyrounding the Cape. Battered by the seas, the HOGHTON TOWER reached Valparaiso in the middle ofAugust. From there she sailed for Iquique, Chile where for six weeks she loaded nitrates. TheHOGHTON TOWER returned to Liverpool at the end of April, 1891, with food and water running out. Itwas a hard, difficult trip, especially for a sixteen-year-old old novice. Shackleton went on to spend fiveyears sailing to and from the Far East and America. In 1896, without much difficulty, Shackletonpassed for First Mate. In April 1898, he was certified as Master. At the age of twenty-four he hadqualified to command a British ship anywhere on the seven seas.

In the summer of 1897, Shackleton met and became attracted to one of his sisters' friends, EmilyDorman. Ernest had just returned from a voyage to Japan aboard the FLINTSHIRE when he met the tall,dark-haired young woman "with a good figure". At the end of 1898, the FLINTSHIRE ran aground near



Middlesbrough which gave him the opportunity to take leave for 24-hours in order to go home for hisfather's birthday on January 1. On the way, he stopped and visited The Firs, where Emily lived, and forthe first time Ernest was seriously in love. Shackleton had enough of tramping to the East. To improvehis standing with Emily and her father, he left the Welsh Shire Line and, early in 1899, took a positionwith the Union Castle Line.

The Union Castle Line belonged to the lete of the merchant service. The ships were immaculate, fromtheir red and black funnels to their red boot topping. Used to carry mails between England and SouthAfrica, it was the next best thing to the navy. The brasswork glistened as officers paraded in navy blueand gold braid across the decks. As a bonus, the Union Castle Line meant coming home regularlyevery two months instead of long and undetermined absences aboard a tramper. It was an idealitinerary: down the Solent from Southampton, round the bulge of Africa, across the Bight of Benin, intothe docks at Cape Town and back...six thousand miles each way. By December, promoted to ThirdOfficer, Shackleton was transferred to the TINTAGEL CASTLE which was hauling troops to the Capesince, in October 1899, the Boer War had broken out. During the summer of 1900, Shackleton was inLondon on leave, seeing Emily when he could. Then, on September 13, Shackleton wrote to volunteerfor the National Antarctic Expedition (commanded by Robert Falcon Scott), which was in the process ofbeing organized. Four days later he visited the expedition offices in person to press home his desires. Ajournalist later asked Shackleton where he got the notion to become an explorer and Ernest responded,"I think it came to me during my first voyage...I felt strangely drawn towards the mysterious south...werounded Cape Horn in the depth of winter. It was one continuous blizzard all the way...Yet many a time,even in the midst of all this discomfort, my thoughts would go out to the southward...But strangelyenough, the circumstance which actually determined me to become an explorer was a dream I hadwhen I was twenty-two. We were beating out to New York from Gibraltar, and I dreamt I was standing onthe bridge in mid-Atlantic and looking northward. It was a simple dream. I seemed to vow to myself thatsome day I would go to the region of ice and snow and go on and on till I came to one of the poles ofthe earth, the end of the axis upon which this great round ball turns". In March, 1900, Shackleton wason his second trooping voyage to South Africa in the TINTAGEL CASTLE when he met CedricLongstaff, a lieutenant in the East Surrey Regiment. Longstaff's father, Llewellyn, happened to be theprincipal benefactor of the National Antarctic Expedition...he had donated 25,000 to make theexpedition possible. Shackleton persuaded Cedric Longstaff to give him an introduction to his father.

The summer of 1900 was filled with uncertainty. Ernest's brother, Frank, was commissioned in theRoyal Irish Fusiliers, bound for South Africa to take part in the final days, so it seemed, of the war. Butfront-page news was Carsten Borchgrevink, recently returned from the Antarctic where he was the firstman to winter on the Antarctic continent. Shackleton's romantic imagination ran wild as he went downto Wimbledon to meet Llewellyn Longstaff. Like Shackleton, Mr. Longstaff was a Fellow of the RoyalGeographic Society and, besides, would always welcome anyone who had recently seen his son. Hewas overwhelmed by Shackleton's personality. When Shackleton asked his help in joining theexpedition, Longstaff could hardly refuse. As Shackleton returned to sea, Longstaff made it clear to SirClements Markham that he wanted Shackleton accepted for the expedition. Sir Clements told Scottwho promptly passed the matter on to Albert Armitage as he simply "had no time to attend to it". Earlyin March 1901, Shackleton returned to Southampton on the CARISBROOK CASTLE to find himselfpart of the National Antarctic Expedition. Shackleton would depart with Scott on the historicDISCOVERY EXPEDITION to Antarctica later that summer. (NOTE: the story of the National AntarcticExpedition is written, in detail, under the chapter devoted to Robert Falcon Scott).

Shackleton became seriously ill on Scott's southern sledge journey, midway through the expedition,and had to be invalided home aboard the relief ship MORNING. As Bernacchi, with Scott's DISCOVERYEXPEDITION noted, Shackleton was "deeply disappointed & would give anything to remain. Althougheveryone is so anxious to return this year with the DISCOVERY few are so poor spirited as to wish toreturn in the MORNING". On June 12,1903, after convalescing in New Zealand, Shackleton landed inEngland. A huge scandal had broken out about the affairs of the DISCOVERY EXPEDITION. It seemseveryone was upset about Scott remaining for a second winter in the Antarctic. The organizers hadexplicitly said that under no circumstances was Scott to stay for a second year...it would be consideredprofessional incompetence to allow the DISCOVERY to be frozen in, risking being crushed by the ice.Sir Clements sent a telegram to Shackleton: "The Admiralty will undertake rescue of Discovery.Committee appointed. Come to me. I wish to consult you". The expedition organizers wantedShackleton to sail out as chief officer on the TERRA NOVA to assist the MORNING, if necessary, toget Scott and his men back home. Shackleton declined as, according to Armitage, "he meant to returnand prove to Scott 'that he---Shackleton---was a better man than Scott' ". Besides, Emily had now



agreed to marry him. Meanwhile, early in October Shackleton visited Sir Clements Markham, inMarkhams' words, with "full plans for another expedition". Sir Clements discouraged him andShackleton went on to join the staff of Royal Magazine as a journalist. On January 11, 1904, after a longand nerve-racking wait, Shackleton found himself elected to the desired post of secretary to the RoyalScottish Geographical Society. He now had a full-time job and, as he wrote to Emily, "I am so happydearest thinking about all the times which are to be in the future...we do want to settle down and haveour own house at last after all these years of waiting". In London, on April 9, Ernest Shackleton andEmily Dorman were married at Christchurch, Westminster. A week before the wedding the DISCOVERYreturned to New Zealand after her second season in the ice. The record southing, in which Shackletonhad participated, was still intact. When Shackleton walked up the aisle with Emily he was still one ofthe men who had reached the Furthest South...no finer wedding present could have been given.

Shackleton discovered a new-found gift: public speaking. He made many acquaintances as secretaryand was soon asked to run for Parliament. On November 16, 1904, the Dundee Courier announced thatShackleton "is to uphold the Unionist cause in the next election". On February 2, 1905, Emily gave birthto their first child, a boy. This was exciting but, unfortunately, he had no income...in mid-January he hadresigned his position at the RSGS to further his political career. He subsequently finished in fourth placein the election. A time of uncertainty would prevail until early in 1907. On Monday, February 11,Shackleton was in London at the RGS. In the same room stood Roald Amundsen and FridtjofNansen...it was an extraordinary scene. Shackleton had come to ask for the support of the RGS andthe patronage of the King...he planned on spending the next winter in Antarctica and he only had sixmonths to prepare.

The NIMROD Expedition1907-09

In the Geographical Journal for March, 1907, Shackleton outlined his plans, some of whichsubsequently had to be changed. The expedition was expected to leave New Zealand at the beginningof 1908 and proceed to winter quarters on the Antarctic continent. Here the men and stores would belanded, followed quickly by the retreat of the ship to New Zealand to prevent her from being frozen in.Shackleton announced, "The shore-party of nine or twelve men will winter with sufficient equipment toenable three separate parties to start out in the spring. One party will go east, and, if possible, acrossthe Barrier to the new land known as King Edward VII Land, follow the coastline there south, if the coasttrends south, or north if north, returning when it is considered necessary to do so. The second party willproceed south over the same route as that of the southern sledge-party of the DISCOVERY; this partywill keep from fifteen to twenty miles from the coast, so as to avoid any rough ice. The third party willpossibly proceed westward over the mountains, and, instead of crossing in a line due west, will striketowards the magnetic Pole. The main changes in equipment will be that Siberian ponies will be taken forthe sledge journeys both east and south, and also a specially designed motor-car for the southernjourney...I do not intend to sacrifice the scientific utility of the expedition to a mere record-breakingjourney, but say frankly, all the same, that one of my great efforts will be to reach the southerngeographical Pole. I shall in no way neglect to continue the biological, meteorological, geological andmagnetic work of the DISCOVERY".

The first step was to secure an office in London. A furnished room at 9 Regent Street served asheadquarters of the expedition. The staff consisted of Mr. Alfred Reid, who had gained considerableexperience in connection with previous polar adventures, and a district messenger. Fortunately, therewas a typing office on the same floor which could deal with the correspondence which grew from day today. Shackleton secured estimates for the supplies from a number of different companies as he wantedthe best of everything possible. Shackleton stipulated that all the goods were to be delivered in Londonby June 15, for the ship was to leave England on June 30. As for the ship, Shackleton's first choice wasthe BJORN, owned by Mr. C. Christiansen. The BJORN was a new ship, built specially for polar work,but was simply too expensive to purchase. Instead, when Shackleton returned to London after visitingChristiansen in Sandyfjord, the purchase of the NIMROD was made. At the time, the NIMROD was on asealing venture, out of Newfoundland, but was expected to return very soon. The ship was small and oldand her maximum speed under steam was hardly more than six knots, but on the other hand, she wasstrongly built. The NIMROD did not return as soon as Shackleton expected and when she did arrive,



she had been somewhat damaged by the ice. She was inspected on Shackleton's behalf andpronounced sound. A rapid transit was made across the Atlantic and the ship arrived in the Thames onJune 15, 1907. Shackleton was very disappointed when he first inspected the ship; she was run downand smelt strongly of seal-oil. In addition, she required new caulking and masts. As work began on theNIMROD, Shackleton contracted Messrs. Humphreys, of Knightsbridge, to construct the hut in which tolive during the Antarctic winter. The hut would be shipped in sections aboard the NIMROD. It was madeof stout fir timbering of best quality in the walls, roofs and floors. The walls were strengthened with ironcleats bolted to main posts and horizontal timbering, and the roof was reinforced with iron tie rods. Thehut was lined with match-boarding and the walls and roof were covered first with strong felt, then one-inch tongued and grooved boards, followed by an additional covering of felt. Granulated cork was usedas insulation. The hut was to be erected on wooden piles, driven into the ice, with rings attached to theroof so that guy ropes could be used to give additional resistance to the gales.

"The personnel of an expedition of the character I proposed is a factor on which success depends to avery large extent. The men selected must be qualified for the work, and they must also have the specialqualifications required to meet polar conditions. They must be able to live together in harmony for a longperiod without outside communication, and it must be remembered that the men whose desires leadthem to the untrodden paths of the world have generally marked individuality", Shackleton wrote. The

staff:

SHORE PARTY

Sir Philip Brocklehurst, Bart., assistant geologist, and in charge of currentobservations.Bernard Day, electrician and motor expert.Ernest Joyce, in charge of general stores, dogs, sledges and zoological collections.Dr. A. F. Mackay, surgeon.Dr. Eric Marshall, surgeon, cartographer.G E. Marston, artist.James Murray, biologist.Raymond Priestley, geologist.William Roberts, cook.Frank Wild, in charge of provisions.

SHIP'S STAFF

Lieutenant Rupert England, R.H.R., Master.John K. Davis, first officer.A. L. A. Mackintosh, second officer.Dr. William Arthur Rupert Michell, surgeon.H. J. L. Dunlop, chief engineer.Alfred Cheetham, third officer and boatswain.

The work of preparing for the expedition was rapid and as the end ofJuly approached, the stores and equipment were loaded on board theNIMROD in readiness for the voyage to New Zealand. On July 30,1907, the NIMROD sailed from the East India Docks for Torquay. The



first night was spent at Greenhithe and on the morning of the 31st theship continued for Torquay. A detour was made when a tug overtookthe NIMROD and conveyed news that the King and Queen wished tocome on board to inspect the ship and equipment on Sunday,August 4. By Sunday, the ship was anchored at Cowes, and theirMajesties, the King and Queen, their Royal Highnesses the Prince ofWales, the Princess Victoria, Prince Edward and the Duke ofConnaught came on board. The King presented Shackleton with theVictorian Order and the Queen presented him with a Union Jack tocarry on the southern sledge journey. The NIMROD sailed forTorquay early the next morning and arrived there on August 6.Farewell dinner and drinks were ingested that evening and on themorning of Wednesday, August 7, the ship sailed for New Zealand.

After calling at St. Vincent and Cape Town, the NIMROD arrived atLyttelton, New Zealand, on November 23. The Commonwealth Governmentgave Shackleton 5000 and the New Zealand Government another 1,000which allowed Shackleton to increase the number of the shore party andadd additional equipment. The New Zealand Government also agreed to payhalf the cost of towing the NIMROD down to the Antarctic circle so thatcoal could be saved. At 4 P.M. on January 1, 1908, the lines were cast offfrom the wharf and the NIMROD was off for the south. Thousands watchedand cheers broke out as the NIMROD passed the United States' magneticsurvey ship GALILEE. With the KOONYA steaming in front, Shackletonmoved up close to her stern and hauled in the 4-inch wire cable to be usedto tow the NIMROD south.

Everything went well until the third of January. As Mackintosh wrote, "Atruly miserable day and night: everything upside down, nearly every oneseasick. We exchanged signals with the KOONYA occasionally--thisafternoon she enquired how our passengers were faring? We replied andtold her that 'there were 20 seasick, but all cheerful'. It's blowing strongfrom S.W. with quite a tidy sea and swell". The weather moderated thenext day but some of the crew were still very ill; Marshall, Mawson andPriestley being the worst. The first pony was lost on January 6. "Doctor" fellover onto his back in a very awkward manner. Try as they might, the pooranimal could not get up so it was shot.

Gales accompanied the ships on the journey south and on January 14 the first iceberg was sighted. Thenext day the pack ice was sighted off the starboard bow extending all the way to the port bow. A shorttime later the NIMROD was on her own as the KOONYA'S tow-line was cast off.

After navigating through dense clusters of bergs, the NIMROD entered the Ross Sea on January 16, thefirst ship to do so without the vessel having been held up by pack-ice. January 17 found them at7043'S, 17858'E. The NIMROD skirted the Barrier until January 25 at which time Shackleton gave upall hope of reaching King Edward VII Land. The pack-ice was too thick as well as being interspersedwith giant icebergs. It seemed impossible to reach land, and the shortness of coal, the leaky conditionof the ship, and the absolute necessity of landing all the stores and putting up the hut before the vesselleft them made the situation extremely anxious for Shackleton. Fearing becoming trapped in the ice,Shackleton could see no option other than steering for McMurdo Sound. At 8 P.M. she turned to thewest and on January 28 they entered McMurdo Sound. Around midnight, the frozen sea stopped themsome 20 miles short of Hut Point; the ice anchor was dropped and made fast to the floe. Shackletondecided to lay off the ice-foot for a few days to give Nature a chance to break up the ice. Meanwhile, onthe evening of the 29th, the sides and top of the motor-car case were removed and the wheels put onthe car. On the 30th most of the beams of the pony shelter were removed so the ponies could beremoved without difficulty at a moments notice. Most of them were in very poor shape and one,"Nimrod", had to be shot.

The voyage had been without accident until the morning of the 31st. The entire



crew was busy unpacking the stores from the after-hatch, preparatory tolanding them, when a hook on the tackle slipped and, swinging suddenlyacross the deck, struck Mackintosh in the right eye. He fell to the deck ingreat pain but was able, in a few minutes, to walk to England's cabin whereMarshall examined him. It was clear that the eye must be removed soMarshall, assisted by Michell and Mackay, administered chloroform toMackintosh and removed the eye.

At 9:30 P.M. on February 3, the ship was fast alongside the ice foot off HutPoint Peninsula. The offloading began with the motor car the first thing to goover the side. By February 12th, the stores were safely ashore. Thetemperatures were now consistently below -10F. The NIMRODS' masts "weregrey with the frozen spray and the bows were a coat of mail". At 10:45 P.M. onFebruary 22, the NIMROD headed northward and arrived at Port Chalmers,New Zealand, on March 6, 1908.

It took a few more weeks to transform the hut from an emptyshell to a fully furnished and functional lodging. The fifteenmen had to eat, sleep, work, worry, talk and meet all theirsocial needs for their time in Antarctica in the tiny hut.Shackleton had his own space while two men each sharedthe seven other cubicles.

The meteorologist, Jameson Adams, set to work building ameteorological screen on a hill near the hut to measure airtemperature, wind speed / direction and evaporation.Measurements were taken nearly round the clock as Adamstook them from 8 am to 8 PM and the night watchman tookthe 10 PM to 6 am shift. Douglas Mawson built ananemometer on the tallest ridge; wind speed was frequentlyrecorded above 100 mph. Professor Edgeworth David made asnow gauge from spare stove and chimney parts.

Evaporation was measured by hanging measured cubes of snow and ice from rods projecting from thewall of the hut. Sometimes wind direction could be tracked by monitoring the steam plume coming fromMount Erebus. The biologist, James Murray, built a sledge which could be lowered through a crack inthe ice and pulled along the bottom which scooped up a vast variety of small fish, crustacean and othermarine animals. Oddly to Murray, the fish and other animals would freeze before he could get back tothe hut but, once thawed out, they would spring back to life.

As the sun began to set in March, tiny details of the daily routine became major events. The weatherwas an important factor of everyday life; in a blizzard the chores of emptying dishwater and ashes andgetting fresh ice became small feats of endurance. Night watchmans' duties were rotated every twoweeks. Two men were exempted from these duties: Roberts, who was the cook, and Sir PhilipBrocklehurst, whose toes were still black with frostbite (one later amputated by Marshall) after his climbof Mount Erebus. (NOTE: The successful ascent of Mount Erebus was one of the first accomplishmentsof the expedition. Six men, among them Douglas Mawson, measured the crater. They quicklydescended by sliding down the 5000 feet in four hours). The others tended to their specialties: Adamswound the chronometers, checked instruments and did other meteorological work; Marshall, thesurgeon, tended to medical needs and exercised ponies; Wild, the storekeeper, issued food to thecook, opened the cases of tinned food and dug the meat out of the snowdrifts (penguin, seal or mutton);Joyce fed the dogs and trained them for sledge-pulling; David spent time on geological studies;Priestley and Murray worked at dredging; Mawson studied the aurora, ice structures and measuredatmospheric electricity.

By midwinter, activity had declined to a lazy pace, as compared to the torrid one set earlier. Most of themen now stayed up late and Professor David, more of a late-night person than the others, organized an11 o'clock tea. Nearly all were sound asleep by 1 am. First up at 7:30 am would be Roberts, to startbreakfast, and Armitage, to feed the ponies. At 8:30 am the rest would get up and at 8:45 the table waslowered from the roof. At 9:00 they all sat down to porridge and hot milk. Occasionally a second coursewould follow consisting of bottled fruit and tea, followed by a smoke. Lunch was at 1:00 PM and dinner



was at 6:45 sharp. On birthdays and midwinter's day (June 21), they broke the rules and celebrated withwhat Shackleton described as "a sort of mild spree". Optimism was high through the six-month night."We were all busy and there was little cause for us to find the time hung heavy on our hands; the wintermonths sped by". Evidently, the men were actually thrilled when winter ended since they were obviouslygetting on each others' nerves. One night, as Marshall writes, Wild "showed sign of being drunk, & wasanxious to make a row, but after a little while persuaded him to turn in. Was seriously thinking of gettinghim outside to give me a hand with the ponies & then giving him a damn good hammering, as he wasbecoming very talkative and objectionable & Shacks was evidently afraid to come out and stop him,although awake and hearing all said". At the beginning of August, Mackay suddenly went for Roberts,the cook, with whom he shared a cubicle. It seems that Roberts put his feet on Mackay's chest to laceup his boots. Mackay, much bigger and stronger, tried to wring Robert's neck and may have succeededif Mawson, who was bigger and stronger still, hadn't stepped in. In Priestley's words, it was "luckyevidently that the Winter (was) almost over instead of just beginning". In Marshall's version, Shackletonwas "in a regular panic about it & threatens he will shoot (Mackay). This is the 2nd time he has said(so). He is so easily frightened that he is not to be trusted with a pistol...Mac quite all right but slightlyeccentric & quick tempered".

Spring arrived and the plans, worked out over the winter, were ready to be launched. Shackleton,Adams, Marshall and Wild would head south for the Pole, a 1700-mile trek; Edgeworth David (aged 50)would lead the Northern Party on a 1260-mile journey towards the South Magnetic Pole, with Mackay(aged 30) and Mawson (aged 26) as teammates. The Northern Party had no experience of polarexploration. They would have to pull sledges and supplies without the help of dogs or ponies. At thestart, they used the motor car to establish two depots 10 and 15 miles from the hut on Cape Royds. OnSeptember 25 the engine overheated and they actually had to wait in the blistering cold for it to cooldown. When the party finally left winter quarters the next day, Mackay's wrist was in a sling after anaccident with the car's starter. It seemed a rather ominous beginning to a journey into the unknown withthe doctor's arm in a sling! By November 1 they were becoming worried at the rate the rations werediminishing. Appetite consumed them but by November 5 they limited themselves to one plasmonbiscuit each for breakfast and dinner, discovering in the process that "we had never before fully realisedhow very nice those plasmon biscuits were". The three explorers used the traditional method for dividingfood: the cook would put three biscuits on the cooker cover, then point to one, asking one of the otherswith his back turned, "Whose?" By this means there would be no opportunity to create a squabble overwho was getting the biggest portion. In the beginning, no attention was paid to the crumbs; by earlyNovember they were breaking their biscuits over their pannikins to make sure they left no preciouscrumbs. Even their conversation was dominated by food as David wrote, "We could discuss nothing butthe different dishes with which we had been regaled in our former lifetime at various famous restaurantsand hotels".

On December 11, a mile short of the Drygalski Ice Tongue, David fell into a crevasse only 20 feet fromtheir tent. He managed to save himself, catching the edge on either side but needed Mawson'sassistance, with an ice ax, to pull him out. The next day it was Mackay's turn. While hunting foremperor penguins he fell through an ice bridge up to his waist in water. On December 20, Mawson hada brush with death. David heard a "slight crash" and noticed that Mawson had disappeared. David andMackay found him dangling over a deep crevasse, suspended by his harness attached to the sledgerope. Mawson, ever the curious scientist, took the opportunity to inspect the ice crystals on thecrevasse wall. David wrote, "After this episode we were extra cautious in crossing the crevasses, butthe ice was simply seamed with them. Twice when our sledge was being dragged up ice-pressureridges it rolled over sideways with one runner in a crevasse and once the whole sledge all butdisappeared into a crevasse...Had it gone down completely it would certainly have dragged the three ofus down with it, as it weighed nearly one-third of a ton".

On Christmas day, David and Mawson offered Mackay, who was suffering from snow-blindness, somesennegrass--dried Norwegian grass they used to line their boots--as substitute pipe tobacco. It was theonly gift they had to offer. The sun and cold temperatures constantly wreaked havoc with the men.Mawson's right cheek and the tip of David's nose were frostbitten while the sun burned David's hands.The cold stripped skin from their lips and Mawson woke each morning with his mouth glued shut fromcongealed blood. As they neared the magnetic pole, David wrote, "The heavy runners of the sledgerustled gently as they crushed the crystals by the thousand". On January 15,1909, Mawson's compasswas only 15 minutes off the vertical.



L to R: Mackay, Dav id, Mawson

The men depoted most of the heavy gear and set out on aforced march to the pole. Arriving a short time later, Davidand Mackay planted a flagpole at the spot. The three menbared their heads, hoisted the Union Jack and posed in frontof the camera which David triggered with a string. David said,"I hearby take possession of this area now containing theMagnetic Pole for the British Empire" and then gave threecheers for His Majesty King Edward VII. They were awfullytired but still managed to march back to the depot (24 miles)where they slept soundly knowing that they had indeedaccomplished their objective. Now they just had to find away to stay alive.

They calculated that in order to reach the Drygalski depotand signal the NIMROD on time, they would need to averagenearly 17 miles a day from January 17 to February 1. OnFebruary 5, 1909, they were within one mile of the Drygalskidepot. With the NIMROD nowhere in sight, their attentionwas turned to the possibility of striking out for Ross Island.About this time two sudden explosions were heard in thedistance. Mawson screamed, "A gun from the ship!" andscrambled out of the tent. Mackay and David followed closebehind and as they emerged, Mawson was already 300 feetaway. Mawson turned and shouted, "Bring something towave!" David grabbed a rucksack and "as I ran forward thistime, what a sight met my gaze.

There was the dear old NIMROD, not a quarter of a mile away, steaming straight towards us up theinlet..." Mackay shouted to the ship, "Mawson has fallen down a crevasse, and we got to the MagneticPole!" By the afternoon the men were enjoying tea aboard the NIMROD. Later they enjoyed their firstbath in over four months, followed by a wonderful dinner. As the men went to bed, David wrote, "Nonebut those whose bed for months has been on snow and ice can realise the luxury of a real bunk,blankets and pillow, in a snug little cabin". They had traveled 1260 miles with no dogs or ponies in thecoldest place on earth. Upon completion of the trek, David felt they could have done it in half the timewith a team of dogs. "We pioneered a route to the magnetic pole and we hope that the path thus foundwill prove of use to future observers".

As for Shackleton and the South Pole crew, their journey began at 10 am, under a cloudless sky withthe wind at their backs, on October 29, 1908. At lunchtime, one of the Manchurian ponies, "Grisi",kicked Adams just below the kneecap and exposed the bone. This was not a good beginning. Even thelight played tricks with them. When clouds and mist blocked the sun, they could see no shadows. As aresult, ledges, mounds and gullies disappeared into a dead, flat white plain. Crevasses were difficult tospot. Covered only by fragile snowcrust, they were often so deep they could not see the bottom norhear an echo from an object they dropped into them. On November 5 Wild, Adams, Marshall and "Grisi"were all rescued from crevasses---Marshall twice. Three days later Marshall and Wild pitched their tentright next to an unseen crevasse. The next day another pony slipped into an abyss and was fortunatelysaved from the brink of death. As with David and his men, Shackleton's party also experienced deephunger. Three weeks out Shackleton complained in his diary about the size of their rations...if they werethis hungry now, what will it be like "later when we are really hungry?" They shot "Chinaman", theweakest pony, on November 21, ate some of the meat and laid a depot with the rest for when theyreturned. Adams, unable to sleep for days from a toothache, let Marshall extract it without the use oftooth-pulling equipment. After 29 days, on November 26, they passed the previous "furthest south"record set by Robert Scott in 1902. In early December two more ponies were shot. Shackleton, with hissoft heart for animals, believed he heard the last pony, "Socks", whinnying "all night for his lostcompanions". They started eating pony maize. Shackleton remained optimistic, reporting on December11 that, "Difficulties are just things to overcome, after all". Christmas was celebrated at 9500 feet withplum pudding, medical brandy, cocoa, a spoonful of crme de menthe and cigars. They still had 250miles between themselves and the pole, with only three weeks' biscuits left. "Tomorrow we will throw



away everything except the most absolute necessities", Shackleton wrote. "Everytime we reach the topof a ridge we say 'perhaps this is the last', but it never is the last", he wrote. On December 27th theyreached the polar plateau at an altitude of 10,200 feet. The weather was severe as a strong headwindchilled them to the bone. On December 30 a blizzard held them to only 4 miles traveling. They wereweak from a lack of food and their hands and feet were always on the verge of frostbite. By January 2,1909, Shackleton was near the breaking point. "I cannot think of failure yet. I must look at the mattersensibly and consider the lives of those who are with me...man can only do his best..." Two days laterhe wrote, "The end is in sight. We can only go for three more days at the most, for we are weakeningrapidly". They fought through a blizzard on January 4, 5 and 6. On January 7, only 100 miles from thepole, a howling blizzard kept them in their sleeping bags all day. It was the same on January 8. The endof their southern journey began at 4 am on January 9. They left the sledge, tent and food at the campand took only the Union Jack, a brass cylinder containing stamps and documents to mark their farthestsouth, camera, glasses and a compass. Their farthest south was reached at 9 am: 8823'S, longitude162--just 97 miles from the South Pole.

Farthest South: Janurary 9, 1909

They planted the flag, stayed a few minutes, and then turnedround and headed for home. The strong winds which workedagainst them on their trip south now helped them on theirreturn. For two weeks they traveled quickly with the sledgerushing, under sail, down ice falls and over crevasses. Oneday, January 19, they made 29 miles. By the morning ofJanuary 26 they had only tea, cocoa and a little pony maizeleft. That day they traveled 16 miles over "the worst surfacesand most dangerous crevasses we have ever encountered".On February 13 they reached the depot with "Chinaman's"carcass, which "tasted splendid". They found the Bluff depoton February 23. When spotted, Shackleton wrote, "Itseemed to be quite close and the flags were waving anddancing as though to say 'Come, here I am, come and feed.After months of want and hunger, we suddenly foundourselves able to have meals fit for the gods, and withappetites the gods might have envied". By this time Marshallwas suffering badly from dysentery. On February 27Shackleton decided to leave Marshall and Adams behindwhile he and Wild took off for Hut Point.

When they arrived, they found a letter telling them that the NIMROD had picked up the magnetic poleparty and would shelter near the glacier tongue until February 26. It was now February 28. After a badnight, they burned the magnetic hut and shortly thereafter the NIMROD appeared. By 11 am they wereon board and three hours later Shackleton led a rescue party for Marshall and Adams. At 1 am onMarch 4, all were safe on board the NIMROD; they had walked 1700 miles.

The winter season was approaching. McMurdo Sound was already white and choked with the freezingsea. As Mackay put it, "So the end of the business is that (we are) homeward bound, bumping our waythrough this season's ice, which is the form of pantiles, some three or four inches thick. I have left agreat many things behind that I am very sorry to lose". As the NIMROD sailed past Cape Royds,Shackleton wrote that, "we all turned out to give three cheers and to take a last look at the place wherewe had spent so many happy days. The hut was not exactly a palatial residence...but, on the otherhand it had been our home for a year that would always live in our memories...We watched the little hutfade away in the distance with feelings almost of sadness, and there were few men aboard who did notcherish a hope that some day they would once more live strenuous days under the shadow of mightyErebus".

Shackleton's Hut at Cape Royds



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