www.towpathtalk.co.uk ON IRISH WATERS with Alison Alderton 105

Ireland’s Antarctic connectionsAlison Alderton discovers the Irish Polar explorers… and a ghostly reminder. DESPITE Ireland’s generally mild winter climate the country has produced a remarkably large number of Polar explorers. Many originate from the south where strong traditions of boating and seafaring are common, skills essential for icy exploration.

Born in 1785, Edward Bransfield hailed from Ballinacurra, Cork, which prospered with barges transporting cargoes of coal, flax, timber and iron. A small fleet of fishing boats also occupied the harbour; one operated by his father. It was while out fishing that Bransfield was picked up by a press gang for the British Navy fighting the Napoleonic Wars. He became an accomplished navigator and master seaman, making the earliest sighting of the then undiscovered continent of Antarctica.

Francis Crozier (1795-1848) from Banbridge, in Northern Ireland, undertook six journeys to the Arctic and Antarctic during a naval career spanning almost 40 years. He was the first to map large areas of the surrounding sea and land mass of Antarctica. Crozier and his crew vanished during the disastrous Franklin Expedition to find the elusive Northwest Passage. Their fate remained a mystery for more than 10 years until one of the two missing ships was discovered. Inside, a note read how

the ships had become stuck in ice and abandoned. Crozier had unsuccessfully attempted to lead his crew to safety.

Thomas Crean (1877-1938) came from Kerry where his parents had a humble smallholding on the Dingle Peninsula. At 16, he enlisted in the Royal Navy, developing his seafaring abilities to become a Petty Officer serving on the Discovery during the British National Antarctic Expedition of 1902. After Crean retired, he opened a bar in Anascaul named The South Pole Inn which remains open to this day.

Brothers Mortimer and Tim McCarthy, from Kinsale, both set out to sea early to seek better lives for themselves. At

the age of 12, Mortimer began working on ships. In 1963, at the age of 81, he became the oldest man to ever set foot on Antarctica when he returned with an American expedition. His brother Tim served on one of the greatest Antarctic expeditions where his expertise with small boats proved invaluable during a desperate rescue mission.

Epic survival These and many other of Ireland’s Polar explorers faded into obscurity with the exception of one, Ernest Shackleton. Now recognised as one of the world’s greatest explorers,he was born near Athy in 1874. He lived there until at age six his family moved to Dublin, then four years later to London. He began his career on Hoghton Tower, a square-rigged clipper of the White Star Line sailing around Cape Horn to Valparaiso in Chile. He went on to make four voyages to the Antarctic.

One hundred years ago, an epic survival story was unfolding in the frozen Antarctic. Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance had been trapped by ice, crushed and sunk, leaving the 28 crew to drift helplessly on the floating ice. But Shackleton was no ordinary leader – he was extraordinary, managing to lead the crew through overwhelming obstacles, ensuring that in the midst of the most inhospitable environment they all got home safely.

A central part of the survival story was the 800-mile voyage of the ship’s lifeboat, James Caird, across the wild South Atlantic Ocean to organise the

James Caird 100 on the Barrow. PHOTO SUPPLIED

AcknowledgementsSpecial thanks to Kevin Kenny of the James Caird 100 project, Christy Kane of the Barrow Executive and Margaret Walsh of the Athy Heritage Centre- Museum for their input and use of photographic images with this article.

Profile of the James Caird 100 project and a link to the Facebook page are available on: www.jamescaird100.orgAs well as this project, the Athy Shackleton Committee has a full programme of outreach activities to raise awareness of Shackleton’s achievements and Ireland’s role in Polar exploration. These include the annual Shackleton Autumn School, Shackleton’s Endurance CD and stage performance, the Shackleton Challenge Schools teamwork/project programme, leading the movement for Ireland to accede to the Antarctic Treaty and the continuing development of a museum in the Heritage Centre in Athy:www.athyheritagecentre-museum.iewww.shackletonmuseum.comWaterways Ireland and Kildare County Council are among the main sponsors of this project while Christy Kane of the Barrow Executive has played a key role in finding suitable locations for the boat. If you know of other locations or would like to see the James Caird 100 on a waterway near you, please contact the project organisers via the website. Further reading and reference material:Great Endeavour: Ireland’s Antarctic Explorers – Michael Smith

Useful information➔

Thomas Crean with his arms full of sleigh dogs.PHOTOS: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED The South Pole Inn at Anascaul.

Ernest Shackleton.

A model of the Endurance in Athy. PHOTO SUPPLIED

The Endurance trapped in ice.

Launching the James Caird.

rescue of the remaining crew. The six-man rescue crew comprised; Ernest Shackleton, Frank Worsley, Tom Crean, Tim McCarthy, Henry ‘Chippy’ McNish and John Vincent.

In celebration of this momentous voyage a ghostly apparition has been appearing and disappearing on the waterways during recent months. Project manager, Kevin Kenny, spoke exclusively to Towpath Talk about this exciting new piece of artwork:

“The James Caird 100 was developed by sculptor Craig Blackwell and myself. It is a dynamic sculpture to spread awareness of Shackleton’s Endurance expedition and its epic survival story. The boat arrives in a waterways location unannounced, where it remains for a while, before mysteriously disappearing to another location. Minimal information is supplied; the main route of information is driven by people’s inquisitiveness, internet and social media.”

“James Caird 100 is primarily an arts installation. We started out thinking about a replica, but for reasons of cost and practicality, that approach was ruled out. We needed something portable and robust which could be left unattended so a wooden boat was a non-starter.”

“Although two-thirds size, in terms of mast, covered deck and general shape it’s reasonably accurate. The original James Caird didn’t have a flat transom, but the other two boats which participated in stages of the Endurance survival story did. These boats, Dudley Docker and Stancombe Wills, were upturned on Elephant Island to form a rudimentary hut in which 22 lived while the others made the voyage to South Georgia.

“They deserve to be recalled and are referred to in the hull shape of James Caird 100. The real eye catcher and what differentiates the James Caird 100 is the crew whose ghostly presence picks up on the epic event itself. Both Shackleton and Worsley record their certainty of an unseen hand guiding the boat.”

Bronze statueTo further celebrate the event, on August 30, 2016, the centenary of the rescue of the crew from Elephant Island, Ernest Shackleton’s granddaughter, Alexandra unveiled a new bronze statue in Athy. The ceremony was attended by the Mayor of Kildare, Coun Ivan Keatley, and an honour guard drawn from the Irish Naval Service. Looking south, across the point where the Grand Canal meets the River Barrow, this is an important addition to the heritage of the town and will add to the attractions for those boating on or walking alongside the Barrow.

Ireland continues to contribute to the cold hostile environment of the world. Among this extraordinary group of people is Clare O’Leary, a doctor from Brandon, who in 2008 became the first Irishwoman to walk to the South Pole. For us more ordinary folk it will soon be time to snuggle up in front of our stoves. As winter creeps in and begins to take hold, let’s be thankful temperatures don’t plummet to the unimaginable lows that these brave boatmen and explorers endured and if we do find ourselves iced-in, we won’t have too long to wait for a thaw!

Shackleton’s bronze statue in Athy. PHOTO SUPPLIED

Kevin Kenny and Craig Blackwell with James Caird 100. PHOTO SUPPLIED

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