A New Challange

After seeing rival explorers reach the South Pole before him, Shackleton wanted to go one step further and become the first person to cross the entire continent of Antarctica. His plan involved two ships, the Endurance and the Aurora. The Aurora would lead the way, leaving a trail of food & supplies for the Endurance crew, who would collect it on their trek from the opposite side of the continent.

 

The Power of the Ice

Whalers in South Georgia warned Shackleton of the pack ice (the frozen layer of water on the surface of the ocean), remarking that it was the worst they had seen in years. During the summer, the ice hadn’t broken up as expected, creating treacherous conditions for the explorers. However, in December 1914, Shackleton set off to Antarctica. The team quickly realised the ice wasn’t breaking up, but they persisted in their efforts to find a base. Disaster struck in early 1915 when distant storms pushed currents that compressed the pack ice together, trapping the Endurance in the ice.

Finding Land

Over the next month, the ship was crushed by the ice and slowly sank into the sea as the team was forced to camp on the ice. Knowing the ice would melt, the 28 men piled into three life boats set on a course for Elephant Island, 100 miles north. Braving the severe weather, they reached Elephant Island. Shackleton realised they would never be rescued from Elephant Island, Shackleton made a momentous decision:

Rescue

Shackleton and five of the toughest seamen, Worsley, Crean, McNish, McCarthy, and Vincent set sail the in the James Caird lifeboat across 800 miles of treacherous ocean to the whaling stations of South Georgia island. Visit our exhibition to find out what happened next and learn the fate of the crew stranded on Elephant Island