Shackleton's Endurance: Part 3 - Seeking Rescue

OK, I believe a recap is in order. The situation began poorly with Shackleton's expedition getting stranded in ice just short of land out on the Weddell Sea. It then progressed to serious as the boat was crushed, leaving them only with lifeboats and 1914-era determination. From there, it moved to desperate, in which they had to abandon the majority of their gear and kill their dogs in an attempt to keep light while moving north. What came next pushed the situation up to grave, as the ice floes they were hoping to float back north through good luck/magic/1914-era determination were beginning to crack, forcing them to their boats. Here's where it goes from grave, to... I'm out of synonyms, but something significantly worse than grave.

Twenty-two of the men from the expedition. Also pictured:
regret; mild disappointment.

They set sail for Elephant Island, not so much a refuge as it was a checkpoint in getting back to safety. It was uninhabited, rarely visited, and didn't provide much in the way of shelter or food. It was, however, a place relatively within striking distance of land and civilization rather than ice. They took to their three lifeboats, not particularly well equipped for the harsh conditions they were in but better than anything else they had at their disposal. They would row between the ice floes during the day, and by night they would hop upon them and try their best to get some sleep in spite of being wet, cold, and exceptionally hungry. The rowing was brutal beyond reason; their hands freezing to the point of frostbite was a regular occurrence, and the men were running short on energy as it was. Bear in mind they had little more than seal and penguin to eat, save for small rations of bread that would have to be given out with the thought in mind that they were rapidly depleting their stores. 

Even when they weren't rowing (they would work in shifts) it was little better. Much of the time was spent pulling buckets of water out of the boat as it filled up with water, which was a problem for two rather obvious reasons; boats filling up with water traditionally don't fare well, and the water was frigid in temperature and froze their feet. The water would sometimes come up to their knees, and their boots, with lining losing their integrity over time, would no longer provide much warmth. The men would have to constantly wiggle their toes, which was extremely painful but much preferable to losing that feeling as that would possibly be the last time they would have sensation in them at all. Even cramping was a serious problem as they had precious little room to move about for day after day on the water. In addition to all of this, they feared killer whales that would occasionally flip an ice floe to feast on penguins or seals. As if the frozen waters beneath them didn't provide an element of fear, an animal with a violent adjective in its very name might come looking for them.

The lifeboats they used to sail around the icebergs.
I wouldn't trust it at the wave pool at the water-park

While camping on the floes for the night provided somewhat of a temporary reprieve, the sheets of ice would also be susceptible to cracking. One did just that right where the men were sleeping. He was saved, but only after being dropped into the water and frozen to the point where hypothermia might very well kill him. Keep in mind he only had the one change of clothes as they were forced to lighten the load earlier in the expedition, which meant he had to constantly keep moving in spite of his clothes rapidly crystallizing with the ice freezing all around him. Of course, his response to all the incredible pain was saying the "only thing I regret is my bloody tobacco's down there in the drink". At this point I'm doubting these men were real, and are instead just early depictions of '80s action heroes. New Expendables 4 hero Ernest Shackleton anyone?!

The men wave goodbye to Shackleton and the others
as their lives depend on their success as well. Also pictured:
desperation, sadness.

After just short of a week in the boats, the men touched land for the first time in a year and four months. They had reached Elephant Island, far from a prize as it was small, cold and desolate. It was also going to be their home for the next while, at least for most of the men. Shackleton, however, knew they couldn't stay with the limited resources they had. He decided he would sail back with six of his men to South Georgia, their starting point of the expedition, and hope to find civilization once more. His plan was to take a twenty-two foot long boat, sail eight hundred miles, and do it all in the world's most treacherous ocean. 

So what of the other men? They would stay behind as Shackleton would make a break for it, surviving in constant blizzards in a makeshift tent that was brutally cold literally all the time. One man during the boat trip to Elephant Island suffered through frostbite on his feet to the point they had to be amputated - on the island itself, right then and there, with whatever tools the doctors had and with chloroform as the anesthetic. Another man developed a massive abscess on his buttocks due to the seemingly endless amount of sitting in the cramped space on the boat. Of course, it had to be drained. Unfortunately for him (and for the other men, perhaps especially for the other men) he couldn't be separated from the group due to the cold. They had to sleep near a man that just had his butt drained of "two pints of foul smelling liquid". All the while they had no means of knowing if Shackleton would ever return at all. All they could do was wait, hope, sleep, pray and smell abhorrent things.

Shackleton was faring no better. The six men would work 'round the clock in four hour shifts, hoping to sleep but finding little of it. It was a tremendous task just to simply keep the boat afloat in spite of nature trying her best to bring it down. They were so close to death that the men would sometimes have to check a pulse just to... double check, so to speak. Strong winds and crashing waves almost caused their deaths time and time again. Worse yet, seawater spilled into their fresh water supply, furthering their difficulties as if they didn't have enough already. After fourteen harrowing days, they finally reached South Georgia - with the last day being in sight of land but the conditions being too treacherous to move ashore. When they finally reached the shore, they realized another problem - a rather significant one. There was a nearly impassable mountain range in between them and the whaling communities they sought for rescue. At this point it feels like a season ending cliffhanger for a T.V. show - they had just done something that should have been impossible, and now they're heading headlong into something somehow more difficult than before.

The South Georgia interior had until then never been crossed. It was a perilous land of glaciers and mountain peaks and a number of other things that are meant to be climbed only by those with years of preparation, know-how, and equipment... and even then, perhaps not. These were men that had just survived seventeen days at sea, were horribly frostbitten, exhausted, and carrying with them little more than a rope and an axe. Their journey wasn't even straight forward; it full of backtracking and dead ends as they carried no map and harboured no knowledge of the area. On their first night, they were caught high on a mountain which would surely kill them by morning if they had stayed. Their solution - and if this were an '80s action show, this is where it's criticized for abandoning realism - was to recklessly slide down the mountain, hoping they wouldn't hit anything that would kill them. Apparently, when they reached as far as they could go, they laughed it off and carried on. It was the first fun they had had in months.

This is the mountain range they had to cross. Shackleton,
upon seeing it, was quoted as saying "no biggie."

After a thirty-six hour trek, Shackleton and crew arrived at a whaling camp and spoke with the head of the organization there. The man at first didn't recognize him, so filthy and worse for wear. Upon realizing who it was - bear in mind he was surely thought to be dead - the man broke into tears. Shortly after, the rescue boats were on their way. Not a single man died in spite of it all. The mountain range they crossed would not be conquered for another three decades.

Upon return, Shackleton was met with a country consumed by war, and because of that he was met with little fanfare. A number of the men went on to enlist, one being killed at sea just six weeks after signing up, many others receiving injuries. Shackleton would later attempt one last expedition but would pass away from a heart attack during the trip. In a sense, it's a sad ending to an incredible man, but at the very least he died doing what he loved. How in the world he would wish to go back to exploring after that experience will remain a mystery. 

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The information for this blog came from two excellent sources. One, Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing, is an absolute must read for those who like to read about thrilling adventures without actually having to partake in them. The other is an excellent documentary (voiced by Liam Neeson!) called The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition for those of you who would like to read about thrilling adventures without actually having to partake in them, but opt for the movie instead. You can watch it here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyQRHHHXntc

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Shackleton's Endurance: Part 2 - Stuck at Sea

These puppies would look something like the ones born on
the Endurance. The men likely claimed they only wished
to cuddle them for extra warmth, not their adorability.

When you're trapped on the ice for seven months you have more problems than simply the obvious ones of food and warmth. Things get dark - and not just metaphorically dark, as in the feeling of hopelessness washing over them just like as the frigid waters of the Antarctic (a simile, not a metaphor) but literal lack of light. They would go massive stretches of time without sunlight, and the world would be plunged into a terrible stretch of cold and sunless months in which they could do little beyond sitting and waiting. Boredom became a significant problem as well. They tried to hold it back by putting on gramophone concerts, playing soccer on the ice (wow are they ever English), putting on plays, and playing with the puppies that had been born during their unwanted extended stay. Still, this worried Shackleton greatly; he had been on failed expeditions before where mutinies had occurred, and while he was a confident and capable leader he was not sure how far the men could be pushed before they started to lose it.

The sinking Endurance. Who would have
guessed it couldn't sail through those
waters?

Worse yet, the pressure was mounting around the boat. Ice floes come with tremendous degrees of pressure; bear in mind they're massive sheets of ice crashing into each other, and if one small boat comes in between them it alone isn't going to hold them off. These are great natural forces we're talking about, and in 1914 they will be hard pressed to create a boat to sustain those pressures. The men knew this too. One man wrote in his journal "It's only a matter of time. What the ice gets, the ice keeps" which I am fairly certain is simply a quote from a polar based horror novel he was quoting for the situation he was in. Continuing with the ominous messages, another man wrote of their situation, describing it as the "absolute embodiment of helpless futility" which I'm going to go right ahead and claim as a band name. Poor Shackleton was at the head of these rightfully pessimistic men, and it was up to him to get them out of it.

He had to make a move. On October 27th, 1915 (remember their departure date for some perspective on how long this has been already) Shackleton did what any captain is loath to do and abandoned his ship to to try their luck with three of the four lifeboats they had on the Endurance. They went to work clearing as many supplies as they could from the wreck, and it wasn't long before the men saw firsthand the ship finally collapse under the weight and pressure of the floes, literally crushing it from both sides. The expedition was a failure and their only option was to return, but that alone was no easy feat. Carrying capacity was now at a minimum, and each man was allowed only two pounds of possessions each except for a few exceptions - the medical professionals were allowed their tools, the photographer was allowed his, and one man was allowed to bring his banjo (which was fifteen pounds) as it was somehow supposed to prevent boredom and despair. While they had some food they couldn't afford to bring all of it as it would simply be too heavy, and they had to clear as much dead weight as they could. This meant the unfortunate task of having to kill the puppies and the cat they had on board (well, crap). If you think that's overly harsh, bear in mind that they were only allowed to bring the clothes on their backs as well, preventing a change until their return home. Food would also be minimal, but supplemented by the killing of seals and penguins that were plentiful on a number of areas on the island. Some would be so unaccustomed to humans that they would simply walk right into their camp to their deaths.

Shackleton pondering his next move, adorned
with his manliest thinking hat.

Once they were off the boat and have adequately set up their camp not far from the shipwreck, they surveyed the situation. They were currently sitting on a massive ice floe, hoping - really just hoping - that it would take them north and closer to their final destination. Unfortunately, the winds and currents weren't at their beck and call, so they would mostly be sitting and waiting with the occasional seal hunt while they drifted aimlessly in one of the most foreboding and dangerous seas on the planet. They were also only bringing three life boats that were strong but far from something you would want in treacherous waters and were mostly a last resort. On top of this all, the men were cold and starving and the situation was only getting worse - food was running even lower and their rations had to be reduced further (which would make them thinner and thus colder). On top of that their 1914 era clothing wasn't modern day J. Crew quality and was beginning to wear, making what was cold, then colder, colder still. They could only last so long. Shackleton knew it was the time for a desperate and last ditch plan to escape. They had to take to their boats and make a break for it as the ice floe was now getting thin to the point of collapse. The problem (amongst countless others) was where were they to go? 

Tune in for the third segment where this expedition starts to go poorly. It's been a walk in the park so far. (Oh, they also had to kill the rest of the dogs as well by the way.)

Shackleton's Endurance: Part 1 - Setting Sail

Ernest Shackleton hails from a time when men were men; they smoked from pipes, their beards were thick and full, and the idea of going on a harrowing expedition with only a moderate chance of survival sounds just like their very British cup of tea. This was the time where man sought to have no land left unconquered, and who better to do that than the English? They were at the forefront of the age of grand discoveries and romanticized travels full of danger and heroism, with all the fame, riches and glory that come with such adventures. Unfortunately for them, the south pole had already been reached by a Norwegian, and one that beat out Shackleton as he was trying to do just that. Now it was his time to shine, late in his exploring life and with hopes of one last shot at expedition redemption, he sought to traverse Antarctica by land from one side to the other. The result was a voyage so mentally and physically taxing that many of the men, tough as nails

A young Ernest Shackleton: he put the "boat" in
"Dreamboats of the Great Age of Antarctic
Expeditions".

as they were, refused to discuss it with their friends or family; a few would not allow their children to ever read their diaries of their journey until after they had passed.

Why Shackleton decided to attempt this is beyond me. I guess it's just in the blood of people back then, as now people are much more satisfied with living their lives while simultaneously keeping tremendous physical pain and stress to a minimum. Back then it just wasn't as big of a deal - which is why when Shackleton called for good men to assist him in his task and be on the ship that sailed towards the frozen continent he had a great number of responses. Five thousand men sent word that they wished to join him for adventure, glory, and all the fun that frostbite has to offer. But how could he have convinced them to join, considering the danger and the horrible conditions they would have to endure? Well, his ad was this, copied verbatim. Despite what you may believe, I'm not making this up. "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success."

How men read that and thought "where do I sign up?" is so beyond me I lack the words to describe it.

The crew chopping away at the ice hoping to
free the boat to move forward. I, uh, don't
have high hopes for how that will turn out.

Seven months of preparation found them ready to depart in 1914 with twenty-seven men and sixty-nine Canadian sled dogs ready at his side. Unfortunately, 1914 was known for another rather large event, and Shackleton felt it was his duty to offer his services in the war. He contacted the British navy if he should send his ships to battle instead of exploration, who replied with the single word "proceed". It wasn't that they were war-dodging - one man even wrote in his journal that he would "hope to be home in nineteen months and go straight to the front." He then commented on how it's a "glorious age we live in". I'm legitimately confused if he meant for the second half to be sarcastic or if men back then were so unspeakably brave as to be genuinely pleased at the opportunity to fight in a war only after risking their lives on an expedition to a continent in which no human should be.  Regardless of how he or the men felt about missing their... opportunity?... to enter the war, Shackleton was ready to depart. He had named his ship the Endurance, after his family motto: "By endurance we conquer". On December 5th, 1914 they headed south from South Georgia, an island whaling community far to the east of the southernmost point of South America. Fortunately for us, there are plenty of photographs and footage from their expedition as a large amount of the funding for the expedition came from investors paying for the right to sell the documentation they took during the trip.

It wasn't long before they hit the Weddell Sea - a half-frozen body of water which is essentially a massive, constantly shifting ice field. Historian Thomas R. Henry describes the testimony of men who have travelled the sea as "berg-filled waters, the most treacherous and dismal region on earth". They made it far through the sea, travelling in between ice bergs and breaking through the thinner sheets of ice, but in February the temperature dropped rapidly and suddenly - somewhat of an unlucky and unexpected occurrence - that froze the very water around the ship. The men attacked it with picks and shovels and tried to press on through it, but to no avail. The ship had become trapped between two massive ice floes, large bodies of ice that are not attached to any land. Just like that, they were stuck. In Antarctica. On a floating body of ice. With no means of rescue or return. They would have to wait until Spring to move again, which was seven months from then. The unfortunate explorers were stopped just one day sail from land - but this is just the beginning of their problems. They have the warmth of a ship, food at the ready in their stores, and one of their most prominent enemies at this time was boredom. Things were about to get worse - and by a grand, terrible margin.

Remind me again why anyone would want to do this?