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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