Author Archives: Ernest Shackleton

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About Ernest Shackleton

Polar Explorer. Leader of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, 1914-1917.

Jokes of the primitive kind

Posted on May 4, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“Even when cracked lips and swollen mouths checked the outward and visible signs of amusement we could see a joke of the primitive kind. Man’s sense of humour is most easily stirred by the petty misfortunes of his neighbors, and … Continue reading →

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The swearing rule

Posted on May 4, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“As a rule when a sea wets a sailor through he swears at it comprehensively, and impartially curses everything in sight beginning with the ship & ‘the old man’—if he’s not within hearing, but on this trip we said nothing … Continue reading →

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We did not shoot the albatross

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“My double-barreled shotgun and some cartridges had been stowed aboard the boat as an emergency precaution against a shortage of food, but we were not disposed to destroy our little neighbors, the Cape pigeons, even for the sake of fresh … Continue reading →

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Don’t look back

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“In steering a small boat before a heavy gale, don’t look back, it may disconcert you. Fix your eye with a glassy glare on a cloud or breaking sea right ahead & keep her straight, if you can. When you … Continue reading →

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One hand for yourself & one for the King

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“So we all took it in turns to crawl out with an axe & chop it off. What a job! The boat leaping & kicking like a mad mule & a great fifteen inch thick slippery casing of ice over … Continue reading →

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Sea anchor

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“A sea-anchor is a cone-shaped canvas bag attached by a line at its mouth to the bows. The apex, which has a small hole, points away from the ship, and the effect is to act as a drag in the … Continue reading →

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We came to know every one of the stones by sight and touch

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“The boulders that we had taken aboard for ballast had to be shifted continually in order to trim the boat and give access to the pump, which became choked with hairs from the moulting sleeping bags and finneskoe. The four … Continue reading →

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If a boat is overweighted, she jerks

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“If a boat is overweighted, she jerks, will not sail fast & does not heel away from the wind & so constantly takes seas over her & is at all times wet… If ballast is too low it makes vessels … Continue reading →

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Merry jest of guesswork

Posted on April 27, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

“Navigation is an art, but words fail to give my efforts a correct name. Dead reckoning or DR—the seaman’s calculation of courses and distance—had become a merry jest of guesswork… The procedure was: I peered out from our burrow—precious sextant … Continue reading →

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Antarctic cruise ship slammed by giant waves

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Ernest Shackleton

Imagine this in a rowboat: Clelia II Antarctic cruise ship slammed by giant waves: link

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