Educational Media Reviews Online

In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and 28 men set sail on the Endurance in an attempt to cross Antarctica overland, via the South Pole. The plan was for Shackleton’s party to be met by another ship on the other side of the continent. Instead, The Endurance became trapped in the ice and was finally crushed and sank in 1915. Shackleton led his crew in the ship’s boats to barren, wind swept Elephant Island.

To avoid certain death for his crew, Shackleton and a small party set sail in the 23-foot ship’s boat, the James Caird, on an 800-mile journey to the whaling station on South Georgia Island.

This video outlines the entire expedition, but focuses on the trip from Elephant Island to South Georgia. Using photos taken during the actual expedition, diary entries of members of the crew, interviews with crew members’ descendents as well as original drawings and maps, we have an exciting, almost unbelievable saga on ingenuity, skill and luck. The video is well done and makes effective use of the treasure trove of extant material (although not used in this program, there are moving pictures taken of the Endurance trapped in the ice). Most amazing of all, is the fact that every member of the crew survived and was rescued.