First Expedition: 3rd Officer on the ‘Discovery’, more commonly known as the British National Antarctic expedition of 1901-1904. He was in charge of stores, rations and provisions as well as entertainment. This was the first british Antarctic expedition in 60 years. This expedition discovered the McMurdo valleys, only snow free valleys, Cape Crozier penguin colony and lots of land. He was sent home early but not before setting a new southern record of hiking to 83 degrees latitude. On this journey they made many mistakes especially regarding the sled dogs. The dogs grew weak and eventually the weakest ones were killed to feed the others. All party members got scurvy symptoms with Shackleton fairing to be one of the worst, despite collapsing and barely being able to walk he made it all the way back to the ship. All in all they covered an impressive 1540km over 93 days. There is some disagreement about Shackleton's way of return with Scott claiming he was dragged on the sled more than others recount and actually blames Shackleton for the party not getting further South.
Nimrod Expedition 1907-1909
Nimrod Expedition: Led by Shackleton, main goal to be the first to reach the South Pole. They didn’t reach this goal but they did get to 88 degrees, which is within 100miles of the pole. Also involved first ascent of Mt Erubus. This expedition was much smaller than the Discovery, with less funding, less experienced crew members and a smaller ship yet it had much more success and attracted nationwide interest and made Shackleton a local hero. It did start controversy though as Shackleton landed in Mcmurdo sound close to Scotts base even though he promised he would not. Shackleton recived many public honors and was knighted by King Eward VII.
Endurance Expedition 1914-1917
This expedition was an attempt to cross the land from one sea to the other. Two ships, the ‘Endurance’ and the ‘Aurora’ took a crew of 56 down to Antarctica. The Endurance would carry the main party while the Aurora would lay out supplies. However disaster struck as the Endurance encountered ice and Shackleton realised they would not be moving the ship until the following spring, leading to a winter station being set up near the stuck ship. What followed is a great tale of disaster and survival, best learnt through the following video.
