The two conferences previously mentioned (the SouthPole-sium v3 and the meeting of the Shackleton Appreciation Society) with their hopefully biennial convocations each have a social and educational value far in excess of their modest cost. Although neither—relatively informal as they are—will add much luster to your academic portfolio, you may well learn as much from … More On the Value of Informal Antarctic Conferences
Two Antarctic Conferences in one week. The timing could not have been better. The first to be scheduled was Rob Stephenson’s “SouthPole-sium” in Oslo, the third biennial meeting of like-minded Antarctic aficionados. Sixty-six of us—authors, scientists, veterans of the ice, book collectors, and most importantly by now, old friends and new—convened at the Fram Museum … More “When Your Life Depends on It: Extreme Decision-Making Lessons from the Antarctic” International Book Launch: Oslo, May 13, 2017
—from the diary of Thomas Orde Lees— “18 August: The menace of last night materialized this morning, for we are thickly beset by the accursed ice, and it stretches in every direction further than the eye can see. It is a rotten day. The brightness has gone from the sky and snow comes from it … More Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ Expedition, Elephant Island, August 18, 1916: “. . . we are thickly beset by the accursed ice. . .”
—from the diary of Thomas Orde Lees— “17 August. A sudden drop of 15deg in temperature should be expected to produce a sensation of cold, but quite the contrary is the case, for the sun shines brightly and the air is dry, and so it feels warmer than when it is twice as warm by … More Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ Expedition, Elephant Island, August 17, 1916: “Limpeting proceeds apace. . .”
–from the diary of Ernest Joyce, published as “The South Polar Trail”— “A week to-day the sun returns. I am training the puppies, but have made a mistake; that is, I should have tied them up before putting them into harness; they were frolicksome. In a week they travelled in harmony with Oscar, Gunner, and … More Shackleton’s Ross Sea Party, August 15, 1916: ” A week to-day the sun returns.”
Terra Nova Press is pleased to announce the publication of our latest book When Your Life Depends on It: Extreme Decision-Making Lessons from the Antarctic. Co-written by Brad Borkan (London), this book uses epic true stories from the “heroic age” of Antarctic exploration to place the reader in those life and death situations and asks … More Now in Print: “When Your Life Depends on It” co-authored by David Hirzel and Brad Borkan
“28 July. Ingenious Bakewell secured several old pipes, broke them up and boiled them in water, subsequently boiling some sennegrass in the weird infusion. This he carefully dried and chopped and now declares that he couldn’t distinguish the result from tobacco. The aroma was positively overpowering and can only be described as a combination of … More Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ Expedition, Elephant Island, July 28, 1916: “Smoking mixtures are the order of the day. . . .[Part II]”
—from the diary of Thomas Orde Lees— “28 July. Wild has fixed up a very ingenious little glass window into the canvas sheet beside his bunk so as to have more light to read by. It consists of the 6n square glass and mahogany frame of a chronometer box. It is cleverly sewn in. “Smoking … More Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ Expedition, Elephant Island, July 28, 1916: “Smoking mixtures are the order of the day. . . .”
–from Shackleton’s account “South”— [On board the schooner Emma, off Elephant Island] “I took the schooner south at every chance, but always the line of ice blocked the way. The engineer, who happened to be an American, did things to the engines occasionally, but he could not keep them running, and the persistent south winds … More Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ Expedition, July 26, 1916: “. . . always the line of ice blocked the way”
–from Frank Hurley’s account “Shackleton’s Argonauts”— “July was a particularly obnoxious month. The variable temperatures of early spring frayed our tempers and added to our discomforts. Warmer days were marked by increased humidity, in which we felt the cold more than the actual winter. We now experienced occasional rain, and the stronger rays of the … More Shackleton’s ‘Endurance’ Expedition, Elephant Island, July, 1916: “July was a particularly obnoxious month.”
Antarctic Discovery 