Chasing Shackleton

In celebration of the centenary of Shackleton’s legendary journey, join Tim Jarvis on his quest to become the first to re-create what sir edmund hillary called “the greatest survival story of all time”

1914–1916

One hundred years ago, in early 1914, famed British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton embarked for the South Pole on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, hoping to make the first land crossing of Antarctica. For three years there was no word from the expedition, and most assumed the men had perished, as so many polar explorers had before them. Remarkably, however, the crew was very much alive, thanks to Shackleton’s leadership. After their ship, the Endurance, was crushed by Antarctic ice and the men trapped on a small, inhospitable island, cut off from all hope of rescue, Shackleton decided to attempt a risky eighthundred-mile voyage across the notoriously treacherous Southern Ocean. For seventeen days, he and five of his crew battled constant gales, terrible cold, and mountainous seas in a leaking 22.5-foot wooden boat. In one of history’s greatest feats of navigation, they succeeded in landing on the small, remote island of South Georgia. Finally, they faced a climb over precipitous, heavily glaciated mountains to reach the whaling station at Stromness on the other side—a journey that would challenge the limits of today’s top mountaineers. Ultimately, Shackleton was able to rescue all twenty-two crew members—a heroic triumph of endurance and leadership.

January 2013

Using authentic period clothing, equipment, and rations, and sailing a precise replica of Shackleton’s small, keel-less boat, explorer Tim Jarvis leads a six-man crew in an attempt to re-create Shackleton’s historic crossings for the first time. A veteran of Antarctica’s breathtaking frozen wastes, Jarvis finds himself facing one of the most dangerous journeys ever willingly undertaken, quickly gaining a firsthand appreciation for the extraordinary challenges that Shackleton overcame. While documenting the devastating impact a century of climate change has had on the region’s ice caps and glaciers, the trek proves to be a relentless struggle against poor odds and inhospitable conditions—for even today, the remote Antarctic remains as fierce and unforgiving as ever before.

Vividly illustrated with historical and contemporary photography, Chasing Shackleton tells the unforgettable story of these two expeditions, separated by nearly a hundred years but unified in the spirit of epic discovery, adventure, and survival.