Off to Antarctica - Ship and Crew

By the summer of 1914, Shackleton’s ship is ready. Built especially for polar travel, she is named Endurance, in honor of Shackleton’s family motto: “By endurance we conquer.” You set off on August 8, 1914, just as World War I begins. Heading south, you stop at Grytviken whaling station on the lonely island of South Georgia in the South Atlantic. The whalers report that the seas are very icy.

Endurance is a three-masted sailing ship that also has engines. Built with very hard wood, she is designed to ram her way through the ice in polar seas.

The expedition includes two doctors, a cook, a carpenter, an artist, and a photographer. Officers, including an expert navigator and engineer, help you run the ship.

The crew of twenty-eight men is a mix of tough old fishermen and polar experts, including several scientists just out of college. You are an experienced sailor, so Shackleton has made you captain.

Based on the book You Wouldn't Want to Be a Polar Explorer!
Copyright 2002 - the Salariya Book Company