The History · 1914 to 1916
In Shackleton's Wake
The greatest survival story ever told, and the voyage our crew will retrace, by oar, more than a century later.
The Endurance
A ship crushed. A crew stranded. An impossible escape.
In 1914, Sir Ernest Shackleton set sail on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, aiming to make the first land crossing of the Antarctic continent. He never set foot on it. His ship, Endurance, was trapped and slowly crushed by pack ice in the Weddell Sea, leaving 28 men stranded on drifting ice at the bottom of the world.
After months camped on the floes, the crew took to three small lifeboats and reached the desolate Elephant Island: the first solid ground under their feet in 497 days. But no one was coming. No rescue would ever find them there.
“By endurance we conquer.”The Shackleton family motto
The Open-Boat Voyage
800 Miles in a 22ft Lifeboat
Shackleton’s answer was one of the boldest small-boat journeys ever attempted: sail the 22ft James Caird across the Southern Ocean to South Georgia, and bring back rescue for every man left behind.
Days at Sea
Sixteen days of hurricane-force winds, freezing spray and mountainous seas, navigated by sextant through fleeting glimpses of sun.
Men Aboard
Shackleton, Worsley, Crean, McNish, McCarthy and Vincent: soaked, frostbitten, and bailing for their lives around the clock.
Lives Saved
After crossing South Georgia’s uncharted mountains on foot, Shackleton returned for his men. Every single one survived.
1914 · 1916
The Endurance Timeline
The Departure
Endurance sails south from South Georgia with 28 men aboard, bound for Antarctica.
Crushed by Ice
Trapped in Weddell Sea pack ice for ten months, Endurance is crushed and sinks. The crew camp on the drifting floes.
The James Caird
From Elephant Island, six men sail 800 miles of open ocean to South Georgia in a 22ft lifeboat.
The Rescue
Shackleton crosses South Georgia’s mountains, reaches the whaling station, and rescues all 22 men left behind.
Then & Now
Where Shackleton sailed to survive, we row to inspire
In December 2027, our crew will cross the same waters that carried the James Caird, from mainland Antarctica through the Scotia Sea to South Georgia. Not under sail, but by oar. No engine, no support boat. Pure human power, across 1,250km of the wildest seas on Earth.
It has never been done. It is the closest anyone has come to living Shackleton’s voyage since 1916, and it will be filmed, raw and unfiltered, for the world to witness.
Be Part of the Next Chapter
History Remembers The Bold
Shackleton had his backers. This crew is looking for theirs. Put your name on a world-first.