|
|
Back to Page
2
The Trans-Antarctic
Expedition 1914-17
Aboard the
S.Y.
Aurora
The Ross Sea
Party
The
Aurora, under the command of Æneas Mackintosh,
sailed from Hobart, Tasmania, for the Ross Sea on December
24, 1914. The ship had been refitted in Sydney and made
ready for a possible two-year commitment in Antarctic
waters. Shackletons' orders were quite simple, "Proceed to
the Ross Sea, make a base at some convenient point in or
near McMurdo Sound, land stores and equipment, and lay
depots on the Great Ice Barrier, in the direction of the
Beardmore Glacier for the use of the party that I expected
to bring overland from the Weddell Sea coast". Shackleton
thought it possible to make the attempt in the 1914-15
season so it was Mackintosh's duty, therefore, to lay out
depots to the south immediately after their arrival at their
base. Mackintosh was instructed to place depots of food and
fuel at 80°S in 1914-15, marked by flags and cairns so
they could be spotted by the sledging teams arriving from
the Pole. If the crossing was not successful during this
first season, depots further south would be placed during
the 1915-16 season.
 The
Aurora had an uneventful voyage southwards. On
Christmas Day she was anchored off Macquarie Island.
Sir Douglas
Mawson's wireless station
could be seen as well as the hut constructed by Mawson
during the Australian Antarctic Expedition of 1911-14. A
meteorological staff still occupied the hut and later that
day the meteorologist, Mr. Tulloch, came aboard the ship and
had dinner with Mackintosh. Stores were left for the
scientific team on Macquarie and on December 31, the
Aurora sailed for McMurdo Sound. Three days later the
first iceberg was spotted at 62°40'S, 169°58'E.
The next day they entered the pack-ice and on January 7
Mount Sabine, in South Victoria Land, was sighted some 75
miles away.
The ship was off Cape Crozier on
January 9 when Stenhouse, Cope, Joyce, Ninnis, Mauger and
Aitken went off in a boat to locate an area where a small
hut could be built and provisioned for a proposed three-man
party during the winter months. Emperor penguin eggs could
be secured here to supplement their diet. Unfortunately, no
appropriate area for the hut and stores could be located,
not to mention the fact that there was no penguin rookery to
be found. The ship proceeded into McMurdo Sound but was
confronted and delayed for three days by heavy pack-ice. On
January 16 she reached a point off Cape Evans where ten tons
of coal and ninety-eight cases of oil were offloaded. The
Aurora worked her way further south and by January 24
she was within nine miles of Hut Point. Unable to go
further, the Aurora was anchored to the sea ice and
Mackintosh immediately arranged sledging depots. First
officer, Lieutenant J.R. Stenhouse, was left in command of
the ship with instructions to select a base for winter
quarters and land a party.
Meanwhile, the others would strike off
for their first objective, Hut Point, where the men would
find Robert
Scott's structure built for
the Discovery Expedition in 1902. An advance party of
Joyce (leader), Jack and Gaze left the ship on January 24
with fully loaded sledges. Mackintosh, with Wild and
Spencer-Smith, followed the next day and a third party,
consisting of Cope (leader), Ninnis, Haywood, Stevens, Hooke
and Richards left the ship on January 30. The first two
parties used dogs while the third took a motor-tractor. The
dogs were in pitifully poor condition which resulted in the
loss of many of them. Captain Mackintosh and his party left
the Aurora on the evening of January 25, 1915. They
used one sledge, pulled by nine dogs, as they set off for
Hut Point. They had hoped to reach Hut Point that night but,
after sledging five miles, a snowstorm hit them so they
camped right on the sea ice. It was 4 p.m., January 27,
before they reached Hut Point. The sledge-meter had showed
the total distance traveled was in excess of seventeen
miles.
They found a note in the hut, left by
Joyce and the advance party who had been there on the 25th,
which reported the loss of one dog, killed in a fight with
the others. Mackintosh's party spent the night in the hut
and the next morning Joyce and his party showed up; they had
encountered bad ice and had returned to the hut to consult
with Mackintosh on a different route to be followed.
Mackintosh instructed Joyce to head for Black Island, at the
head of McMurdo Sound beyond Hut Point. Mackintosh's party
left Hut Point on January 28 with a sledge weighing 1200
pounds. The dogs had trouble, as the weather was warm, thus
making only four miles during the day.
Mackintosh wrote, "The surface was
abominably soft. We harnessed ourselves on to the sledge and
with the dogs made a start, but we had a struggle to get
off. We had not gone very far when in deeper snow we stopped
dead. Try as we would, no movement could be produced.
Reluctantly we unloaded and began the tedious task of
relaying. The work, in spite of the lighter load on the
sledge, proved terrific for ourselves and for the dogs. We
struggled for four hours, and then set camp to await the
evening, when the sun would not be so fierce and the surface
might be better. I must say I feel somewhat despondent, as
we are not getting on as well as I expected, nor do we find
it as easy as one would gather from reading".
The two
parties met again the next day as Joyce and his party ran
into the very same problems. They reached the edge of the
Barrier on January 30 and climbed up a slope to the Barrier
surface, about 30 feet above the sea ice. On January 31,
after 12 and a half hours of sledging, only two and a half
miles had been made. The men had killed a seal at the edge
of the sea ice and stored it for future consumption. One dog
had to be left behind, with food, since he refused to pull.
The following excerpts are from Mackintosh's
diary:
Sunday, January 31.--Started off this afternoon at 3
p.m. Surface too dreadful for words. We sink into snow at
times up to our knees, the dogs struggling out of it panting
and making great efforts. I think the soft snow must be
accounted for by a phenomenally fine summer without much
wind. After proceeding about 1000 yds. I spotted some poles
on our starboard side. We shaped course for these and found
Captain
Scott's Safety Camp. We
unloaded a relay here and went back with empty sledge for
the second relay. It took us four hours to do just this
short distance. It is exasperating. After we had got the
second load up we had lunch. then we dug round the poles,
while snow fell, and after getting down about three feet we
came across, first, a bag of oats, lower down two cases of
dog-biscuit--one with a complete week's ration, the other
with seal-meat. A good find. About forty paces away we found
a venesta-lid sticking out of the snow. Smith scraped round
this with his ice-axe and presently discovered one of the
motor-sledges Captain Scott used. Everything was just as it
had been left, the petrol-tank partly filled and apparently
undeteriorated...
February 1. We turned out at
7:30 p.m., and after a meal broke camp. We made a relay of
two and a half miles...We covered seven and a half miles in
order to bring the load two and a half miles.
February 2. We were awakened
this afternoon, while in our bags, by hearing Joyce's dogs
barking. They have done well and have caught us up...About 8
p.m., after our hoosh, we made a start, and reached Joyce's
camp at 1 a.m...
The surface had been better that day and the party covered
six miles without relaying. The next morning it took them
two hours to cover the first one hundred and fifty yards.
They finally were able to move into Joyces' tracks which
allowed them to overtake Joyce on the morning of February 4.
That night they covered another 10 miles. The next night
another 11 miles was sledged. Joyce and Mackintosh passed
each other regularly as Joyce would travel during the day
while Mackintosh pulled at night. A blizzard confined the
men to their tents for over twenty-four hours, commencing on
February 10.
On February 11, Mackintosh camped
alongside Joyce. One of the dogs had died and several of the
others were in poor condition so Mackintosh made up a team
of the best dogs and instructed Joyce and Wild to accompany
him while Smith, Jack and Gaze went back to Hut Point with
the remaining dogs. A depot of fuel and oil was laid at this
point, goodbye's were given, and the crews went off in
opposite directions. Mackintosh's party built cairns of snow
after each hour's travelling to serve as guides to the depot
and as marks for the return journey. Another blizzard held
the men up on February 13 with uncomfortable, cruel
temperatures.
The
party plodded forward and by the afternoon of February 20,
they had reach 80°S. Mackintosh wrote, "As soon as
breakfast was over, Joyce and Wild went off with a light
sledge and the dogs to lay out the cairns and place flags to
the eastward, building them at every mile. The outer cairn
had a large flag and a note indicating the position of the
depot. I remained behind to get angles and fix our position
with the theodolite. The temperature was very low this
morning, and handling the theodolite was not too warm a job
for the fingers. My whiskers froze to the metal while I was
taking a sight. After five hours the others arrived back.
They had covered ten miles, five miles out and five miles
back. During the afternoon we finished the cairn, which we
have built to a height of eight feet. It is a solid square
erection which ought to stand a good deal of weathering, and
on top we have placed a bamboo pole with a flag, making the
total height twenty-five feet. Building the cairn was a fine
warming job, but the ice on our whiskers often took some ten
minutes thawing out. To-morrow we hope to lay out the cairns
westward, and then to shape our course for the Bluff".
A blizzard kept the men in their
sleeping bags on February 21 and it was not until the
afternoon of the 23rd that Mackintosh and Joyce made an
attempt to lay out the cairns to the west. Two dogs had died
during the storm, leaving only seven to pull the sledge. On
the morning of February 24th, the return march was started.
Mackintosh wrote, "We did get off from our camp but had only
proceeded about four hundred yards when the fog came on so
thick that we could scarcely see a yard ahead, so we had to
pitch the tent again, and are now sitting inside hoping the
weather will clear. We are going back with only ten days'
provisions, so it means pushing on for all we are worth.
These stoppages are truly annoying. The poor dogs are
feeling hungry; they eat their harness or any straps that
may be about. We can give them nothing beyond their
allowance of three biscuits each as we are on bare rations
ourselves; but I feel sure they require more than one pound
a day. That is what they are getting now...After lunch we
found it a little clearer, but a very bad light. We decided
to push on. It is weird travelling in this light. There is
no contrast or outline; the sky and the surface are one, and
we cannot discern undulations, which we encounter with
disastrous results. We picked up the first of our outward
cairns. This was most fortunate. After passing a second
cairn everything became blotted out, and so we were forced
to camp, after covering 4 miles 703 yards. The dogs are
feeling the pangs of hunger and devouring everything they
see. They will eat anything except rope. If we had not
wasted those three days we might have been able to give them
a good feed at the Bluff depot, but now that is impossible.
It is snowing hard".
Another
blizzard held them up throughout the 25th and 26th.
Mackintosh wrote, "Outside is a scene of chaos. The snow,
whirling along with the wind, obliterates everything. The
dogs are completely buried, and only a mound with a ski
sticking up indicates where the sledge is...The sleeping
bags are damp and sticky, so are our clothes...One of the
dogs gave a bark and Joyce went out to investigate. He found
that Major, feeling hungry, had dragged his way to Joyce's
ski and eaten off the leather binding. Another dog has eaten
all his harness, canvas, rope, leather, brass and rivets. I
am afraid the dogs will not pull through; they all look thin
and these blizzards do not improve matters...We have a
week's provisions and one hundred and sixty miles to travel.
It appears that we will have to get another week's
provisions from the depot, but don't wish it. Will see what
luck to-morrow".
The next day, Mackintosh wrote that,
"We are now reduced to one meal in the twenty-four hours.
This going without food keeps us colder. It is a rotten,
miserable time". The weather cleared on the 27th which
allowed Mackintosh and Joyce to go back to the depot and
retrieve additional stores. Wild remained behind to build
another cairn and dry out the sleeping bags in the sun. The
party resumed their homeward journey the next morning and,
with a sail on the sledge and a nice southerly breeze,
managed to cover nine and a half miles that day. That
evening, for the first time since leaving the Aurora,
the men saw the sun dip to the horizon, a reminder that the
Antarctic summer would soon be over. The dogs continued to
collapse from exhaustion and famine.
On March 2 Mackintosh wrote, "After
lunch we went off fairly well for half an hour. Then Nigger
commenced to wobble about, his legs eventually giving under
him. We took him out of his harness and let him travel along
with us, but he has given us all he can, and now can only
lie down. After Nigger, my friend Pompey collapsed. The
drift, I think, accounts a good deal for this. Pompey has
been splendid of late, pulling steadily and well. Then
Scotty, the last dog but one, gave up. They are all lying
down in our tracks. They have a painless death, for they
curl up in the snow and fall into a sleep from which they
will never awake. We are left with one dog, Pinkey. He has
not been one of the pullers, but he is not despised". At one
point, a strong gust of wind came up and blew the sledge
over, tearing the sail off in the process. More time was
lost as repairs were necessary.
Camp was made and, as Mackintosh
wrote, "If all was as beautiful as the scene we could
consider ourselves in some paradise, but it is dark and cold
in the tent and I shiver in a frozen sleeping-bag. The
inside fur is a mass of ice, congealed from my breath. One
creeps into the bag, toggles up with half-frozen fingers,
and hears the crackling of the ice. Presently drops of
thawing ice are falling on one's head. Then comes a fit of
shivers. You rub yourself and turn over to warm the side of
the bag which has been uppermost. A puddle of water forms
under the body. After about two hours you may doze off, but
I always wake with the feeling that I have not slept a
wink". They made only three and a half miles on March 3.
Sledging was becoming increasingly difficult so Mackintosh
removed the outer runners and scraped the bottom. Left
behind was all spare gear, including dog-harness, in order
to reduce weight. Temperatures were reaching -28°F and
on the 5th, Mackintosh wrote that, "We are struggling along
at a mile an hour. It is a very hard pull, the surface being
very sticky. Pinkey still accompanies us".
The next day a wind came up which
allowed them to once again use the sail. The men suffered
from frostbitten hands as the ropes had to be constantly
secured...that afternoon Pinkey collapsed and was left
behind. More blizzards followed but on May 10th they reached
the Bluff depot. Another blizzard followed so the journey
could not resume until March 12. When they camped that
night, Mackintosh noted that, "Our bags are getting into a
bad state as it is some time now since we have had an
opportunity of drying them. We use our bodies for drying
socks and such-like clothing, which we place inside our
jerseys and produce when required. Wild carries a regular
wardrobe in this position, and it is amusing to see him
searching round the back of his clothes for a pair of socks.
Getting away in the mornings is our bitterest time. The
putting on of the finneskoe is a nightmare, for they are
always frozen stiff, and we have a great struggle to force
our feet into them. The ice sennegras round one's fingers is
another punishment that causes much pain. We are miserable
until we are actually on the move, then warmth returns with
the work. Our conversation now is principally conjecture as
to what can have happened to the other parties. We have
various ideas".
Saturday,
March 13 was another day spent in the bags due to another
blizzard. Both Joyce and Wild suffered from frost-bitten
toes while in their bags and had particular difficulty in
getting the circulation restored. They could not resume
their march until March 15. Mackintosh wrote, "The air
temperature this morning was -35° Fahr...To cap
everything, I developed a toothache, presumably as a result
of frost-bitten cheek. I was in positive agony. Joyce, who
had wakened up, suggested methylated spirit, so I damped
some cotton-wool, then placed it in the tooth, with the
result that I burnt the inside of my mouth. All this time my
fingers, being exposed, were continually having to be
brought back. After putting on the methylated spirit I went
back to the bag, which, of course, was frozen stiff. I
wriggled and moaned till morning brought relief by enabling
me to turn out. Joyce and Wild both had a bad night, their
feet giving them trouble...The skin has peeled off the
inside of my mouth, exposing a raw sore, as the result of
the methylated spirit. My tooth is better, though...".
From here things went better. On March
18, during one of the best marches of the journey,
Mackintosh wrote, "I look forward to seeing the ship. All of
us bear marks of our tramp. Wild takes first place. His nose
is a picture for Punch to be jealous of; his ears,
too, are sore, and one big toe is a black sore. Joyce has a
good nose and many minor sores. My jaw is swollen from the
frost-bite I got on the cheek, and I also have a bit of a
nose...Our beards and our moustaches are masses of ice. I
will take care I am clean-shaven the next time I come out.
The frozen moustache makes the lobes of the nose freeze more
easily than they would if there was no ice alongside
them...I ask myself why on earth one comes to these parts of
the earth. Here we are, frost-bitten in the day, frozen at
night. What a life!" The temperature that day, at 1 p.m.,
was -23°F. They made Corner Camp, where they had been
on February 1, on the evening of March 19.
The next day they only made 2 miles.
On March 23, Mackintosh wrote, "No sooner had we camped last
night than a blizzard with drift came on and has continued
ever since. This morning finds us prisoners. The drift is
lashing into the sides of the tent and everything outside is
obscured". They made a start at 7 a.m. on the 24th after a
breakfast of cocoa and biscuit-crumbs. "Our start was made
under most bitter circumstances, all of us being attacked by
frost-bites. It was an effort to bare hands for an
instant...Wild is a mass of bites, and we are all in a bad
way...We had been pulling about two hours when Joyce's smart
eyes picked up a flag. We shoved on for all we were worth,
and as we got closer, sure enough, the cases of provisions
loomed up. Then what feeds we promised to give ourselves. It
was not long before we were putting our gastronomic
capabilities to the test. Pemmican was brought down from the
depot, with oatmeal to thicken it, as well as sugar. While
Wild was getting the Primus lighted he called out to us that
he believed his ear had gone. This was the last piece of his
face left whole--nose, cheeks, and neck all having bites. I
went into the tent and had a look. The ear was a pale
green...Then his fingers went, and to stop this and bring
back the circulation he put them over the lighted Primus, a
terrible thing to do. As a result he was in
agony...
Just before leaving, Joyce discovered
a note left by Spencer-Smith and Richards. This told us that
both the other parties had returned to the Hut and
apparently all was well...". On March 25 the men picked up
sledge tracks and, following these, found a route down to
the sea-ice. A short time later the three men reached Hut
Point. Mackintosh wrote, "We shouted. No sound. Shouted
again, and presently a dark object appeared. This turned out
to be Cope, who was by himself. The other members of the
party had gone out to fetch the gear off their sledge, which
they also had left...We heard then how the ship had called
here on March 11 and picked up Spencer-Smith, Stevens,
Richards, Ninnis, Hook, and Gaze, the present members here
being Cope, Hayward and Jack". Mackintosh learned that
Spencer-Smith, Jack and Gaze, who had turned back on
February 10, had reached Hut Point without difficulty. The
third party, led by Cope, had also been out on the Barrier
but had not accomplished much. The party had tried to use
the motor-tractor but had failed to get effective service
from it; the car was now lying at Hut Point. Spencer-Smith's
party and Cope's party had both returned to Hut Point before
the end of February.
The Aurora, after picking up
the six men at Hut Point on March 11, returned to Cape Evans
which was the site chosen by Stenhouse for the winter
quarters. The six men now remaining at Hut Point were cut
off from the winter quarters at Cape Evans by the open water
of McMurdo Sound. They lived an uneventful life under
primitive conditions at the hut. Wild and Joyce battled
their frostbites...Joyce had both feet blistered, his knees
were swollen, and his hands were blistered. They ran low of
seal blubber in early April and on April 15 several seals
were sighted and killed.
Meanwhile,
up at Cape Evans preparations were made for routine
observations. On March 23, Stenhouse landed a party
consisting of Stevens (leader), Spencer-Smith, Gaze and
Richards who promptly took up quarters in Scott's hut. They
were instructed to kill seals for meat a blubber. The
landing of equipment, food and fuel proceeded at a leisurely
pace as it was assumed the ship would remain anchored to her
moorings throughout the winter. Some coal was taken ashore
in April but most of it was lost as the sea-ice went out.
The bay frequently froze over with the ice subsequently
blown away due to blizzards. As Stevens wrote, "On the 6th
May the ice was in and people passed freely between the
shore and the ship. At ll p.m. the wind was south, backing
to south-east, and blew at forty miles per hour. The ship
was still in her place. At 3 a.m. on the 7th the wind had
not increased to any extent, but the ice and ship had
gone...Nothing has since been seen or heard of the ship,
though a look-out was kept".
The men did not abandon hope of the
ship returning before the Sound froze firmly but Stevens
immediately inventoried the stores and regulated food
consumption such that it would last the ten men for not less
than one hundred weeks. Unfortunately, no general provisions
had been brought ashore...no clothing required for sledging
had been landed either. But, Captain Scott's hut was
equipped with some food and clothing and the men killed a
number of seals for blubber and meat. On June 2, Mackintosh
and his men from Hut Point showed up at the front door. A
significant amount of risk was involved in the crossing but
now all ten were at Cape Evans: Mackintosh, Spencer-Smith,
Joyce, Wild, Cope, Stevens, Hayward, Gaze, Jack and
Richards. The men, now wintered in, had little to do until
September.
During June the men washed and mended
clothes, killed seals, made minor trips around the hut and
discussed sledging plans for the coming summer. During July
Mackintosh made several trips northwards on the sea-ice but
always returned without getting far. Mackintosh and Stevens
paid a visit to Cape Royds on August 13. The hut used by
Shackleton's 1907-09 Expedition was soon discovered.
Mackintosh wrote, "The outer door of the hut we found to be
off. A little snow had drifted into the porch, but with a
shovel, which we found outside, this was soon cleared away.
We then entered, and in the centre of the hut found a pile
of snow and ice, which had come through the open ventilator
in the roof of the hut...Stevens prepared a meal while I
cleared the ice and snow away from the middle of the hut.
After our meal we commenced taking an inventory of the
stores inside. Tobacco was our first thought. Of this we
found one tin of Navy Cut and a box of cigars. Soap, too,
which now ensures us a wash and clean clothes when we get
back...Over the stove in a conspicuous place we found a
notice left by Scott's party that parties using the hut
should leave the dishes clean". They stayed at the Cape
Royds hut over the next day and loaded up cases of meat,
flour, dried vegetables and other sundries, setting off for
Cape Evans on the morning of August 15. They arrived back at
Cape Evans in only two hours and the rest of August was
simply uneventful.
The
first sledging party, consisting of Mackintosh, Richards and
Spencer-Smith, left Cape Evans on September 1 with 600
pounds of stores on one sledge, and had an uneventful
journey to Hut Point. They attempted to get the
motor-tractor running and on the 3rd they returned to Cape
Evans. The second trip to Hut Point was made by a party of
nine, with three sledges. Two of the sledges were pulled by
the men, loaded with 1278 pounds of stores, while the third,
carrying the sleeping bags, was pulled by the dogs. Eight
men made the third journey to Hut Point, taking 600 pounds
of oil and 630 pounds of stores. From here, on September
14th, the party pulled loaded sledges to Safety Camp, on the
edge of the Barrier; this would be the starting point for
the march across the Barrier to the Minna Bluff depot.
Another load was taken to Hut Point, and on to Safety Camp,
on September 24.
The last entry in Mackintosh's diary,
left at Cape Evans, says "Everybody is up to their eyes in
work. All gear is being overhauled, and personal clothing is
having the last stitches. We have been improvising shoes to
replace the finneskoe, of which we are badly short. Wild has
made an excellent shoe out of an old horse rug he found
here, and this is being copied by other men..Last night I
had a bath, the second since being here...To-morrow
(September 30) we start for Hut Point. Nine of us are going
on the sledge party for laying depots; namely, Stevens,
Spencer-Smith, Joyce, Wild, Cope, Hayward, Jack, Richards,
and myself. Gaze, who is still suffering from bad feet, is
remaining behind and will probably be relieved by Stevens
after our first trip. With us we take three months'
provisions to leave at Hut Point. I continue this journal in
another book, which I keep with me". The nine men reached
Hut Point on October 1.
The depot-laying expedition began from
Safety Camp on October 9: three sledges and three tents were
taken out onto the Barrier by three teams, consisting of,
1)Mackintosh, Spencer-Smith and Wild; 2)Joyce, Cope and
Richards; and 3)Jack, Hayward and Gaze. Mackintosh's account
of the depot-laying journeys in the summer of 1915-16 are
unfortunately not available..even though a diary was kept,
the book was with him when he was lost on the sea-ice the
following winter. The only narrative remaining is one
compiled by Shackleton from notes kept by Joyce, Richards
and other members of the parties. The dogs, untrained and in
poor condition from the journey to McMurdo Sound in 1914,
were nearly all dead by the beginning of the important
sledging season of 1915-16. The men had to sledge almost
continuously during a six-month period. They suffered from
frostbite, scurvy, and snow-blindness. Nevertheless, had the
Weddell Sea Party been able to make the crossing of the
Antarctic continent as planned, the stores and fuel would
have been waiting for them precisely where Shackleton
expected to find them.
Four
loads of stores were eventually deposited at Minna Bluff.
The final load, brought by Joyce and his men, arrived at the
Bluff on December 28. The Bluff depot was now stocked with
between 2800 and 2900 pounds of provisions. Various depots
were left over the following weeks. Cairns were built at
short intervals as guides to the depots. Advancements were
made quite rapidly and on the morning of January 18th,
82°S was reached. The depot here, like the one at
81°S, contained five days' provisions for twelve men.
The final depot was to be placed at the base of Mount Hope,
at the foot of the Beardmore Glacier, in latitude 83°
30'S. The loads were relatively light now but a new trouble
developed on January 19th. Spencer-Smith was suffering from
swollen and painful legs and was unable to do much pulling.
Joyce wrote on the 21st that Spencer-Smith was worse, and
that Mackintosh was showing signs of exhaustion.
The next morning he reported to be
unable to continue. The Mount Hope depot was very important
so Spencer-Smith, at his insistence, was left with a tent,
one sledge and provisions with the promise from Mackintosh
that he'd be picked up on their return in about a week.
Fighting challenging weather and "the biggest ice pressure"
Joyce had ever seen, the men reached the foot of the
Beardmore Glacier on January 26 and found two of Captain
Scotts' sledges, upright, buried in the snow. Joyce wrote,
"Wild, Hayward, and myself then took the depot up the
Glacier, a fortnight's provisions. We left it lashed to a
broken sledge, and put up a large flag. I took two
photographs of it". The party remained in camp until the
27th due to a strong blizzard. Joyce experienced painful
snow-blindness as the return trip commenced, some 365 miles
from home. They reached Spencer-Smith on the 29th and found
him alive, but unable to walk. Joyce's diary contains a
rather gloomy reference to the outlook, since he guessed
that Mackintosh also would be unable to make the homeward
march. "If they will only last to 80°S. we shall then
have enough food to take them in, and then if the ship is in
I guarantee they will live in comfort the remainder of their
lives".
"Still blizzarding", wrote Joyce on
the 21st. "We are lying in pools of water made by our bodies
through staying in the same place for such a long time. I
don't know what we shall do if this does not ease. It has
been blowing continuously without a lull. The food for
to-day was one cup of pemmican amongst three of us, one
biscuit each, and two cups of tea among the three". The next
day things had not improved. Joyce wrote, "Hardly any food
left except tea and sugar. Richards, Hayward and I, after a
long talk, decided to get under way to-morrow in any case,
or else we shall be sharing the fate of Captain Scott and
his party. The other tent seems to be very quiet, but now
and again we hear a burst of song from Wild, so they are in
the land of the living. We gave the dogs the last of their
food to-night, so we shall have to push, as a great deal
depends on them". They got underway at 2:20 p.m. the next
day. Mackintosh stayed on his feet as long as humanly
possible, tied to the rear of the sledge. Suffering from
scurvy, he marched for half an hour on the 23rd before
breaking down. Spencer-Smith was sinking as well. Wild, who
was in charge of the invalids, was doing quite well but
Joyce, Richards and Hayward were all showing signs of
scurvy.
On February 24th, Joyce wrote, "The
worst of camping is the poor dogs and our weak condition,
which means we have to get out of our wet sleeping-bags and
have another half cup of tea without working for it. This is
the second day the dogs have been without food, and if we
cannot soon pick up depot and save the dogs it will be
almost impossible to drag our two invalids back the one
hundred miles which we have to go". On Saturday, February
26, Richards sighted the Minna Bluff depot. Joyce wrote,
"The dogs sighted it, which seemed to electrify them. They
had new life and started to run, but we were so weak that we
could not go more than 200 yds. and then spell. I think
another day would have seen us off".
Mackintosh
& Spencer-Smith being dragged on the
Sledge
 Blizzard
after blizzard confronted the men. On Thursday, March 9,
Spencer-Smith called out that he was feeling queer. Wild
spoke to him and at 5:45 Richards said, "I think he is
gone". He had been dragged on the sledge for forty days,
never complaining despite the intense pain. He was buried in
his sleeping bag at the following position: Ereb.
184°--Obs. Hill 149°. A cross was made of bamboo
and placed on a cairn at the gravesite. The men arrived at
Safety Camp on Saturday, March 18, at precisely 4:10 p.m.
They were back at Hut Point by 7 o'clock that evening,
having traveled over 1561 miles in 160 days. Joyce wrote,
"Before turning in Skipper shook us by the hand with great
emotion, thanking us for saving his life".
The five men now at Hut Point realized
that some of the winter months must be spent there as they
would have to wait for the sea to freeze between them and
Cape Evans. They had no news of the ship and assumed she had
not returned to the Sound since no message awaited them upon
arrival back at Hut Point. Before the end of March,
Mackintosh and Hayward, who suffered the most, were able to
exercise. By the second week of April Mackintosh was free of
pain, though the backs of his legs were still black. During
April the sea froze in calm weather, but winds took the ice
out again. During the first week of May the sea-ice formed
rapidly. Richards wrote, "And now a most regrettable
incident occurred. On the morning of May 8, before
breakfast, Captain Mackintosh asked Joyce what he thought of
his going to Cape Evans with Hayward. Captain Mackintosh
considered the ice quite safe, and the fine morning no doubt
tempted him to exchange the quarters at the hut for the
greater comfort and better food at Cape Evans. He was
strongly urged at the time not to take the risk, as it was
pointed out that the ice, although firm, was very young, and
that a blizzard was almost sure to take part of it out to
sea."
Despite changing weather for the
worse, Mackintosh and Hayward struck out for Cape Evans at 1
p.m. By 3 p.m. a moderate blizzard was blowing which later
turned into a full-blown event. On May 10, the first day
possible, the three remaining men at the hut walked over new
ice to the north to try and find some trace of Mackintosh
and Hayward. The footmarks were clearly seen and the track
they followed led in the direction of Cape Evans. Two miles
out from the hut the trail ended abruptly, and in the dim
light was a wide stretch of water, very lightly covered with
ice, stretching as far as the eye could see. At this moment
it was evident the ice on which the men were travelling had
broken off and drifted out to sea.
The
weather during June was persistently bad. No move had been
possible on May 16, the sea-ice going out, so Joyce decided
to wait until the next full moon. The weather was so poor in
June that they had to wait until July's full moon to make
the journey to Cape Evans. The party started for Cape Evans
on July 15 and arrived later that same day. The men settled
in to wait for the relief and, when opportunity allowed,
Joyce led search parties to look for the bodies or any trace
of Mackintosh and Hayward. Joyce subsequently handed the
following report to Shackleton:
"I
beg to report that the following steps were taken to try
and discover the bodies of Captain Mackintosh and Mr.
Hayward. After our party's return to the hut at Cape
Evans, July 15, 1916, it was learned that Captain
Mackintosh and Mr. Hayward had not arrived; and, being
aware of the conditions under which they were last seen,
all the members of the wintering party were absolutely
convinced that these two men were totally lost and
dead--that they could not have lived for more than a few
hours at the outside in the blizzard that they had
encountered, they being entirely unprovided with
equipment of any sort. There was the barest chance that
after the return of the sun some trace of their bodies
might be found, so during the spring--that is, August and
September 1916, and in the summer, December and January
1916-17--the following searches were carried out:
(1) Wild and I thoroughly searched Inaccessible Island at
the end of August, 1916.
(2) Various parties in September searched along the shore
to the vicinity of Turk's Head.
(3) In company with Messrs. Wild and Gaze I started from
Hut Point, December 31, 1916, at 8 a.m., and a course was
steered inshore as close as possible to the cliffs in
order to search for any possible means of ascent. At a
distance of half a mile from Hut Point we passed a snow
slope which I had already ascended in June, 1916; three
and a half miles farther on was another snow-slope which
ended in Blue Ice Glacier slope, which we found
impossible to climb, snow-slope being formed by heavy
winter snowfall. These were the only two places
accessible. Distance on this day, 10 miles 1710 yds.
covered. On January 1 search was continued round the
south side of Glacier Tongue from the base towards the
seaward end. There was much heavy pressure; it was
impossible to reach the summit owing to the wide crack.
Distance covered 4 miles 100 yds.
On January 2 thick weather caused
party to lay up. On 3rd, glacier was further examined,
and several slopes formed by snow led to top of glacier,
but crevasses between slope and the Tongue prevented
crossing. The party then proceeded round the Tongue to
Tent Island, which was also searched, a complete tour of
the island being made. It was decided to make for Cape
Evans, as thick weather was approaching. We arrived at 8
p.m. Distance 8 miles 490 yds.
I remain, etc,
Ernest E. Joyce."
As for
the Aurora, following Mackintosh's departure on
January 25, 1915, Stenhouse kept the ship off Tent Island.
The ice-anchors would not hold, owing to the continual
breaking away of the pack. During the next month, the
Aurora occupied various positions around Cape Evans.
On March 11 he proceeded to Hut Point where he dropped
anchor in Discovery Bay, landing provisions for twelve men
and embarking Spencer-Smith, Stevens, Hooke, Richards,
Ninnis and Gaze, returning to Cape Evans that evening. Then,
on May 6, 1915, the blizzard hit.
From the log of the Aurora,
"9:45 p.m.--The ice parted from the shore; all moorings
parted. Most fascinating to listen to waves and chain
breaking. In the thick haze I saw the ice astern breaking up
and the shore receding. I called all hands and clapped
relieving tackles on to the cables on the fore part of the
windlass. The bos'n had rushed along with his hurricane
lamp, and shouted, 'She's away wi' it!' He is a good fellow
and very conscientious. I ordered steam on main engines, and
the engine-room staff, with Hooke and Ninnis, turned to.
Grady, fireman, was laid up with broken rib. As the ship, in
the solid floe, set to the north-west, the cables rattled
and tore at the hawse-pipes; luckily the anchors, lying as
they were on a strip-sloping bottom, came away easily,
without damage to windlass or hawse-pipes. Slowly as we
disappeared into the Sound, the light in the hut died away".
The ship drifted helplessly around the
Sound throughout May 7. On the morning of May 8 the weather
cleared a little as Cape bird was spotted in the distance.
On May 9th, Stenhouse wrote, "Cape Bird is the only land
visible, bearing north-east true about eight miles distant.
So this is the end of our attempt to winter in McMurdo
Sound...It is five weeks to the middle of winter. There is
no sun, the light is little and uncertain, and we may expect
many blizzards. We have no immediate water-supply, as only a
small quantity of fresh ice is aboard when we broke drift.
The Aurora is fast in the pack and drifting God knows
where. Well, there are prospects of a most interesting
winter drift. We are all in good health, except Grady, whose
rib is mending rapidly; we have good spirits and we will get
through. But what of the poor beggars at Cape Evans, and the
Southern Party? It is a dismal prospect for them. There are
sufficient provisions at Cape Evans, Hut Point, and, I
suppose, Cape Royds, but we have the remaining Burberrys,
clothing, etc., for next year's sledging still on board. I
see little prospect of getting back to Cape Evans or
anywhere in the Sound. We are short of coal and held firmly
in the ice. I hope she drifts quickly to the north-east.
Then we can endeavour to push through the pack and make for
New Zealand, coal and return to the Barrier eastward of Cape
Crozier. This could be done, I think, in the early spring,
September. We must get back to aid the depot-laying next
season".
The record of the early months of the
Aurora's drift in the Ross Sea is uneventful. The
supply of fresh water remained a problem as fresh fallen
snow was their only source. Hooke and Ninnis worked hard at
getting the wireless station going in hope of getting in
touch with Macquarie Island, and possibly sending news of
the ship to Cape Evans. They got the wireless going but,
despite many attempts, their efforts were unsuccessful. The
Aurora was quite helpless in the grip of the ice.
From the ship's log on May 21, "The grating and grinding
noise makes one feel the unimportance of man in
circumstances like ours. Hope all is well at Cape Evans and
that the other parties have returned safely. Wish we could
relieve their anxiety". From the log on May 26, "If the ship
is nipped in the ice, the ship's company (eighteen hands)
will take to four sledges with one month's rations and make
for nearest land. Six men and one sledge will endeavour to
make Cape Evans via the Western land, Butler Point, Hut
Point, etc. The remaining twelve will come along with all
possible speed, but no forced marches, killing and depoting
penguins and seals for emergency retreats".
On June 8, "Made our latitude 75°
59'S. by altitude of Sirius. This is a very monotonous life,
but all hands appear to be happy and contented. The
temperature is -20°Fahr." The ship continued to drift
throughout June and, from the logbook entry on July 22,
"Ship in bad position in newly frozen lane, with bow and
stern jammed against heavy floes; heavy strain with much
creaking and groaning. 8 a.m.--Called all hands to stations
for sledges, and made final preparations for abandoning
ship...Am afraid the ship's back will be broken if the
pressure continues, but cannot relieve her". The next day
the "Pressure continued intermittently throughout the day
and night, with occasional very heavy squeezes to the ship
which made timbers crack and groan. The ship's stern is now
in a more or less soft bed, formed of recently frozen ice of
about one foot in thickness. I thank God that we have been
spared through this fearful nightmare".
By August 10, the ship's position was
70° 42' S. latitude, forty-five miles north-east of
Cape Adare. On August 17 Hooke heard Macquarie Island on the
wireless set sending weather reports to Hobart. Once again,
on August 25, Hooke heard Macquarie and the Bluff (New
Zealand) sending weather reports. On September 5 the
wireless mast came down in a raging blizzard. On September
22 they had drifted to latitude 69°12'S, longitude
165° 00'E, ninety miles south of Sturge Island in the
Balleny Group. During the month of October the Aurora
drifted uneventfully. On November 17 Stenhouse made a
sounding, at 66°S, 154°E, and found bottom at 194
fathoms. From the log entry of December 17, "No appreciable
change in our surroundings. Every day past now reduces our
chance of getting out in time to go north for rudder,
anchors, and coal. If we break out before January 15 we
might get north to New Zealand and down to Cape Evans again
in time to pick up the parties. After that date we can only
attempt to go south in our crippled state, and short of
fuel...Shackleton may be past the Pole now. I wish our
wireless calls had got through".
The middle of January passed and the
Aurora lay still in the ice. The latitude on January
24 was 65° 39'½S. The break-up of the floe came
on February 12. Without steam and rudder, the foresail and
foretopmast staysail were set the next day and the ship
slowly moved northward. At 2 p.m., on March 14, the
Aurora cleared the last belt of pack ice in latitude
62° 27.5'S., longitude 157° 32'E. On March 23rd
communications was established with Bluff Station, New
Zealand, and the next day with Wellington and Hobart. In the
early morning of April 2, the Aurora picked up the
tug Plucky, was taken in tow, and arrived in Port
Chalmers the following morning.
Shackleton
reached New Zealand at the beginning of December, 1916. The
Aurora had been repaired and refitted at Port
Chalmers and was now under the command of John K. Davis, who
was a member of Shackleton's 1907-09 Expedition, and who
subsequently commanded Dr. Mawson's ship in the Australian
Antarctic Expedition. The Australian Government agreed to
hand the Aurora over to Shackleton, even free and
clear of debt upon her return to New Zealand after picking
up the Ross Sea Party. Due to this generosity, Captain Davis
commanded the ship down to McMurdo Sound while Shackleton
"signed on" at a salary of 1s. a month. They sailed from
Port Chalmers on December 20, 1916, for McMurdo Sound. The
Aurora encountered her first ice a week later and
entered the open water of the Ross Sea on January 7, 1917.
Captain Davis brought the ship alongside the ice edge off
Cape Royds on the morning of January 10.
Shackleton went ashore with a party to
look for any records possibly left in the hut. A letter was
found stating that the Ross Sea Party was housed at Cape
Evans. Shackleton was on his way back to the ship when six
men, with dogs and a sledge, appeared in the direction of
Cape Evans. At 1 p.m. this party arrived on board and
Shackleton learned that of the ten members left behind when
the Aurora broke away on May 6, 1915, only seven had
survived. A final search was made for the bodies of
Mackintosh and Hayward and, of course, they were not found.
After the exhaustive searching, Captain Davis took the ship
northward on January 17, 1917. The Aurora reached the
main pack of ice on January 22 and crossed the Antarctic
Circle on January 31. On February 4 Davis sent a formal
report to the New Zealand Government by wireless, and on
February 9 the Aurora berthed at
Wellington.
As some
of you know, little is known of the relief trip, commanded
by Captain Davis, to McMurdo Sound at the end of 1916. The
crew of the relief effort was comprised entirely of
volunteer help. TURN
THE PAGE to read of
Shackleton's last expedition, the Shackleton-Rowett
Expedition, aboard the Quest.
|
|
