OUR October meeting marked the return of David Fletcher, a long-time member of the British Antarctic Survey.

His topic was Sir Ernest Shackleton.

From outset to conclusion we were captivated.

In 1914 Shackleton planned to cross Antarctica from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea via the South Pole. Twenty-eight brave men in their ship Endurance left South Georgia in September 1914 but the early onset of ice threw their plans awry. What followed was an amazing and emotional tale. It included the slow crushing of their ship by ice and hauling lifeboats over miles of ice ridges in the cold and dark.

They took to the sea again in their open boats only to face the huge swells of the Weddell Sea until reaching Elephant Isle.

Camp was made. Shackleton and five others crossed the 853 miles of ocean to whaling stations on South Georgia. They endured 70ft waves and severe ice on board. It was an amazing feat to find South Georgia, but three had to cross the 10,000ft icy mountains to the whaling stations. On arrival, Shackleton’s first thoughts turned to the other men. It took four attempts before all men were rescued. “The Boss”, as Shackleton was called, did not let the men down.

A tale of adventure, heroism, endurance, and amazing leadership, told with such insight and sympathy and warm th.

Chairman Gordon Pardy paid tribute to Keith Blake for his long service to Sarum U3A as our valued audio-visual technician.