IT HAS been described as one of the "bravest acts in the history of exploration", and an Irish adventurer was responsible. A century after Sir Ernest Shackleton turned back some 97 miles short of the South Pole, descendants of the participants are seeking a volunteer to help them complete the journey.
Shackleton's great grandson Patrick Bergel (36) and Henry Adams (33), a great-grandson of Jameson Boyd Adams, Shackleton's number two on the South Pole attempt, are among the participants training for the reconstruction of the 1907-1908 Nimrod expedition.
They are among a group of six who are offering to take a fit member of the public with them for the crucial last 97 miles which Shackleton and crew never completed across Antarctica.
Shackleton's exploits have been recreated before: by the Irish South Aris expedition in 1997; by Antarctic specialist Jonathan Shackleton, a cousin of Sir Ernest; and by adventurer Pat Falvey. However, this is the first of its type to involve a group of descendants of the original explorers.
Exhausted and running short of supplies, Shackleton planted the Union Jack on a bamboo pole, along with a small brass cylinder containing some stamps, before retracing some 730 miles.
"We have shot our bolt, and the tale is 88 23S 162E" , the leader recorded on January 8th, 1909, having beaten the previous record, then held by Sir Robert Falcon Scott, by 360 miles.
Norwegian Roald Amundsen reached the South Pole in March 1912, with Sir Robert Scott perishing on his last attempt.
The new Shackleton recreation begins in October, when an advance party including Lt Col Henry Worsley (47), a descendant of Shackleton's skipper, Frank Worsley; Henry Adams and Will Gow (35), who is related to Shackleton by marriage, will set off on the original 900 mile route across Antarctica from Ross island on the edge of the Ross ice shelf.
In early January 2009 they aim to reach the famous turn-back point, named as King Edward VII plateau by Shackleton. There, they plan to meet Patrick Bergel, David Cornell (38), also related to Jameson Boyd Adams, and Tim Fright (24), great-great-nephew of Frank Wild, the only man to accompany Shackleton on all his expeditions.
The seventh member of the team will be the winner of a competition for a place open to anyone resident in Britain or Northern Ireland and holding an EU passport.
Using the original Shackleton compass, the group will haul 300lb (136kg) sledges in 50mph headwinds and -35 degree temperatures. Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic has been earmarked for preparatory training grounds.
"Anyone reasonably fit, who goes to the gym and is a strong team player, can apply to join us for the last 12 days of the trek," Lt Col Worsley said.
The adventure will mark the initiation of a £10 million (€12.4 million) Shackleton Foundation, which will finance projects embodying his spirit of adventure.
Prospective applicants will find more details of the Matrix Shackleton Centenary Expedition on the website, www.matrixgroup.co.uk/shackleton.
