Heritage News Archive

In Shackleton's Footsteps...

In Shackleton's Footsteps...

Follow one of Athy's most famous sons!

2015 marks the centenary of Ernest Shackleton’s remarkable Antarctic survival mission and you can experience at least some of the challenges he and his men faced in 1915. 

The 20-day Shackleton Spirit includes a visit to Elephant Island (right), where Shackleton left some of his men while he, Tom Crean and three others made the 720-mile journey to South Georgia in a lifeboat. You will make the crossing in a bigger and much more comfortable boat, and you also have the option of taking on the gruelling four-day trek across South Georgia to the whaling station. The trip departs Ushaia in Argentina on March 9th and costs €10,400 (€11,400 if you also want to do the South Georgia trek; flights to Ushaia are not included) and places are limited.

See www.worldexpeditions.com

If you don't fancy being such an energetic adventurer, you can of course visit local exhibitions in Athy and Dublin.

Check the following sites for details:

Shackleton Museum Athy 

Endurance Exhibition Dun Laoghaoire 

'Celebrating Sir Ernest Shackleton' is proudly supported by Kildare County Council and Athy Town Promoters Group www.athy.ie 

The 15th annual Shackleton 'Polar Theme' Autumn School will take place in October 2015 in Athy.

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