Letter to the Editor We received the following letter and photos from John French, Harvey class of 1947, after our last edition with its article on Ernest Shackleton’s Antarctic expedition. We live in an amazingly small world, and we encourage all of you to share your experiences or thoughts on articles we publish. “I particularly enjoyed your Winter 2013 issue. It had pictures of my roommate Bert Lachmann ’47 and an article on the hockey rink where I was one of the group that put it together and first chairman of the boys hockey program. I was particularly pleased to read that the school presented the story of Shackleton’s Antarctic expedition, which should be read by all and more than once. I trust the book Endurance was part of the presentation. “As it turns out, I was in the Antarctic last month on board the Sea Adventurer, an expedition ship stressed for Antarctic waters, including double hulls for ice penetration and a bridge that is both higher and further back than the bridges on other cruise ships. I say this because just ahead of us was the Silver Explorer, with more than 60 Hotchkiss students aboard, among others, and we both went through an Antarctic hurricane with winds approaching 100 mph and waves over 60 feet high. Our captain took us through the waves at a slight angle, whereas the Silver Explorer went head-on and its bridge was hit directly by a 60-foot wave that broke windows, seriously injuring the captain and, to a lesser extent, three of his crew, and soaked its electronics with saltwater. The ship had to turn back and cancel the rest of its voyage. We had a rough few days, but our ship completed its voyage. “Part of our voyage was to follow Shackleton’s trip in reverse from South Georgia Island to Elephant Island. They experienced at least one such hurricane, and I can’t imagine how they survived in three open boats to Elephant Island, over several months. Shackleton then went with five others in a lifeboat named the James Caird which also experienced such a storm over its 17-day voyage to South Georgia. You really have to be there to appreciate winds in excess of 80 mph in below-freezing temperatures, constantly beset by huge waves in an open lifeboat. What skill and courage he demonstrated. “I’m enclosing a couple of pictures, one showing the place on Elephant Island where Shackleton placed his crew, who then lived for a considerable time in the caves and under two overturned lifeboats with hundreds of penguins all over the area, which were plentiful enough then to keep them alive during their encampment. “The week before, we passed the place on South Georgia Island where Shackleton landed after 17 days, despite having one good day for navigation, overcast and stormy the rest of the time, to reach a small island in a wide-open ocean. As you know, he and two others hiked over the South Georgia mountains, which are quite rugged, to reach the whaling station on the other side. We would like to publish your Twenty years later, a well-equipped mountaineering team made the same trip comments and stories (letters may and had trouble completing it. be edited for length and clarity). “I hope Endurance becomes a part of the Harvey curriculum. It is an exercise in leadership and courage and should be an example to us all.” Harvey Magazine —John French ’47 The Harvey School
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