The New England
Chapter of
The Explorers Club
"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all"

--HELEN KELLER

ABANDONED IN THE ARCTIC
A FILM BY JEFF CLARK
In August 1881 Lt. Adolphus W. Greely and a team of 24 determined men set out as part of the First International Polar Year to build a research station on Ellesmere Island, 450 miles from the North Pole. The Lady Franklin Bay Expedition began as the most ambitious arctic expedition in United States history, but was destined to descend into a three year journey through frozen hell
- a voyage of forced retreat, starvation, brewing mutiny and cannibalism. Against all odds, six men survived.

"Abandoned in the Arctic", a new HD documentary from Cocked Hat Ventures LLC, is a story of survival and redemption in the face of staggering physical hardship and the underlying account of political scandal, cover-up and gross negligence by the U.S government. "Abandoned" attempts to unravel the mystery surrounding what really happened during the three years Greely and his men were marooned in the arctic. Did the U.S. government abandon 25 men to certain death? Did Greely's arrogance and miss-calculation result in the death of 19 men? Or, was he a skilled leader whose courage, integrity and humanity made it possible for even some to survive?

Fast-forward to June 2004 when a team of five men and one woman, including the great, great, grandson of A.W. Greely, 25 year old James Shedd, embarked on a journey to retrace the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition's footsteps in search of answers to the Greely mystery.

"Retracing the Journey", is a compelling daily journal of the team's six weeks in the arctic, written and photographed during the filming of "Abandoned in the Arctic". After landing on the treacherous coast of Canada's Ellsmere Island, the team set out in kayak's and on foot to retrace Greely's epic 250 mile retreat south to Cape Sabine.

The team's journey over rough terrain and treacherous, ice jammed waters was a constant challenge, and it was simple luck that one of the men narrowly escaped death in an unexpected and terrifying accident. Ultimately, the team experienced the arctic as a voyage of discovery merging the past with the present, while James Shedd found affirmation in the pursuit of his own Greely legacy.

This film was produced by one of our members, Goeff Clark and while not a meeting of the New England Chapter of The Explorers Club, we highly recommend that you see it if possible. A sneak preview of the film will be given on Saturday, June 23 at the Portsmouth, New Hampshire Music Hall as part of the exhibition, Adolphus Greeley: Abandoned in the Arctic at the Portsmouth Athaneum. For reservations or more information, contact Goeff at (603)431-6626, e-mail him at gecgaspa@cocked-hat.com or view his website at http://www.cocked-hat.com/about-abandoned.html. For more information about the exhbition, go to http://www.portsmouthathenaeum.org/exhibits.html
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