The British members of the Ross Sea party arrived in Australia to find the expedition wasn’t as well prepared as they’d been led to believe. The ship Shackleton had bought for them – the ‘Aurora’ –  had a distinguished polar record, but thirty-eight years’ service had taken its toll and she needed a great deal of work to cope with another gruelling expedition.

Expedition provisions sent from England were also inadequate. There was no spare sledging gear and fur items were moth-eaten. Funding was even less generous and when the ‘Aurora’s’ previous owner asked for some stores back, things started to look impossible.

The expedition Commander, Aeneas Mackintosh, asked the London organisers for more money but was told his budget had been cut. Forced to rely on Australia’s generosity, he couldn’t believe the position Shackleton had put him in. Some of his benefactors were just as shocked. Despite the difficulties, Mackintosh did his best to make sure the expedition was fully prepared, but Shackleton had told him to leave Hobart early in December and time wasn’t on his side.

The Ross Sea Party ate a farewell dinner in their hotel and gaps in the crew were filled at the last moment. They set sail for Antarctica on 24 December, three weeks late. The first stage of their journey was over 2000 miles across the Southern Ocean. As the party made the first of many changes to their way of life, Hayward exchanged his white flannels and straw boater for woollens and a crew cut.