Shackleton's Crew Used Cocaine-And-Caffeine Tablets

During the desperate return from Ernest Shackleton's 1907-1909 Nimrod expedition, his four-man polar party used cocaine-and-caffeine "Forced March" tablets to keep moving. At one point, their food ran out, leaving them to spend roughly 36 hours consuming only the stimulant tablets and cocoa. Frostbitten, starving, and struggling to remain awake, they continued until they found food again, after which Frank Wild called the meal "the finest meal we had ever tasted."

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