 In 1910 Orde-Lees applied for a place on Scott's Terra Nova Expedition, but was turned down.When Shackleton was organizing the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition he decided that he needed a representative from the Royal Navy in order to get political and military support for the expedition.Orde-Lees as a skier and motor expert fitted the bill, and after Shackleton applied to Churchill for permission, Orde-Lees was released from his military duties and allowed to join the expedition as storekeeper.