{"id":1235,"date":"2012-11-12T11:16:53","date_gmt":"2012-11-12T16:16:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/preserving\/?p=1235"},"modified":"2012-11-12T11:16:53","modified_gmt":"2012-11-12T16:16:53","slug":"the-big-chill-amundsens-race-to-the-south-pole","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/2012\/11\/12\/the-big-chill-amundsens-race-to-the-south-pole\/","title":{"rendered":"The Big Chill: Amundsen’s race to the South Pole"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Roald Amundsen’s expedition was the first to reach the South Pole in December of 1911, mere weeks before the arrival of the ill-fated party led by Captain Robert Scott. Though he is recognized as the first, Amundsen’s victory is often overshadowed by the heroic and tragic deaths of Scott and the British expedition. In part, some of this backlash toward Amundsen can be attributed to his secretive manner in planning for the expedition, even allowing his own crew believe they would be going to the North Pole rather than the South Pole.\u00a0 He informed them of this change of direction once their ship was out in the Atlantic Ocean. Regardless of his cagey attitude, Amundsen was the better prepared explorer for the arduous journey; a detailed planner, with proficient skills in organization, and lengthy experience and expertise in the arctic conditions. Crucial\u00a0to Amundsen’s success in reaching the South Pole and making a safe return home was his preference for sled dogs, placing his full trust in them as his primary mode of motility. Scott, on the other hand, was criticized in the tragic aftermath for his persistent use of ponies and motorized equipment rather than dogs. Amundsen also differed from Scott in his admiration and adoption of Inuit’s methods of survival, including sledding, furs, and food sources. In his exploration of the Northwest Passage, Amundsen appreciated the native population’s skills for surviving harsh conditions and, in turn, chose their methods rather than latest European apparatus, technology, or wool-based clothing. This two volume set, written by Amundsen soon after his return to his native Norway, is a detailed account of the epic voyage and expedition, with fascinating first hand accounts and photographs.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Amundsen’s party: Hassel, Whiting, Hanssen, and Bjaaland.<\/strong>
(Moustaches mandatory?)<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

“It is true that I had worn nothing but a pair <\/em>of <\/em>
\n ordinary spectacles, with light yellow glasses, all the <\/em>
\n autumn, and that they had proved excellent; but for <\/em>
\n the long journey I was afraid these would give<\/em>
\n insufficient <\/em>protection. I therefore threw myself into<\/em>
\n the <\/em>competition for the best patent. The end of it was <\/em>
\n that we all went in for leather goggles, with a little slit <\/em>
\n for the eyes. The Bjaaland patent won the prize, and <\/em>
\n was most adopted.”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Trying on the goggles<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

“In undertaking a sledge journey down there in <\/em>
\n autumn or spring, the most extraordinary precautions <\/em>
\n have to be taken to protect oneself against the cold. <\/em>
\n Skin clothing is then the only thing that is of any use.”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Amundsen’s party in their fur garb<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

“Lindstrom. He’s the man\u2014he produces hot cakes with <\/em>
\n astonishing dexterity; it almost reminds one of a juggler <\/em>
\n throwing up balls, so rapid and regular is the process. <\/em>
\n The way he manipulates the cake-slice shows a fabulous <\/em>
\n proficiency. With the skimmer in one hand he dumps <\/em>
\n fresh dough into the pan, and with the cake-slice in the <\/em>
\n other he removes those that are done, all at the same <\/em>
\n time ; it seems almost more than human !”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Pancakes for all<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

“After this we proceeded to the greatest <\/em>
\n and most solemn act of the whole journey\u2014the planting <\/em>
\n of our flag. Pride and affection shone in the five pairs <\/em>
\n of eyes that gazed upon the flag, as it unfurled itself with <\/em>
\n a sharp crack, and waved over the Pole. I had determined <\/em>
\n that the act of planting it\u2014the historic event\u2014 <\/em>
\n should be equally divided among us all. It was not for <\/em>
\n one man to do this ; it was for all who had staked their <\/em>
\n lives in the struggle, and held together through thick <\/em>
\n and thin. This was the only way in which I could <\/em>
\n show my gratitude to my comrades in this desolate spot. <\/em>
\n I could see that they understood and accepted it in the <\/em>
\n spirit in which it was offered. Five weather-beaten, <\/em>
\n frost-bitten fists they were that grasped the pole, raised <\/em>
\n the waving flag in the air, and planted it as the first at <\/em>
\n the geographical South Pole.”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

At the South Pole!<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n
Description:<\/dt>\n
Amundsen, Roald. The South Pole :an account of the Norwegian Antarctic expedition in the “Fram,” 1910-1912. London : John Murray, 1912.<\/dd>\n
Persistent Link:<\/dt>\n
http:\/\/nrs.harvard.edu\/urn-3:FHCL:9817971<\/a><\/dd>\n
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Repository:<\/dt>\n
Widener Library<\/dd>\n
Institution:<\/dt>\n
Harvard University<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Roald Amundsen’s expedition was the first to reach the South Pole in December of 1911, mere weeks before the arrival of the ill-fated party led by Captain Robert Scott. Though he is recognized as the first, Amundsen’s victory is often overshadowed by the heroic and tragic deaths of Scott and the British expedition. In part, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2559,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1235","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2559"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1235"}],"version-history":[{"count":67,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1235\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1318,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1235\/revisions\/1318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1235"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1235"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/preserving\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1235"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}