March 7, 2011

Tuesday, 7 March 1911

Amundsen

Building the depot at 82° S. [1]

The party arrived at 82°, with over half a ton of supplies, including 400 kilos (880 pounds) of dog pemmican.

Amundsen wrote later, "It was the utmost my five dogs could manage. Indeed, as will shortly be seen, it was already too much. They were completely worn out, poor beasts. This is the only dark memory of my stay in the South -- the over-taxing of these fine animals -- I had asked more of them than they were capable of doing. My consolation is that I did not spare myself either." [2]


Notes:

[1] Aan de Zuidpool, The Gutenberg Project.
[2] Roald Amundsen, The South Pole, ch.6. He was in fact suffering from a painful rectal complaint, probably haemorrhoids, that is apparently not uncommon among polar travellers.

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