Friday, 20 October 1911

Amundsen

In gale and fog, the party lost their way several times, straying from the marked route into one of the crevassed areas they had hoped to avoid.

"I came last," Wisting recalled, "with Roald Amundsen riding on my sledge. We sat back to back.... Suddenly I felt a tremendous jerk in the sledge, which seemed to whip down by the stern, and wanted to glide backwards with nose in the air. I turned round quick as lightning, and saw that we had driven over an enormous crevasse. Partly over, the snow bridge had broken under us but, on account of our high and even speed, the sledge luckily slid on to firm ice. We did not stop but continued on our way. Then I felt Amundsen tap me on the shoulder.... 'Did you see that?' he said. 'That would have liked both us, the sledge and the dogs.' More was not said." [1]


Notes:

[1] Oscar Wisting, Seksten År med Roald Amundsen, p.34, quoted by Roland Huntford in Scott and Amundsen (New York : Putnam, 1980, c1979), p.416.