December 14th: A day that will live in Norway

by Clifford F. Thies

December 14th marks the 100th anniversary of the expedition of Roald Amundsen of Norway to the South Pole. He and Robert Falcon Scott of Great Britain were engaged in a great race. Amundsen and his team got there five weeks earlier than Scott and his team. And, Amundsen and his team got back alive.

Amundsen was single-minded. His team had one goal, to get to the South Pole and then get back.

Scott’s team was engaged in a comprehensive scientific expedition. They collected specimens, took photographs and recorded observations.

Amundsen took a route that was tougher at the beginning, with a climb over a fairly teep glacier, but which afterword featured a relatively flat approach to the Pole.

Scott took a more gradual, but longer route.

Amundsen’s team ate most of the dogs in his team along the way, minimizing the need for carrying both human and dog rations.

Scott’s team turned the dogs into pets. But, at the end of their journey, twelve miles from base camp, worn out, running out of provisions, and hit with a fierce storm, they, too, ate dogs. Except, the concentration of vitamin A in the livers of the dogs, in combination with their desperate conditions, resulted in poisoning, contributing to their demise.

Amundsen returned home a national hero.

Year later, with the recovery of log books, diaries and artifacts, Scott became the better known explorer.