[Leica] Amundsen's 100 anniversary - a very long post

[shino at panix.com (Rei Shinozuka)]

  Another slightly different book:

Admiral Byrd's "Alone" is light on the exploration end of the story, but 
harrowing regarding the physical effects of extreme cold and the 
psychological effects of extended solitude and darkness.  Byrd's 
expedition, taking place between the wars, was in a time of airplanes, 
radios and mechanization, yet after an unforeseen accident, the factors 
of survival were just the same as for the earlier explorers.  i 
recommend it as a quick read of an extraordinary ordeal.

-rei


On 08/18/2010 10:03 AM, Lawrence Zeitlin wrote:
> A very long post about a very cold place.
>
> The temperature is hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk today so we
> cooled off by watching a PBS videotape "The Worst Place on Earth." This is 
> a
> reasonably factual retelling of the race to the South Pole. We enjoyed
> seeing explorers slog through the snow. Of course we might feel differently
> about it in February. It is also the 100th anniversary of Amundsen's
> decision to head for the South Pole instead of going north as everyone
> expected.
>
> My wife is Norwegian and comes from a sailing and shipyard family - so 
> every
> time we visit her home country we get a full rundown on the lives and loves
> of the various explorers. Seems they were all a pretty raunchy bunch,
> although gifted in many ways. As far as the Norwegians are concerned, 
> Nansen
> is at the top of the heap. But not for his exploration. He was Norwegian
> cross country skiing champion for eight years in a row and as an 18 year 
> old
> set a speed skating record for the mile. In Norway, ski champions are Babe
> Ruth, Wayne Gretsky and Michael Jordan rolled into one. Nansen trained as a
> neuro physiologist and published frequently in medical journals. He was the
> first to cross Greenland on skis. He was a staunch patriot and was
> instrumental in freeing Norway from Swedish domination. Nansen was Norway's
> first ambassador to London. Finally he won the Nobel Prize for his work 
> with
> Russian refugees after WW1. Who cares if he slept with Kathleen Scott, even
> through, at the time, he was married and had several children. Certainly 
> not
> the Norwegians. Unfortunately he never reached either pole.
>
> Amundsen is grudgingly given second place in Norway's pantheon of polar
> explorers although, objectively speaking, his exploration record is
> significantly greater than Nansen's. He was the first to complete the
> Northern Passage, drifting and sailing from the North Sea to the Bering
> Strait in a converted fishing trawler. The boat, the Gjoa is on display
> outside the Fram Museum in Olso. Inside the museum is, of course the Fram,
> the Colin Archer designed boat that Nansen had constructed to sail to the
> North Pole and Amundsen borrowed for his South Pole exploration. Fram was
> allegedly the strongest wooden boat ever constructed and was designed to be
> frozen in the ice without damage. Amundsen's expedition to the South Pole
> was masterfully planned and executed. More important, he succeeded while 
> the
> much more elaborate Scott venture failed.
>
> Norwegians tend to ignore the fact that he defrauded his backers, violated
> his promise to Nansen to go to the North Pole, and had a very abrasive
> personality that annoyed most of those who befriended him.  Despite his
> character flaws Amundsen was a very experienced Arctic explorer. He had
> lived with the Eskimos and was well acquainted with the rigors of overland
> Arctic travel. His use of dogs and skis was exactly right. The final dash 
> to
> the Pole was largely without incident. One of the reasons that he is still
> reviled in England is that in addition to beating Scott HE ATE HIS DOGS as
> the load lightened. Or rather he fed them to the remaining dogs. Unlike
> Indonesians, a proper Englishman would as soon eat a dog as a Hindu would
> eat a cow. I can testify that letters protesting Amundsen's butchery still
> come into the London Times on every anniversary of Scott's death.
>
> In 1928 he died with his mucklucks on attempting to rescue the ill fated
> Nobile "Italia" airship expedition to the North Pole. A fitting passing.
>
> Shackleton seems to occupy a unique place in the annals of polar
> exploration. At least according to the Norwegian scholars I met. He is
> regarded as a man of unsurpassed courage, great leadership ability but a
> lousy explorer. He was blessed with amazing luck where it really counted. 
> As
> a sailor, I am most impressed with his 800 mile voyage though the Southern
> Ocean to get help for his crew in a boat that I would find unsuitable for 
> an
> afternoon trip on Long Island Sound. On the other hand, many would question
> the poor planning that led to the loss of his ship, the Endurance, and made
> such a sea voyage necessary. Incidentally, Shackleton is not to be credited
> with the amazing photos of the Endurance expedition. He wanted to abandon
> the heavy glass plates and movie film. All credit must be given to
> Australian photographer Frank Hurley who risked his life rescuing the films
> from the sinking hull of the Endurance. He later convinced Shackleton that
> the photos would be the only record of the failed voyage.
>
> Scott is now regarded, at least in Norway, as the flip side of Amundsen and
> Shackleton. A poor planner, an inept explorer, an incompetent leader, and
> unlucky to boot. He is regarded as a necessary contrast to the better
> qualities of the other guys. But the Brits still revere him.
>
> Here are a number of pictures from various sources relevant to Amundsen's
> voyage. I took the actual pictures of the interior of the Fram with an 
> early
> Leica digital camera, a Digilux Zoom.
>
> This is Roald Amundsen, the photo is copied from one published in the
> Norwegian press.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Amundsen.jpg.html
>
> Next comes a picture of the actual telegram Amundsen sent to Scott 
> informing
> him that the race to the south pole was on.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Amundsen+note.jpg.html
>
> A model of the Fram showing hull details. Most shipwrights of the time used
> models to show workers what the completed boat would look like.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Fram+model.jpg.html
>
> This is a painting of the Fram displayed in the Fram Museum in Oslo. The
> Fram was a very poor sea boat and the crew was probably seasick in
> conditions like this.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Fram+painting.jpg.html
>
> Fram frozen in the ice from one of Nansen's expeditions to reach the north
> pole. The boat suffered no damage.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Fram+in+ice.jpg.html
>
> The internal bracing of the Fram. Now you can see why the boat wasn't
> crushed.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Fram+bracing.jpg.html
>
> Here is the Fram's helm.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Fram+helm.jpg.html
>
> Amundsen and his team reached the South Pole in December, 1911.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Amundsen+at+South+Pole.jpg.html
>
> Finally, the actual camera that was used to photograph the Amundsen team at
> the South Pole.
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Amundsen+_s+camera.jpg.html
>
> Now I hope everyone feels cooler.
>
>
> Larry Z
>
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