The Conquest of the South Pole, ¿race or challenge?

The Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen challenged Nature a hundred (and four) years ago. He reached at the South Pole the 14th of December 1911. He was the first person to do it. Nowadays people celebrate this centenary but don’t forget the figure of Captain Robert F. Scott, a British explorer who was second at 90º south latitude (thirty days later). Amundsen survived the adventure, but unfortunately, Scott ended up dying in Antarctica when he was going back to his home.

Scott started the trip with his team before the Norwegian expedition. At first, Amundsen wanted to conquer the North Pole. When he found out that someone had got there first (this person could be Frederick Cook or Robert Peary; it isn’t clear yet) he changed his objective. Amundsen made his new route public and the press started to criticize him, especially British and American newspapers. The press turned the two expeditions into a competition between Amundsen and Scott, and forgot their real meaning: the defiance of Nature.

 While the newspapers were wondering and writing about the competition that had been created by themselves, Amundsen and Scott - with their own teams - were advancing on the 90º south latitude. This kind of expeditions always needed a very detailed plan and an exhaustive organization. They had to carry enough food for all the expedition (avoiding perishable goods), fuel for the craft, the warmest clothes, strong and resistant to cold, tents and sleighs, find the best fellow travellers… and of course, the funding was essential.  

London Herald, 11th of February 1913 (Front page)

 There were two crucial differences between Amundsen’s expedition and Scott’s one. The first one was what kind of animals they should carry to help them to conquer the South Pole faster. Scott took ponies because he thought that they were strong and resistant to cold. On the other hand, Amundsen chose to carry dogs. Finally, the latter were stronger, more resistant to cold and the perfect animals to reach the objective. Even though Amundsen’s idea worked, at the present time some people are still criticizing him because his expedition had to kill 24 dogs, and he continued the trip only with 18. But the Norwegian explorer explains in his biography that he didn’t take part in the slaughter and that he “gave a start” when he heard the first shot. The second difference was decisive to survive at. It was to think about the return. Amundsen and his team were leaving supplies (food, warm clothes, tents…) every one or two degrees of latitude. That’s why they didn’t have problems to go back. On the contrary, Scott didn’t plan the return exhaustively and that cost him and his comrades their lives. 

Nowadays there are still people like Amundsen or Scott that challenge Nature in order to show us the wonders of the world. They are not only explorers, but also mere individuals that struggle hard to get on in life and to make their dreams come true. Amundsen died in some place of the Barents Sea in 1928. He fought for his dreams. You are still on time! What are you waiting for?

Amundsen Expedition at the South Pole / National Library of Australia

*Photo map: Antarctic expedition map (Amundsen - Scott). Wikipedia.

Mrr