For anyone interested in the history of the Antarctic, these journals are essential reading. Dolores Geisler's Review here on Amazon beautifully captures the appeal of these fundamental documents and the character of the men involved. And, of course, there are many other excellent sources on not only the Scott expedition, but the Amundsen's side of the race to pole as well.



One of my greatest travel experiences was a tour of the Shetland Islands, a short visit to the continent itself, South Georgia and the Falklands. Scott, Amundsen and Shackleton filled the lectures, those three and dozens of others who explored Antarctica. Of all of these, Scott's wonderful prose endures:



"We took risks, we knew we took them; things have come out against us, and therefore we have no cause for complaint, but bow to the will of Providence, determined still to do our best to the last [...] Had we lived, I should have had a tale to tell of the hardihood, endurance, and courage of my companions which would have stirred the heart of every Englishman. These rough notes and our dead bodies must tell the tale, but surely, surely, a great rich country like ours will see that those who are dependent on us are properly provided for."



This is a book to savor, to read in small bits of time, perhaps over a month or so. It is incredibly detailed, but its great strength is how it builds to its dramatic climax in small, incremental steps. There are much shorter versions of these events, including some of the greatest books of exploration like The Worst Journey in the World: With Scott in Antarctica 1910-1913 by Apsley Cherry-Garrard. Look to books like those for the big picture. But if you have the time to spend exploring the details of a great expedition, choose this volume.



To whet your appetite for the area, The American Museum of Natural History, along with French and Canadian museums, have produced an exhibit about the two separate 1800 mile journeysof Norwegian Roald Amundsen and Brit Robert Falcon Scott to the South Pole.



The web exhibit has many different multimedia features, including an"Interactive Map", along with "Other Interactives" that includes a picture of Captain Robert Scott's rather luxurious hut that contains a leather briefcase containing the works of Shakespeare and Sherlock Holmes.



The Norwegians Under the Ice interactive shows them in their ice shelters, andone ice shelter even included a sauna.



Each of the interactives have blue dots on objects in the photos that, when clicked, show the object in detail. The "Gallery" link has photos featuring, among other things, "equipment", "wildlife", "landscapes" and "points of interest". The "wildlife" gallery has many photos of different penguin species, but the most stunning photos are number 33 (a jellyfish under the Ross Sea ice) and number 52, which provides an aerial view of four killer whales.



The link to the website is in the first Comment, as is the information quoted here on the exhibit.



Robert C. Ross 2010

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