ranges. Although
only twenty miles from our winter quarters at Cape Evans, the temperature
was 21 degrees lower, as we afterwards found by comparison.

We were all three anxious to acquit ourselves well, and although the
temperature on camping was 42 degrees below zero we had not experienced
any great discomfort until we encountered a sharp, cold breeze off Cape
Armitage, which resulted in Forde having his nose badly frost-bitten.
Directly this was noticed we quickly unpacked our sledge, erected our
tent, and whilst Gran cooked the supper I applied what warmth I could to
Forde's nose to bring the frozen part of it back to life.

Needless to say, the sharp air had keened our appetites, and we were all
eager for the fragrant smelling pemmican. We sat round on our rolled-up
fur sleeping-bags, warming our hands over the primus stove, and literally
yearning for the moment to arrive when the pemmican would boil and we
could absorb the delicious beverage and derive some badly needed warmth
therefrom. Following the pemmican and biscuit came a fine brew of cocoa.
This finished, the bags were unstrapped and laid out, when the three of
us soon curled up and, huddling together for warmth, endeavoured to get
to sleep. The thermometer, however, fell to 60 degrees below zero, and
the cold seemed to grip us particularly about the feet and loins. All
night we shivered and fidgeted, feeling the want of extra beat in the
small of our backs more than elsewhere. We got little or no sleep that
night, and my companions were as glad as I was myself when daylight came
and we got busy with our breakfast.

We arrived at the old pony-food depot, Safety Camp, during the forenoon
of September 9, and dug out the stores and bales of compressed hay, which
we carefully tallied and marked by setting up a large black flag. Then we
continued towards Corner Camp. We covered only eight or nine miles this
second day on account of spending much time in digging out the depot at
Safety Camp. The temperature seemed to fall as we advanced into the
Barrier, and this night the thermometer fell to 62 degrees below zero,
which meant more shivering and even more discomfort, because now the
moisture from our bodies and our breath formed ice in the fur of our
sleeping-bags, especially at the head, hips, and feet. One can never
forget the horrible ice-clammy feeling of one's face against the frozen
fur. How I yearned for a whiff of mild New Zealand air and an hour of its