one, of us survivors can forget the splendid efforts of the last five
ponies.

Meantime Roald Amundsen had a gale in Lat. 87-88 degrees on December 5,
with falling and drifting snow, yet not too bad to stop his party
travelling: he was 11,000 feet above our level at this time and covering
25 miles a day. He also experienced thick weather but light wind on the
7th December and on the day of our sorrowful march he was scuttling along
beyond Shackleton's farthest South, indeed close upon the 89th Parallel.
It is just as well we did not know it too.

CHAPTER XIV

ON THE BEARDMORE GLACIER AND BEYOND

Probably no part of the Southern journey was enjoyed more thoroughly than
that stage which embraced the ascent of the Beardmore Glacier. Those who
survive it can only have refreshing reminiscences of this bright chapter
in our great sledge excursion. Scientifically it was by far the most
interesting portion travelled over, and to the non-scientific it
presented something interesting every day, if only in the shape, colour,
and size of the fringing rocks and mountains--a vast relief from the
monotony of the Barrier travel.

First we had Mount Hope at the lower end of the Glacier. Mount Hope is a
nunatak of granite, about 2800 feet in height, of which the summit is
strewn with erratics, giving evidence of former glaciation of far greater
extent.

This was the first land we had passed close to since leaving Hut Point
six weeks previously, and now we had roughly 150 miles of travelling,
with something to look at, some relief for the eyes to rest on in place
of that dazzling white expanse of Barrier ice, with its glitter and
sparkle, so tiring to the eyes. We knew that we must expect crevasses
now, hidden and bare, and we also knew that we must every day rise our
camps until we reached the plateau summit in 10,000 feet. The Beardmore
itself is about 120 miles in length and from 10 to 30 miles wide. We had
no geologist with us, but specimens have been collected by Shackleton's
people, and our own members, particularly Scott's Polar sledge party,
which are sufficient to give a history of this part of Antarctica.

December 10 showed our party on to the Glacier, but we were not "out of
the wood" by this date. For we had some hard graft marching up the steep
incline called by Shackleton the Southern Gateway. We had made a depot of
three ten-foot sledges in good condition to be used for the homeward
journey over the Barri