rom sticking to
wet snow.

January 20 was a wretched day; overcast, with wind and light drift.
In desperation I got away at 2 P.M. in a wind which proved to be of
considerable assistance. I could see nothing of my surroundings; one
thing was certain, and that was that the ascent had commenced and every
foot took me upward. The day's work amounted to about two and a half
miles.

On the 21st the sun shone brightly and there was a good following wind.
Through deep snow I zigzagged up for three miles before deciding to
camp.

Wind and drift prevailed early on the 22nd but fell away towards noon,
and I was then favoured with a glorious sunny day. Away to the north
was a splendid view of the open sea; it looked so beautiful and friendly
that I longed to be down near it. Six miles had been covered during
the day, but I felt very weak towards the end on account of the heavy
pulling.

During the early hours of the 23rd the sun was visible, but about 8 A.M.
the clouds sagged low, the wind rose and everything became blotted out
in a swirl of driving snow.

I wandered on through it for several hours, the sledge capsizing at
times owing to the strength of the wind. It was not possible to keep an
accurate course, for even the wind changed direction as the day wore
on. Underfoot there was soft snow which I found comfortable for my sore
feet, but which made the sledge drag heavily at times.

When camp was pitched at 4 P.M. I reckoned that the distance covered in
a straight line had been three and a half miles.

Erecting the tent single-handed in the high wind was a task which
required much patience and some skill. The poles were erected first
and then the tent was gathered up in the proper form and taken to the
windward side of the legs where it was weighted down. The flounce on the
windward side was got into position and piled up with snow blocks. Other
blocks of snow had previously been placed in a ring round the legs in
readiness to be tumbled on to the rest of the flounce when the tent was
quickly slipped over the apex of the poles. In very windy weather it was
often as much as two hours after halting before I would be cosy within
the shelter of the tent.

High wind and dense driving snow persisted throughout the 24th and I
made five and a half miles, sitting on the sledge most of the time with
the sail up.

The blizzard continued on the 25th, but after the trying experience of
the previous two days, I did not feel wel