60 THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS 



Our halt was not a very long one. It is a queer 

 thing that, when one only has on light underclothing 

 and windproof overalls, one cannot stand still for long 

 without feeling cold. Although the temperature was 

 no lower than - 4° F., we were glad to be on the move 

 again. The last ascent was fairly hard work, especially 

 the first half of it. We never expected to do it with 

 single teams, but tried it all the same. For this last 

 pull up I must give the highest praise both to the dogs 

 and their drivers; it was a brilliant performance on 

 both sides. I can still see the situation clearlv before 

 me. The dogs seemed positively to understand that 

 this was the last big effort that was asked of them ; they 

 lay flat down and hauled, dug their cla\^'s . in and 

 dragged themselves forward. But they had to stop and 

 get breath pretty often, and then the driver's strength 

 was put to the test. It is no child's play to set a 

 heavily-laden sledge in motion time after time. How 

 they toiled, men and beasts, up that slope! But they 

 got on, inch by inch, until the steepest part was behind 

 them. Before them lay the rest of the ascent in a 

 gentle rise, up which they could drive without a stop. 

 It was stiff, nevertheless, and it took a long time before 

 we were all up on the plateau on the southern side of 

 Mount Engelstad. 



We were very curious and anxious to see what the 

 plateau looked like. We had expected a great, level 

 plain, extending boundlessly towards the south; but in 



