334 Knud Rasmussen. 



Camp 8. 23 August. 



Kept on till 1 o'clock at night, covering 52 km. 



Sighted land NNW., which we take to be the country south of 

 Sherard Osborne Fjord. The thaw has made the going worse than ever; 

 it is getting more and more difficult to urge on the dogs at all. 



Camp 9. 



Covered 21 km. in five hours hauling over ground which gets 

 steadily worse. Have thus no alternative but to break up one of the 

 sledges and make runners for the other two; the sharp iron ones cut 

 so deep that the ice sheathing is of very little use. By fixing ski run- 

 ners under these, however, we get a broader surface, which can better 

 bear up the weight, and will, moreover, take a thicker coating of ice, 

 such as we laid on the walrus hide. This will save our having to renew 

 it continually, which means a lot of time. 



24 August. 



A little snow bunting came flying from the south-west, circled round 

 the camp and flew off again towards the country about Sherard Os- 

 borne Fjord. The visit caused great excitement, both to ourselves and 

 the dogs, coming as a rich breath of life here in the white waste around. 



Struck camp at nine in the evening. 



Camp 10. 25 August. 



Cover 41 km. in 12 hours. Freuchen and Uvdloriaq forced to 

 take it in turns to go ahead of the dogs, while Inukitsoq and I relieve 

 each other driving. The new ski runners are proving excellent with 

 their thick coating of ice; the two sledges, however, now loaded for 

 three, make heavy hauling in the deep snow. 



Turning in about noon, we find on looking over stores that we 

 have only cooking meat for three or four days more. When that is 

 finished, we must begin to be economical with the oatmeal. As for the 

 dogs, we have a scanty five feeds left, so prospects are not very bright. 

 We have therefore made it a rule for the past few days that neither 

 we nor the dogs get anything to eat while lying up, unless we are 

 kept weatherbound for a whole day. 



Camp 11. 26 August. 



Started at 1 o'clock in the morning, but were forced to camp again 

 a little after three, snow falling thickly. Temperature still very low, 

 only Ч- 5.5. Covered only 10 km. this day. 



Snow and sky are of one colour exactly; it is impossible to keep 

 any direction, there being no object by which to steer. We try several 

 times with compass in hand, or fixed to the ski, but the progress thus 

 made is so awkward and slow, that we give it up. Sleep till seven 

 in the evening and look out: snow still falling softly, and no wind. 



