i9"l A TRYING MARCH 327 



April showers at home. The ponies came well on the second 

 march and we shall start 2 hours later again to-morrow, i.e. at 

 3 A.M. (T. -j- 13 ). From this it will be a very short step to 

 day routine when the time comes for man-hauling. The sas- 

 trugi seem to be gradually coming more to the south and a little 

 more confused; now and again they are crossed with hard 

 westerly sastrugi. The walking is tiring for the men, one's feet 

 sinking 2 or 3 inches at each step. Chinaman and Jimmy Pigg 

 kept up splendidly with the other ponies. It is always rather 

 dismal work walking over the great snow plain when sky and 

 surface merge in one pall of dead whiteness, but it is cheering 

 to be in such good company with everything going on steadily 

 and well. The dogs came up as we camped. Meares says the 

 best surface he has had yet. 



Monday, November 27. Camp 23. (T. + 8, 12 P.M.; 

 + 2, 3 A.M.; + 13 , 11 A.M.; + 17 , 3 P.M.) Quite the 

 most trying march we have had. The surface very poor at 

 start. The advance party got away in front but made heavy 

 weather of it, and we caught them up several times. This threw 

 the ponies out of their regular work and prolonged the march. 

 It grew overcast again, although after a summery blizzard all 

 yesterday there was promise of better things. Starting at 3 A.M. 

 we did not get to lunch camp much before 9. The second march 

 was even worse. The advance party started on ski, the leading 

 marks failed altogether, and they had the greatest difficulty in 

 keeping a course. At the midcairn building halt the snow sud- 

 denly came down heavily, with a rise of temperature, and the 

 ski became hopelessly clogged (bad fahrer, as the Norwegians 

 say). At this time the surface was unspeakably heavy for pull- 

 ing, but in a few minutes a south wind sprang up and a bene- 

 ficial result was immediately felt. Pulling on foot, the advance 

 had even greater difficulty in going straight until the last half 

 mile, when the sky broke slightly. We got off our march, but 

 under the most harassing circumstances and with the animals 

 very tired. It is snowing hard again now, and heaven only knows 

 when it will stop. 



If it were not for the surface and bad light, things would 

 not be so bad. There are few sastrugi and little deep snow. 

 For the most part men and ponies sink to a hard crust some 

 3 or 4 inches beneath the soft upper snow. Tiring for the men, 



