SCOTT'S LAST EXPEDITION 
[DECEMBER 
day's food. After all our harassing trouble one cannot but 
be satisfied with such a prospect. 
Thursday y December 21. — Camp 43. Lat. 85 0 7'. Long. 
163 0 4'. Height about 8000 feet. Upper Glacier Depot. 
Temp. -2 0 . We climbed the ice slope this morning and 
found a very bad surface on top, as far as crevasses were 
concerned. We all had falls into them, Atkinson and 
Teddy Evans going down the length of their harness. 
Evans had rather a shake up. The rotten ice surface 
continued for a long way, though I crossed to and fro 
towards the land, trying to get on better ground. 
At 12 the wind came from the north, bringing the 
inevitable [mist] up the valley and covering us just as we 
were in the worst of places. We camped for lunch, and 
were obliged to wait two and a half hours for a clearance. 
Then the sun began to struggle through and we were off. 
We soon got out of the worst crevasses and on to a long 
snow slope leading on part of Mount Darwin. It was a very 
long stiff pull up, and I held on till 7.30, when, the other 
team being some way astern, I camped. We have done 
a good march, risen to a satisfactory altitude, and reached 
a good place for our depot. To-morrow we start with our 
fullest summit load, and the first march should show us 
the possibilities of our achievement. The temperature 
has dropped below zero, but to-night it is so calm and 
bright that one feels delightfully warm and comfortable 
in the tent. Such weather helps greatly in all the sorting 
arrangements, &c, which are going on to-night. For 
me it is an immense relief to have the indefatigable little 
Bowers to see to all detail arrangements of this sort. 
