What does it take to journey to the coldest, most inhospitable, lifeless place on earth? In 1909, no one was quite sure. Should you travel on foot, by car, by horse, or by dogsled? All were serious possibilities, and explorers from at least four different nations were mounting expeditions to conquer Antarctica.
But it was an unlikely team from a fifth nation, Norway, that in 1911 finally solved the puzzle of how to reach the elusive South Pole. While Robert Scott’s English team captured headlines, Roald Amundsen secretly shifted his sights from the North Pole (which had been reached in 1909 by Robert Peary) to the south.
"Conquering the South Pole" is a compact, compelling account of the expedition that beat Scott to the Pole, in Amundsen’s own words. I have taken Amundsen’s 900-page description of the journey and edited it to a much more manageable size. But unlike other versions of this story, I have also included most of the photos and maps from Amundsen's two-volume 1913 edition.
The result is a highly readable, engaging, and powerful account of the journey, with moments of hilarity, triumph, and heart-wrenching grief.
Other than DTC’s Complete edition, this is the only e-book version of this text that retains the vast majority of the original photos and maps from Amundsen’s 1913 recounting of his landmark expedition.
I have given the book consistent spelling and style, clarified language, and defined confusing terms, but more than 95 percent of this text remains in Amundsen’s original words (as translated).
In condensing this epic tale down to a just over a third the length of the original, I’ve made every effort to give you all the feeling and much of the fascinating detail. From the painful decision of sacrificing and eating the dogs that had accompanied them for hundreds of miles on their journey, to the dauntless courage these explorers showed traversing chasms and surmounting obstacles, it’s a story that any fan of adventure will enjoy reading from end to end.
—Dave Munger, Editor
But it was an unlikely team from a fifth nation, Norway, that in 1911 finally solved the puzzle of how to reach the elusive South Pole. While Robert Scott’s English team captured headlines, Roald Amundsen secretly shifted his sights from the North Pole (which had been reached in 1909 by Robert Peary) to the south.
"Conquering the South Pole" is a compact, compelling account of the expedition that beat Scott to the Pole, in Amundsen’s own words. I have taken Amundsen’s 900-page description of the journey and edited it to a much more manageable size. But unlike other versions of this story, I have also included most of the photos and maps from Amundsen's two-volume 1913 edition.
The result is a highly readable, engaging, and powerful account of the journey, with moments of hilarity, triumph, and heart-wrenching grief.
Other than DTC’s Complete edition, this is the only e-book version of this text that retains the vast majority of the original photos and maps from Amundsen’s 1913 recounting of his landmark expedition.
I have given the book consistent spelling and style, clarified language, and defined confusing terms, but more than 95 percent of this text remains in Amundsen’s original words (as translated).
In condensing this epic tale down to a just over a third the length of the original, I’ve made every effort to give you all the feeling and much of the fascinating detail. From the painful decision of sacrificing and eating the dogs that had accompanied them for hundreds of miles on their journey, to the dauntless courage these explorers showed traversing chasms and surmounting obstacles, it’s a story that any fan of adventure will enjoy reading from end to end.
—Dave Munger, Editor
