Observation Hill, or Ob Hill is a prominent hill near McMurdo that you can hike at any time when the weather is good, and because it is always sunny, you can really hike it at any time. I'll get a better shot of it, so keep reading my blog.
At the top of the hill, which is about 750 feet high, there is a cross dedicated to the members of Robert F. Scott's expedition to the South Pole as due to poor planning and luck none of them made it back. Scott base is named after him, as is Amundsen-Scott, the U.S. base at the South Pole. After being here and experiencing the best Antarctica has to offer, the hardships they face are still almost incomprehensible. In fall of 1911 they began their trek with motorized vehicles, dog sleds, and horses. These all traveled at different rates which made the expedition difficult and it was compounded by the fact that they didn't know how to lead the dogs, so the men ended up pulling the sleds and the dogs ran along beside them. They made it to the South Pole five weeks after Amundsen and so they began their trek back. One member of the team fell off of a glacier, another was so injured that walked off into nothingness after saying "I am just going outside and may be some time" in the hopes that he would no longer jeopardize the lives of the other members of the team. By March of 1912 bad weather set in, and the remaining members made it 11 miles past where a resupply depot was supposed to be, but 24 miles short of the actual location of the depot. The ended up just hunkering down and eating through their last supplies as storms, poor health, and decreasing sunlight made progress impossible. He kept a really interesting journal, which is why he is remembered and revered today. Amundsen hardly wrote anything interesting about his expedition, but later said that "I would gladly forgo any honour or money if thereby I could have saved Scott his terrible death." The cross was erected in 1913, and part of it's inscription reads " To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."
Scott Base, the Kiwi base.
Mactown.
Those mountains form the coast of Antarctica proper, but as you can see, it's just ice between Ross Island, where McMurdo is, and the continent.
2 comments:
Wow, it always amazes me each time I read your post. I link you...So thank you for the writings which I can relate yours to my high school students...
Thanks for the kind words. I'm lucky I am in a situation to share photos and experiences of such an amazing place. If there is any information or photos you or your students would like, let me know and I'll see what I can do.
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