Part 2: The Expedition That Almost Ended Amundsen’s Journey to the South Pole
Roald Amundsen preperation to the South Pole expedition
- A Tale from Hardangervidda
As we count down to our guided winter tours to Trolltunga starting March 1st, we share Roald Amundsen’s incredible journey across Hardangervidda — a harsh, remote landscape where he trained for his legendary South Pole expedition. In this chapter, Amundsen and his companion face exhaustion and danger, unknowingly coming heartbreakingly close to safety.
“The next morning, however, we realized that our troubles were just beginning. The wind from the previous evening was still blowing just as fiercely, and the snow was falling thickly. The storm was so strong that attempting to travel through it would have been sheer madness. We therefore agreed to stay put in the hut and wait for the weather to improve. Upon further searching, we were fortunate to find a small sack of rye flour, left behind by some shepherd. Knowing we had to ration our own supplies carefully, we made a thin porridge from the flour, cooking it in a pot over the fire.
We spent two days in the hut, and the only thing we ate during this time was the thin porridge. At best, it was not very nourishing and certainly not particularly tasty.
On the third day, the storm had subsided slightly, and we decided to resume our march toward Garen. We now had to determine our course with great care, as there were only two possible descent points on the western side, several miles apart. We had to choose one of them and abandon the other. Once we had made our decision, we set off.
“My muscles felt sore and stiff, and instinctively, I tried to move. I could not budge an inch.”
On March 1st, we kick off our guided winter tours to Trolltunga — a once in a lifetime experience through snow-covered landscapes and breathtaking mountain views. Imagine standing on this iconic rock formation with the whole world blanketed in white — just like when Roald Amundsen crossed Hardangervidda National Park in 1891, training for his legendary polar expeditions.
We had not traveled far before it began snowing again, while at the same time, the temperature rose. We had to consult the map frequently to determine our location, but the damp snow falling on the thin, poor quality paper soon turned it into pulp. After that, we had no choice but to continue as best we could, relying only on our compass and without a map.
Nightfall caught up with us before we reached our destination, and, of course, there was nothing to do but set up camp where we were out in the open. That night nearly finished us both. After rolling out our sleeping bags, we took out our provision bags and placed them by our feet. Beside them, we stuck our ski poles into the snow to mark where the supplies were, in case they got buried.
It was an extremely unpleasant night. The damp snow had melted on our clothes, soaking us through. Once we crawled into our sleeping bags, our body heat caused the moisture to evaporate, seeping into the fabric’s inner layers. It was a miserable experience, but worse still, the temperature dropped again as the night wore on.
I woke up in the darkness, freezing and feeling so wretched and unwell that I couldn’t fall back asleep. Eventually, I started wondering if I could get my blood circulation going again by getting up and drinking some of the alcohol from the lamp in my provision bag. I crawled out of my sleeping bag and groped around in the dark until I found my ski poles, then started searching for the bag. But to my shock and dismay, I couldn’t find it.
In the morning, we both continued the search, but it was impossible to locate either of the bags. To this day, I have never been able to come up with a reasonable explanation for where on earth they disappeared to. However, the fact remained, both were gone.
“Eventually, I started wondering if I could get my blood circulation going again by getting up and drinking some of the alcohol from the lamp in my provision bag”
Our situation was now more than just uncomfortable; it was extremely dangerous. If we didn’t find people soon, we would almost certainly freeze to death. Keeping this in mind, we pressed westward again, hoping to reach shelter before nightfall.
But luck was not on our side. Soon, the snowfall became so heavy that we could see no more than a few feet ahead. We agreed that our only option was to turn around completely and attempt to make our way eastward across the plateau, back to our starting point.
“Desperately, I struggled to free myself, but without the slightest success. I called out to my companion, but of course, he could not hear anything.”
After a few kilometers on our new course, darkness caught up with us once again.
“We did it!” From one of our guided winter tours to Trolltunga on shoes.
Once again, the night was damp. We were soaking wet, and our sleeping bags were still heavy with moisture. It was still snowing. We had reached a small rocky knoll and sought shelter around it and down in the lee, calculating that we would be relatively comfortable if we could stay there protected from the wind. We also found that we were much better off here, but I decided to try for an even greater improvement. I therefore dug a hole in the snow just large enough to lie in, and with my head first, I crawled inside and pulled my sleeping bag in after me. This turned out to be a good idea, as I was completely shielded from the gusts of wind outside.
But in the middle of the night, it suddenly became cold. The wet snow had settled over my small burrow and completely sealed the entrance. When the temperature dropped, everything froze. In the middle of the night, I woke up. I was lying on my back with my right hand over my eyes, palm facing upwards just as one often does to avoid being bothered by the morning light. My muscles felt sore and stiff, and instinctively, I tried to move. I could not budge an inch. I was practically encased in a block of ice. Desperately, I struggled to free myself, but without the slightest success. I called out to my companion, but of course, he could not hear anything.
I was now almost paralyzed with fear. In my panic, I naturally assumed that he, too, had been frozen inside the wet snow and was in the same situation as I was.”
To be continued in part 3
Sources:
Photo of Amundsen on South Pole: Project Gutenberg Public Domain
Photo of Amundsen Bunnfjorden: Anders Beer Wilse – http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/htmls/libr0351.htm Description: Frontispiece portrait of Roald Amundsen, 1872-1928. In: "The South Pole", Volume II, Library Call Number M82.1/99 A529s., libr0351, Treasures of the NOAA Library Collection, by Mr. Steve Nicklas, NOS, NGS
Roald Amundsen ved Svartskog, Bunnefjorden, 7. mars 1909
Other photos own by Trolltunga Adventures
Translated by Chat GPT from polarlitteratur.no (where you can read it with Amundsen Norwegian words)