The Winter Journey
Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp,
Or what's a Heaven for?
R. Browning, Andrea del Sarto.
To me, and to every one who has remained here the result of this effort is the appeal it makes to our imagination, as one of the most gallant stories in Polar History. That men should wander forth in the depth of a Polar night to face the most dismal cold and the fiercest gales in darkness is something new; that they should have persisted in this effort in spite of every adversity for five full weeks is heroic. It makes a tale for our generation which I hope may not be lost in the telling.
Scott's Diary, at Cape Evans.
The following list of the Winter Journey sledge weights (for three men) is taken from the reckoning made by Bowers before we started:
| Expendible Stores— | lbs. | lbs. |
|---|
| 'Antarctic' biscuit | 135 | |
| | 3 Cases for same | 12 | |
| Pemmican | 110 | |
| Butter | 21 | |
| Salt | 3 | |
| Tea | 4 | |
| Oil | 60 | |
| Spare parts for primus, and matches | 2 | |
| Toilet paper | 2 | |
| Candles | 8 | |
| Packing | 5 | |
| Spirit | 8 | 370 |
| | | | |
| Permanent Weights, etc. | | |
|---|
| 2 9-ft. Sledges, 41 lbs. each | 82 | |
| 1 Cooker complete | 13 | |
| 2 Primus filled with oil | 8 | |
| 1 Double tent complete | 35 | |
| 1 Sledging shovel | 3.5 | |
| 3 Reindeer sleeping-bags, 12 lbs. each | 36 | |
| 3 Eider-down sleeping-bag linings, 4 lbs. each | 12 | |
| 1 Alpine rope | 5 | |
| 1 Bosun's bag, containing repairing materials, and | | |
| 1 Bonsa outfit, containing repairing tools | 5 | |
| 3 Personal bags, each containing 15 lbs. spare clothing, etc. | 45 | |
| Lamp box with knives, steel, etc., for seal and penguin | 21 | |
| Medical and scientific box | 40 | |
| 2 Ice axes, 3 lbs. each | 6 | |
| 3 Man-harnesses | 3 | |
| 3 Portaging harnesses | 3 | |
| Cloth for making roof and door for stone igloo | 24 | |
| Instrument box | 7 | |
| 3 Pairs ski and sticks (discarded afterwards) | 33 | |
| 1 Pickaxe | 11 | |
| 3 Crampons, 2 lbs. 3 oz. each | 6.5 | |
| 2 Bamboos for measuring tide if possible, 14 feet each | 4 |
| 2 Male bamboos | 4 | |
| 1 Plank to form top of door of igloo | 2 | |
| 1 Bag sennegrass | 1 | |
| 6 Small female bamboo ends and | | |
| 1 Knife for cutting snow block to make igloo | 4 | |
| Packing | 8 | 420 |
| | | 790 |
|---|
The 'Lamp box' mentioned above contained the following:
- 1 Lamp for burning blubber.
- 1 Lamp for burning spirit.
- 1 Tent candle lamp.
- 1 Blubber cooker.
- 1 Blowpipe.
The party of three men set out with a total weight of 757 lbs. to draw, the ski and sticks in the above list being left behind at the last moment.