Nansen feared that the ship would be crushed, and orders were given to put everything in a place of safety. But the stanch vessel held her own, and came out of the pressure safely. When the danger was over, the Fram was found to be uninjured, but one of her sides was buried in the ice mound, which reached six feet above the rails.
About two months later, Nansen set out upon his daring trip toward the pole. He took Johansen with him, and left the Fram, then in latitude 84° north, in command of Otto Sverdrup. The journey northward had to be made over difficult ice filled with hummocks, and, worse than this, a southerly drift set in, which carried the whole pack south almost as fast as they traveled north. Many of the dogs became utterly exhausted and had to be killed. It made Nansen very sad to be obliged to part with the faithful animals who had helped him so much.
Nansen and Johansen leaving the “Fram.”
At night Nansen and Johansen were so tired that they often fell asleep while eating their supper. When they crept into their sleeping bags, their clothes were sometimes frozen stiff, but the heat of their bodies in their bags thawed them out.
Notwithstanding all these hardships, Nansen and his companion succeeded in reaching 86° 14ʹ north latitude on April 8, 1895. This was the highest latitude so far reached by any explorer. The North Pole was but two hundred and sixty-one miles farther north. Nansen knew he could not reach the pole through such masses of floes and hummocks, and accordingly he decided to return, changing his course to the south. The travelers found many channels between the ice floes, which were difficult to cross. The dogs were now so few in number that the men had to do dogs’ work, and drag the sledges. The ice became soft, so that the ski and the sledges sank deep into it. Sometimes the men sank in up to their armpits.
Nansen’s report of this journey has led many people to believe that the warm and the cold ocean currents meet at the pole, and that the effect of the united currents is to make the ice rotten and dangerous for travel. Some explorers believe that it is impossible to travel the last hundred miles of the journey toward the pole by sledge or boat. They think that the ice is too soft for sledge travel, and too compact for travel by boat. If this be true, a balloon or airship will have to be used in order to reach the pole. It is no wonder that Nansen and Johansen became discouraged.
By June 30, 1895, the two explorers were certain that they would have to pass the winter in the ice. Nansen knew that he must secure some game, for his provisions would not last through the winter; therefore he and Johansen pushed on south as fast as they could, and at last shot a seal and a bear. Only two dogs were left, and at length they too had to be shot. One dog was Nansen’s favorite, and the other was Johansen’s. Nansen took Johansen’s dog behind a hummock, and Johansen did the same with Nansen’s. Then both guns were fired together and the faithful dogs were dead. This was the hardest thing these two men had to do during the journey. When they met again, they felt so sad that neither of them could speak.
One day, while looking through the telescope, Nansen saw land in the distance. The two men hastened toward it, and for the first time in two years they felt the naked earth beneath their feet. It was summer, and seals, birds, and flowers were all about them. In front lay the open sea, and Nansen thought he might sail on, and perhaps reach home. But he was disappointed, for after sailing a short distance, he again found ice and was obliged to return.
It was now certain that Nansen and Johansen would have to pass the winter on the island, and they began their preparations for it. They built a hut of stone, and stretched walrus hides over the roof and floor. Fortunately game was plenty, so that they shot many seals and walruses. The blubber of the walrus was a favorite article of diet, for in cold countries men long for fatty food. It was so cold that often Nansen and Johansen had to sleep in the same bag in order to keep warm. Sometimes they drew pieces of blubber out of the lamp and ate them. These favorite dainties they called biscuit. The walrus hides attracted the bears and foxes to the hut, so that often during the winter the men succeeded in securing fresh meat.