THE CONQUEST OF MOUNT EREBUS
While some of the party cooked the meal, Marshall examined
Brocklehurst's feet, as the latter stated that for some time he had
lost all feeling in them. When his boots and socks were removed it was
found that both his big toes were black, and that four more toes were
also frost-bitten. Ultimate recovery from so severe a frost-bite was
bound to be slow and tedious, though Marshall's and Mackay's efforts to
restore circulation were, under the conditions, fairly successful. To
climb almost continuously for nine hours with badly frost-bitten feet
up the steep and difficult track must have required splendid pluck and
determination.
After lunch Brocklehurst was safely tucked up in the three-man
sleeping-bag, and the five other members of the party started off
to explore the floor of the old crater, and the mystery of those
remarkable structures was soon solved by the Professor.
Directing their steps towards one of the ice mounds, which bore a
whimsical resemblance to a lion couchant, and from which smoke seemed
to be issuing, the Professor recognised that these structures were the
outward and visible signs of fumaroles.
In ordinary climates a fumarole, or volcanic vapour-well, may be
detected by the thin cloud of steam above it, but in the rigour of the
Antarctic climate the fumaroles of Erebus have their vapour turned into
ice as soon as it reaches the surface of the snow-plain.
Thus ice mounds, somewhat similar in shape to the sinter mounds formed
by the geysers of New Zealand, Iceland and Yellowstone Park, are built
up round the orifices of the fumaroles of Erebus.
Next morning when the party got up at 4 A.M. they had a splendid
view of the shadow of Erebus projected on the field of cumulus cloud
below them by the rising sun, and while Marshall was attending to
Brocklehurst, the hypsometer, which had become frozen on the way up,
was thawed out, and a determination of the boiling-point made.
This, when reduced and combined with the mean of the aneroid levels,
made the height of the old crater rim, just above the camp, 11,400 ft.
At 6 A.M. the party left the camp, and, hastening to reach the summit
of the present crater, were soon ascending rather steep slopes, formed
of alternating beds of hard snow and vast quantities of large and
perfect felspar crystals, mixed with pumice. And a little farther on
they reached the base of the volcano's active cone. Progress now became
painfully slow, as the height and cold combined to make it difficult to
breathe.
The cone of Erebus is built chiefly of blocks of pumice, from a few
inches to a few feet in diameter. Externally these were grey, or often
yellow, owing to incrustations of sulphur, but when broken they were of
a resinous, brown colour.
At last, just after 10 A.M. on March 10, the edge of the active crater
was reached, and the little party stood on the summit of Erebus, the
first men to conquer perhaps the most remarkable summit in the world.
From measurements made while at the crater's edge, Erebus may be
calculated to rise to a height of 13,370 ft. above sea-level.
The report most vividly describes the magnificent and awe-inspiring
scene before the eyes of the travellers.
[Illustration: The "Lion" of Erebus. (_See page 86_)]
"We stood on the verge of a vast abyss, and at first could see neither
to the bottom nor across it on account of the huge mass of steam
filling the crater and soaring aloft in a column 500 to 1000 ft. high.
After a continuous hissing sound, lasting for some minutes, there would
come from below a big, dull boom, and immediately great globular masses
of steam would rush upwards to swell the volume of the snow-white cloud
which ever sways over the crater. This phenomenon recurred at intervals
during the whole of our stay at the crater. Meanwhile the air around
us was extremely redolent of burning sulphur. Presently a pleasant
northerly breeze fanned away the steam cloud, and at once the whole
crater stood revealed to us in all its vast extent and depth. Mawson's
angular measurement made the depth 900 ft., and the greatest width
about half a mile. There were at least three well-defined openings
at the bottom of the cauldron, and it was from these that the steam
explosions proceeded."
As soon as the measurements had been made and Mawson had taken some
photographs, the party returned to camp, because it had been decided to
start the descent during the same afternoon.
Numerous specimens of the unique felspar crystals and of the pumice and
sulphur were collected on the way back to camp, and, having arrived
there, the travellers made a hasty meal, packed up, and started down
the steep mountain slope, Brocklehurst insisting on bearing his own
heavy load in spite of his frost-bitten feet.
Soon a point was reached where the party had either to retrace their
way or to cut steps across a névé slope, or, lastly, to glissade down
some 500 or 600 feet to a rocky ledge below. In their tired state, they
chose the path of least resistance, which was offered by the glissade,
and consequently the loads were rearranged so that they might roll down
easily. Brocklehurst's load, which contained the cooking utensils,
protested noisily as it went down, and the aluminium cookers received a
severe battering from their abrupt contact with the rocks below.
At this time the whole party were suffering from thirst, but a
makeshift drink was obtained by gathering a little snow, squeezing it
into a ball, and placing it on the surface of a piece of rock, where it
melted almost at once on account of the heat of the sun.
Adams and Marshall were the first to reach the depot, having dropped
down 5000 ft. between 3 P.M. and 7 P.M., and they found that the
blizzard of the 8th had played havoc with their gear, for the sledge
had been overturned and some of the load scattered to a distance and
partly covered with drift snow. The party camped during that night at
the depot, and by 5.30 A.M. on the following morning the sledge was
packed and the homeward journey resumed.
The sastrugi, however, were so troublesome that rope brakes were put on
the sledge-runners, and two men went in front to pull when necessary,
while two steadied the sledge, and two stayed behind to pull back when
required.
At this time, indeed, the conditions were most trying, for the sledge
either refused to budge or suddenly it took charge, and overran those
who were dragging it.
Capsizes occurred every few minutes, and, owing to the slippery ground,
some of the party who had not crampons or barred ski-boots were badly
shaken up. One has to experience such a surface to realise how severe a
jar one gets from falling. The only civilised experience akin to it is
when one steps unknowingly on a slide which some small street-boy has
made on the pavement.
The party reached the spot where they had made their first camp, six
miles distant from Cape Royds, at 7.30 A.M. By this time a blizzard
seemed to be approaching, and the snow, which was beginning to drift
before a gusty south-easterly wind, threatened to cut off all view of
the winter quarters. Every one was tired, one of the tents had a large
hole burnt in it, the oil supply was almost done, and one of the stoves
had been put out of action as the result of the glissade. So in the
circumstances the party decided to make a dash for Cape Royds, leaving
sledge and equipment to be picked up later.
In the grey light the sastrugi did not show up in relief, and every few
feet some member of the party fell sprawling over the snow. At last
their eyes were gladdened by the shining surface of the Blue Lake only
half a mile distant from winter quarters. But now that the stress and
the strain were over, their legs grew heavy and leaden, and that last
half-mile seemed to be one of the hardest they had covered.
Meanwhile, at winter quarters we had been busy opening cases, with
the result that the cubicles of the absentees were crowded with an
accumulation, of stores. We had just decided to make the cubicles tidy
again for the travellers, and were beginning on the Professor's, when I
left the hut for a moment, and to my astonishment saw six slowly moving
figures within thirty yards of me.
Running towards them, I shouted, "Did you get to the top?" and as there
was no answer I asked again. Then Adams pointed with his hand upwards;
but, not satisfied by this, I repeated the question, and Adams replied
"Yes." After that I dashed to the hut and shouted to the others, who
streamed out to cheer the successful venturers. A good feed followed,
in which porridge had the place of honour.
[Illustration: The Crater of Erebus, 900 feet deep and half a mile
wide. Steam is seen rising on the left. The photograph was taken from
the lower part of the Crater edge. (_See page 88_)]
After some days' delay on account of bad weather, a party consisting
of Adams, the Professor, Armytage, Joyce, Wild and Marshall started to
fetch in the sledge with the explorers' equipment, and this work was
successfully accomplished.
Among some of the scientific results of this expedition, as given to me
by Professor David, must be mentioned the calculating of the height of
the mountains, and that "as regards the geological structure of Erebus,
there is evidence of the existence of four superimposed craters."
"Two features," the Professor wrote, "in the geology of Erebus which
are specially distinctive are: the vast quantities of large and perfect
felspar crystals and the ice fumaroles.... Its situation between
the belt of polar calms and the South Pole; its isolation from the
disturbing influence of large land masses; its great height, which
enables it to penetrate the whole system of atmospheric circulation,
and the constant steam cloud at its summit, swinging to and fro like
a huge wind vane, combine to make Erebus one of the most interesting
places on earth to the meteorologist."