RIGOURS OF ANTARCTIC

Greymouth Evening Star, 3 December 1929, Page 9

RIGOURS OF ANTARCTIC

GRUELLING TASKS [By Russell Owen—Copyright by Sydney “Sun” and New York ‘‘Times. ’ J LITTLE AMERICA, , Antarctica, October 1. The total load to be carried on the ten sledges of the geological party, pulled by five dog teams and by the men* themselves, is about 5368 pounds. Huge loads have to be pulled by: men and dogs in the Antarctic. Every item of equipment has been weighted, and everything not essential to health, safety, and the carry out of the scientific work of the party has been eliminated from the loads.

Following are the weights of the various things carried on the sledges: Personal equipment, 335 pounds 2 ounces; man food, 1221 pounds 20 ounces; camp gear and fuel, 331 pounds 5 ounces; dog food, 2674 pounds; dog gear, 58 pounds; extra sledge equipment, 12 pounds 4 ounces; navigation, surveying, and meteorological equipment, 91 pounds; skis, 27 pounds 12 ounces; trail markers, 173 pounds 8 ounces; motion-picture equipment, 65 pounds 2 ounces; still-camera equipment, 18 pounds 5 ounces; radio gear, 300 pounds; safety devices, 40 pounds 9 ounces; tools, 20 pounds 5 ounces; total 5368 pounds 14 ounces. This equipment was brought together as the result of duties in connection with various parts of it being delegated by Commander Byrd to a committee of two or three men who made reports to him on the best methods of handling and meeting various problems. He In turn considered their recommendations and made his decisions after checking by his own experience and observation.

The great enemy of men on the trail is not so much cold as dampness caused by exertion, dampness which collects in tents and sleeping bags at night. Damp clothing and sleeping bags mean cold and bodily misery, if not actual danger.

All polar expeditions have faced this problem, and it has never been altogethex* overcome, but experience has shown that with proper precautions wet clothing can be avoided to a large extent.

When men are sledging several hours a day, running on foot or on skis or helping dogs over difficult places, they generally come to their camping place with their feet and their clothing damp from perspiration. And unless they are careful this moisture is transferred to their sleeping bags at night and the bag becomes wet and cold. The best way to avoid such a condition is to wear as few clothes as possible on the trail and to change anything which is wet as soon as camp is made. All the clothing used on the trail has been selected to meet these conditions. Furs are being taken, but they will probably seldom be used, except in the tents or if very cold weather is encountered. In wind, they must be protected 'by a covering, of wind-proof clothing to keep snow out of the fur, otherwise it will get wet and shed hair until there is none left. While travelling, a pair of trousers and a parka, with hood made of light, wind-proof cloth, is worn over woollen clothing, and in most summer weather it has been found that this wind-proof stuff over underclothes is more than sufficient and keeps the traveller from becoming overheated and wet. Last summer it was common to see dog drivers pull off garment after garment until they were wearing only a woollen undershirt and windproof trousers over woollen drawers. When camp is made fur clothing may be put on if it is very, cold, or a woollen parka under the windproof. The feet must be protected most carefully on the trail. While travelling, ski boots or mukluks may be worn, depending on whether or not skis are used. Two pairs of socks are put on, and inside the boots or mukluks may be either inner soles of felt or senna grass. The felt is split thin so that it dries easily, and if moisture collects on the senna grass it may be shaken off when it freezes at night.

Windproof socks of the same light material as the outer clothing are valuable, as moisture collects on them and may be shaken or beaten out. SLEEPING APPARATUS When camp is made at night the footgear worn on the trail is taken off, dry socks are put on, and then big canvas ’ boots with reindeer socks or felt soles are put on for use around the camp. Tn this way, the .feet are kept warm and comparatively dry at .all times and the footgear used during the day may be dried. Woollen liners for mits serve the same purpose for the hands and may be changed at night-and dried. Wet socks or mits may be hung on the sledges if the sun is shining. Evaporation, even on ice, is very rapid down here.

The fur sleeping bag is warm as long as it is dry, but the moment it becomes wet it is a snare and delusion. It is no easy matter to keep it dry, although it can be done. Moisture must be kept from getting into the bag from clothing, and this can best be done by removing the outer clothing so that no snow is taken into the bag. One must not breathe into the bag,as moisture will collect this way in a short time. So the bags are made in such a way that the head may be put outside and the windproof covering drawn around the neck, or, if the head is inside an opening is left for the breath and a shield of some sort of cloth keeps moisture from penetrating into the interior.

Many devices have been adopted to accomplish tljis, varying according to the individual desires or experiments of the men, but they are all based on this principle of keeping the breath from the inside of the bag. After one gets out of the bag in the morning cold air will rush in and condense the warm air. which then deposits moisture. To avoid this one arm is put inside the bag, and with the other hand on top the bag is pumped cip and down until all the warm air has been expelled and the bag is cold. Then the air should be forced out of the bag from the bottom toward the top. In this way it has been found that the bag may be kept fairly dry, although it is still necessary at times to turn it inside out and air it in the sun.

The sun will even dry things hung outside the tent at night, for it must be remembered that, except for a brief time at the beginning of the journey, the sun will be shining 24 hours a day in clear weather. And its rays are quite sufficient even in cold weather to cause rapid evaporation. The only other difficulty in using sleeping bags is that the warmth of

the body causes them to get wet on the bottom, where they rest on the canvas bottom of the tent, which is on top of the snow. To prevent this as much as possible, a mat made of thin .boards, a sort of ply wood used in aeroplanes and fastened together by webbing, is used. Experiments have shown that it not only prevents moisture getting into the bag from below, but that it seems to make the bag warmer. Living on the trail is a constant struggle against cold and dampness, and it can be seen that only the greatest care and thorough preparation will prevent suffering. It is believed, however, that with change of 1 bdth' inside and outside clothing, proper care of footgear and of the sleeping bag, much of the discomfort of a long sledging journey can be avoided.