On 19 October 1911, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and four companions departed their base at the Bay of Whales on Antarctica’s Ross Ice Shelf, beginning one of the most celebrated journeys in polar history. Their goal was clear and audacious: to become the first humans to reach the geographic South Pole, 90° South.
Amundsen’s carefully selected polar team consisted of five men travelling with four sledges and 52 Greenland dogs. Years of meticulous planning had gone into the expedition. Unlike many earlier Antarctic ventures, Amundsen placed great emphasis on efficiency, experience and the use of proven Arctic travel techniques. The dogs were central to his strategy, providing speed and reliability across the vast, frozen wilderness.
The Norwegian party left just 13 days ahead of the British expedition led by Robert Falcon Scott, setting the stage for one of the most famous races in the history of exploration. Although neither side knew exactly where the other was at the time, both nations were driven by the same prize: the honour of being first to stand at the southernmost point on Earth.
Conditions were far from easy. Ahead lay more than 1,300 kilometres of ice, crevasses, glaciers and the unexplored route that Amundsen hoped would carry his team onto the Antarctic Plateau. Success would depend on careful navigation, good weather, disciplined teamwork and the endurance of both men and dogs.
Amundsen’s decision to establish his headquarters at the Bay of Whales gave him a geographical advantage, providing a shorter route to the Pole than Scott’s base at Cape Evans. Yet there were no guarantees. Antarctica remained one of the least known and most hostile environments on the planet, and every mile south carried immense risk.
The journey that began on 19 October would ultimately change polar history. Less than two months later, on 14 December 1911, Amundsen and his companions reached the South Pole, securing Norway’s place in the annals of exploration and achieving one of the greatest feats of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.