The dangerous race for the South Pole - Elizabeth Leane

譯者: Ann Chen 審譯者: Regina Chu

Roald Amundsen had spent nearly two years preparing his Arctic expedition.

羅爾德·阿蒙森花了將近兩年的時間 準備他的北極探險。

He had secured funding from the Norwegian Crown and hand-picked a trusted crew.

他獲得了挪威王室的資助， 並親自精挑了可信的成員。

He’d even received the blessing of the famed explorer Fridtjof Nansen,

他甚至得到著名探險家 弗里喬夫·南森的祝福

along with the use of his ship, Fram, specially constructed to withstand the ice.

並可使用他的船隻──前進號， 它是專為耐受冰塊而建造的。

Now, with the voyage departing, he had one final announcement to his shipmates:

在航行即將起程時， 他對同行船員作了最後聲明：

They were going to head in the opposite direction.

他們將朝相反的方向前進。

By the early 20th century,

二十世紀初，

nearly every region of the globe had been visited and mapped,

全球各處幾乎都被到訪並繪製地圖，

with only two key locations remaining:

只剩兩個主要地點：

the North Pole, deep in the frozen waters of the Arctic region,

北極──深處北極地區的冰洋中；

and the South Pole, nestled within a recently discovered icy continent

以及南極──座臥在廣大南冰洋 新發現的冰冷大陸上。

in the vast Antarctic Ocean.

A veteran of several expeditions,

阿蒙森是歷經多次探險的老兵，

Amundsen had long dreamed of reaching the North Pole.

長久以來夢想到北極。

But in 1909, amidst his preparations,

但在 1909 年準備期間，

news came that the American explorers Frederick Cook and Robert Peary

消息傳來美國探險家 弗雷德里克·庫克和羅伯特·皮里

had staked rival claims to the achievement.

已競相宣稱達成目標。

Instead of abandoning the planned voyage,

與其放棄已計劃好的航行，

Amundsen decided to alter its course to what he called “the last great problem.”

阿蒙森決定改變航道， 指向他所稱的「最後的大難題」。

But Amundsen’s crew weren’t the only ones kept in the dark.

但並不只是阿蒙森的 船員被蒙在鼓裡。

British naval officer Robert F. Scott had already visited the Antarctic,

英國海軍軍官羅伯特·費爾康·史考特 已經到訪過南極洲，

and was leading his own South Pole expedition.

現正主導自己的南極探險。

Now, as Scott’s ship Terra Nova reached Melbourne in 1910,

當史考特的船──新大陸號

於 1910 年抵達墨爾本時， 他聽到阿蒙森也南向的消息。

he was greeted with the news that Amundsen was also heading south.

Reluctantly, Scott found himself pitted against the Norwegian

史考特無奈地發現自己陷入 與挪威人的較量中，

in what the newspapers called a ‘race to the Pole.’

Yet if it was a race, it was a strange one.

然而假若它是比賽， 那也是一種奇怪的比賽。

The expeditions left at different times from different locations,

他們的探險在不同時間、 不同地點出發，

and they had very different plans for the journey.

而且航行的計劃差異很大，

Amundsen was focused solely on reaching the Pole.

阿蒙森只注重到達極地而已。

Informed by his Arctic exploration,

依過去北極探險，阿蒙森引用 因紐特人及挪威人的經驗，

he drew on both Inuit and Norwegian experience,

arriving with a small team of men and more than a hundred dogs.

率領一小隊人員 及一百多隻狗抵達大陸。

His explorers were clothed in sealskin and furs,

他的隊員穿著 海豹皮及皮毛製的衣物

as well as specially designed skis and boots.

以及特製的滑雪板和雪靴 。

But Scott's venture was more complicated.

但史考特的探險就複雜多了。

Launching an extensive scientific research expedition,

為了廣泛性的科研探險，

he traveled with over three times more men than Amundsen,

他帶著比阿蒙森超過三倍多的人員、

alongside over 30 dogs, 19 Siberian ponies,

30 幾隻狗、 19 匹西伯利亞小馬

and three state-of-the-art motorized sledges.

和三部最先進的摩托雪橇。

But these additional tools and bodies

但在南冰洋對抗風暴時，

weighed down the ship as it battled the storms of the southern ocean.

這些附加的工具及人畜 增加了船隻的負重。

And as they finally began to lay supplies,

而且當他們最後開始卸貨， 發現小馬和摩托雪橇

they found both their ponies and motor-sledges ineffective

in the harsh ice and snow.

在嚴峻的冰雪上無用武之地。

In the spring of 1911, after waiting out the long polar night,

在 1911 年春天， 等過了極地永夜之後 ，

both parties began the journey south.

兩隊開始南向旅程。

Scott’s team traveled over the Beardmore Glacier,

史考特的隊伍行經比爾德摩爾冰川，

following the path of Ernest Shackleton's earlier attempt to reach the pole.

循著歐內斯特·沙克爾頓 稍早試圖到達南極的路徑。

But although this course had been documented, it proved slow and laborious.

即使這條路徑曾被記錄， 但既緩慢又費勁。

Meanwhile, despite an initial false start,

同時，阿蒙森雖啟程錯誤，

Amundsen’s five-man team made good time using a previously uncharted route

他們五人小組縮短了耗時， 用先前未勘測的路徑，

through the same Transantarctic Mountains.

通過相同的橫貫南極山脈。

They stayed ahead of Scott’s team,

他們領先史考特的團隊，

and on December 14, arrived first at their desolate destination.

並於 12 月 14 日首先抵達 荒無人煙的目的地。

To avoid the ambiguity that surrounded Cook and Peary’s North Pole claims,

為了避免重蹈庫可及皮里 抵達北極聲明的混亂，

Amundsen’s team traversed the area in a grid

阿蒙森團隊以網格方式 走過整個區域，

to make sure they covered the Pole’s location.

確立他們穿越了南極。

Along with flags and a tent marker,

除了旗子及一頂帳篷標記外，

they left a letter for Scott, which would not be found until over a month later.

還留了一封信給史考特， 可是它們到一個月後才會被發現。

But when Scott’s party finally reached the pole,

當史考特隊伍終於抵達極地時，

losing the ‘race’ was the least of their problems.

輸掉比賽已是他們 最無關緊要的問題了。

On the way back towards the camp, two of the five men succumbed to frostbite

返回營地途中，五位隊員中的兩名 死於凍傷、飢餓及耗竭。

starvation, and exhaustion.

The remaining explorers hoped for a prearranged rendezvous

其餘隊員期望與基地派來的隊員 在預定地點會合，

with a team sent from their base,

但一連串不幸的事、 誤判及錯誤傳訊，

but due to a series of mishaps, misjudgements and miscommunications,

their rescue never arrived.

他們的救援一直未達。

Their remains, along with Scott’s diary, would not be found until spring.

他們的遺骸以及史考特的日記 到春天才被發現。

Today, scientists from various countries

現今，來自各國的科學家

live and work at Antarctic research stations.

在南極研究站生活與工作，

But the journeys of these early explorers are not forgotten.

但這些早期探險家的旅程沒被遺忘。

Despite their divergent fates, they are forever joined in history,

縱使他們的命運迥異， 但他們永存於歷史中，

and in the name of the research base that marks the South Pole.

還有南極研究基地 是依據他倆而命名。