The North West Passage: Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the Ship Gjøa 1903-1907 (Paperback)
From an early age Roald Amundsen (1872 1928) was determined to be an explorer. Having gained valuable experience on the Belgian Antarctic Expedition (1897 9), he resolved to conquer the North-West Passage. After three years, using a small fishing vessel, the Gjoa, and only six crew, Amundsen succeeded in reaching Nome, Alaska. First published in Norwegian in 1907, and reissued here in its 1908 English translation, this two-volume account is copiously illustrated with photographs. Volume 2 begins with details of Inuit practices, including the building of snow houses, fishing, and the making of clothes. The navigation to Herschel Island, where the men spent a third winter among whaling vessels, is then recounted. One of the crew died from illness before the Gjoa reached Nome in August 1906. This volume contains a lengthy supplement by Godfred Hansen, describing the sledge journeys to map the coast of Victoria Island, and a detailed index to both volumes.