Thursday 14 Dec. [Actually December 13]

Fine weather all morning. Clouded over after we had taken the altitude, and snow showers arrived from the SE.

The meridian altitude – both with mercury and glass – gave 89°37'. 89°38'5 by dead reckoning. This is really very good. –23° all day. Afterwards we did 8 nautical miles, and are now lying 15 nautical miles from the Pole.
 

This transcript comes from “Race for the South Pole - The Expedition Diaries of Scott and Amundsen” by Roland Huntford. It appears by courtesy of the author and The Continuum International Publishing Group Ltd.