Polar diary unveiled after 88 years

Eric Baxter • Published 5 Jun 2010 14:00

THE diary of a tragic Polar explorer from Greenock has been unveiled for the first time.

It was written by 29-year-old Lieutenant Henry Bowers, who was the youngest of Captain Robert Scott's team which reached the South Pole in January 1912 after an 800 mile trek - only to find they had been beaten to it by Norwegian Roald Amundsen.

Known as 'Birdie' Bowers because of his prominent nose, his journal gives a fascinating account of the team's journey, revealing the explorers' light-hearted side.

Written between 1 November 1911, and 4 January 1912, Bowers relates how -20C could feel 'quite warm' in the sunshine and talks of leg pulling between the men over the use of sugar for cups of tea.

All five members of the team died trying to return from the Pole.

Pages from the diary were given to Bowers' mother, who pieced them together into a 60-page journal which is now on show at Cambridge University's Scott Polar Research Institute.

Bowers writes about sledging down snow drifts, saying: "You poised the sledge on a giddy height, aimed her carefully, all four men braking with their feet, and then a shove and down you would fly. Sometimes when the slope was straight and smooth we would all jump on and let her rip.

"Sheer joy, in the face of freezing temperatures and biting winds, was evident. What a day we have had . . . crossing the waves [of ice] was great sport".

A regular feature of Bowers' diary is his pony, Victor. One entry, on 14 November, records: "Huge icicles under their [the ponies'] noses during the march. Victor generally rubs his off on my sleeve."

In a letter to Bowers' mother, Scott wrote: "As the troubles have thickened his dauntless spirit ever shone brighter and he has remained cheerful, hopeful and indomitable to the end."

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This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 05 Jun 10

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