Friday Feb. 21st.

David did the met. this morning and when I went in to send it off he said that the temperature had fallen right down to -1℉. It really is ridiculous, but rather disturbing this time, for we have been resting the Petter during the hot spell, and I doubted if it would start again. We didn't get it to go for a bit, but getting the plug really hot did the trick and off she went, and we were only five minutes late for the ionosphere run.

During the morning it began to snow and since then it has been blizzarding. The Little Blacks seem to prefer our porch to their house and now they are all piled up against the door and don't even move when you go through. I am making real friends with more of them now, but Euphemia is still the general pet. Poor Dreng is still alive.

Tried to get on with the Base Camp chapter of book in the afternoon but could write nothing. I read right through the diary and am thoroughly ashamed of it.

Heard from Robert at night that the sledgers had not reached him yet. We hope they are at B and sent messages up to them there. It really is a bad arrangement Sandy's not having a transmitter - or is it? They may of course possibly be still at the Advanced Base and Brownie could hardly have come back today in the blizzard. The ice is still going out and there is a head of water now right up to Cairn Point.

Saturday Feb.22nd.

Slept through one alarm clock this morning and when I woke up the other said 7.22. Jumped out of bed to find the chronometer saying 7.19. Raced in to put windproofs over pyjamas, and komagers on feet, couldn't find matches to light the candles with, got a new box, rushed out to take the met. forgot to look at snow so guessed it when I got back - an extraordinary good guess it was - turned off the Petter, coded and got the wireless ready one minute before time. And after all that trouble couldn't get the met. through. They got all except one group, but I could never read what group it was - I always lose my head after a few words - and though I sent the whole met. twice again I don't think they ever got it. They did not reply to my last transmission - now 7.57 - so I gave up and saw to fire and breakfast, so the others had a good sleep till 8.30. Looked in to see poor Dreng; he looked up but later when David went in he wouldn't even raise his head. Later, however, he took Oxo, but for the first time whined miserably when David moved his leg. The poor dog took a lot of Oxo at night and was looking better, but we still want to shoot him.

Otherwise all has gone well. But all the ice north of Cairn Point has now gone out! A murky misty day, without much wind. David and Dan are wonderful companions we have long talks at meal times and peace otherwise, and for the first time for some time I feel I have time on my hands. Dan is certainly the most "intellectual" member of the expedition, and though I am still a bit afraid of him on that account I like him immensely all the same. He falls asleep, reading, almost continuously except when he is making a meal or doing something useful. David is the perfect companion, always helping and anticipating your wants. We heard from Robert that the sledgers have not arrived at A. Great conjectures as to where they are. "Bet you anything something we hadn't expected has been decided upon."

Colonel frightfully crusty this morning - his coffee must have been cold or weak - and growled when you talk to him, and when a Little Black went near he snapped the neatest of holes in its ear - it scampered away yelling loudly holding its head to one side. Later I saw Dupelik laying out one of his daughters - we always thought him a gentleman. The Little Blacks have absolutely taken the porch by storm and now don't even move when you go out, so you just have to step on them. They are getting more distinguishable and today I identified a Pinkiak.

Excited to hear Ireland beat Scotland at rugger (Ireland seems to be doing well this year) but bitterly disappointed to here Magdalen bumped New College.

Sunday Feb. 23rd.

Dan did the met. this morning, and though I had only shown him the way about roughly at noon yesterday, he did it and even all the coding with only one small mistake - he has learned much quicker than any of the others. It was a beautiful morning but there was no change in the state of the ice. In the afternoon we three went for a short Sunday walk in the bay ice; we think that there is no-one further North doing such a thing. It recalled the frightful Sunday walks I had to undergo as a small schoolboy, and I thought of the crowds of respectfully dressed citizens having their walk on the Downs; it must be dead now but will soon be springing to life. Except at the tide-crack, where I put my foot right through and got soaked, the ice was firm, and we went as far as the blue iceberg in Zeipel Bay. There was a red glow in the N.W. and the tops of all the hills round the bay were lit up in a beautiful manner which we could not explain. Though we had taken the trouble to arm ourselves we never saw even the tracks of anything else.

Heard from Robert at night that the sledgers have not reached A. Heaven knows where they are. Dreng is much better, moving his head about with vigour, yawning and absolutely attacking his food. In the morning I foxed the Little Blacks temporarily by putting a handle on the door of the porch. I don't expect it will last long, but all the other attempts - and there have been many - have failed through not observing the Base Camp rule, that in anything you make you must make use of some part of the Benndorf. Daniel's somnulence is amazing - he usually sleeps through large parts of the afternoon or evening; this evening he fell asleep during supper much to David's amusement and mine. Now 10.30pm. he is cooking himself a second supper.

Monday Feb. 24th.

An eventful day. First of all Dan went outside at 6am. and came back saying that the black team except Uncle and Kayunguak were outside. This set us conjecturing at breakfast as to what can possibly have happened now.

John had calculated that the sun should be visible here tomorrow, but we calculated ourselves yesterday evening that it should certainly be visible today from the top of Snotoppen - we cannot calculate exactly as we don't know the angle of the ice-cap above the horizon. So we decided last night that if it were clear we would damn the ionosphere etc. and climb Snotoppen and sun-worship. However it was overcast early so we did not cancel the noon report to Bear Island. However all the time I was doing the charts in the morning the clouds began to break in the South, and became coloured by a more and more vivid red. Just before starting the ionosphere run, I noticed that a lot of the colour had left the sky, and was almost certain that the sun was just visible above the ice-cap. I got the field-glasses, and there it was, less than a quarter of a huge red ball, but no doubt about it. The others came out and we were all entranced and excited, we watched it and photographed it before returning to the ionosphere. It was an occasion for which we had been waiting long, and one of such beauty that it should be described better and more fully than here.

From Robert at last we got news, and as expected, unexpected. B station had been evacuated and we were to expect Brownie, Archie and Sandy at the Base this evening; John and Andrew were at A with him, and Andrew would stay.

At supper time it was dark and there was no sign of the sledgers, so we assumed that they couldn't come as they'd lost their dogs. Looking back on it, it was a most selfish little party we had that night; there was one bottle of champagne that was to be drunk on the day of the sun's return and we were certainly justified in having it. But what is one among three? Another bottle was for the departure of the Northern Journey, but our first conclusion when we heard Andrew was staying at A was that the Northern Journey is cancelled. For months this problematical journey has been being prepared for, sometimes it would seem possible, then the ice would go out or a dog would be lost and it would be off. Recently a smaller modified Northern Journey without a supporting party has seemed possible; I think all of us are getting fed up with it, and in favour only in that it is something for Andrew to do something on. But with Andrew at A it seemed definitely off, so we argued that two bottles among three people and one among nine is better than one bottle among three people and two among nine. So we had the Northern Journey bottle too! I think we - I certainly so - felt upset that our little party would be broken up next day. David and Dan get on frightfully well together - they will live together most of the summer in Murchison Bay - and I like them both very much. What we have done in the last week is little - there are a lot of things undone that should have been done, but we have been late to bed, up early and I have read only about 20 pages of a book. We have spent literally hours talking and gossiping over meals. It's funny that as soon as there is a change anywhere the departed people are criticised severely and their characters picked to pieces - not nastily, I think, and it is really much the most interesting part of the expedition that you get such a close insight in other people's characters. "Helply" as Karl would say, would be a fitting adjective for David and Dan for they have most willingly helped me with my work all the week. I have hardly been able to prepare a meal even. I hope there will be more enjoyable weeks than this one, for they will be sublime.

Soon afterwards the others arrived, with Sesse and Merratark. Kayunguak and Teriangniak had refused to move half way across the Bay, and they had to leave them and the sledge. Brownie had not had his tooth taken out, and they left the pincers in the dump, so he has to endure the tooth till they can be fetched. A great to-do (and under cover of a smoke-screen from a burnt rissole I managed to get the champagne bottles outside and down the tide-crack) and a lot said before they retired to bed.

Dreng is much better physically and ate meat, though we cannot look at his wound as touching his leg causes such pain.