1 Fuchs, Hillary and Dufek
Three men of complex but very different characters met at the South Pole on January 20, 1958 – Dr Vivian Fuchs and Rear Admiral George Dufek, both veterans of many years of Arctic and Antarctic exploration, and Sir Edmund Hillary, whose snow and ice experience had predominantly been in high mountains. In another, more heroic, era they might have been called men of destiny.
2 A Call from Sir Edmund
Sir Edmund begins assembling the New Zealand Antarctic expedition party, the support group for Fuchs’ crossing of the continent. I get a phone call inviting me to apply. The chosen team spends time training in the Southern Alps and testing equipment.
3 The Good Ship Endeavour
HMNZS Endeavour, which carried the expedition to McMurdo Sound, was a very small, wooden ship of 900 tonnes that had once supplied bases maintained by the United Kingdom on the Falklands Antarctic coast. Expedition members found its commander, Captain Harry Kirkwood, RN, a most difficult man to deal with.
4 Digging In—
Establishing Scott Base in McMurdo Sound
The site initially chosen for Scott Base on the Royal Society Range coast proved impossible to access. Following up a suggestion by Admiral Dufek, Hillary chooses Pram Point, on the southern edge of Ross Island, against the Ross Ice Shelf.