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"Delightful" weather

Writer's picture: Margot MorrellMargot Morrell

Ocean Camp - the group of three, from the left, possibly Dr. McIlroy who was Wild's closest friend, Frank Wild and Shackleton. Worsley on the lookout platform with the binoculars.


Orde-Lees' Journal November 9, 1915

Temperature +16.


A perfectly glorious day; dry cold in the shade but deliciously warm in the sun. One cannot easily express how delightful this sort of weather can be, it surpasses even the best Alpine climates and puts a new heart into people who find themselves in the straits we are in.


We have not continued to drift northward at the same rate as we started off during the last two days but we are still moving slowly in the right direction and reducing the distance between us and our hoped for goal.


We talk constantly of our chances which we all think auger fairly well but it is a big step yet from here to the land and much depends on our obtaining a sufficiency of seals & penguins as we go along. It is also essential that we reach land before the end of March or else we might find the animal life all gone before we got there.


From all the available information on the subject we gather that penguin leave Snow Hill & Paulet Island at the beginning and the South Orkneys at the end of April.


A fine "lookout" has been erected in the camp partly as a place to spy out seals from & partly as a guide to parties out seal hunting. It is not, however, as high as I should like to see it, for the ice is now so much crushed up into pressure ridges that seals may be within a hundred yards of the camp completely hidden from view.


Four parties of two each were out today resulting in a bag of three Emperor penguins.


The meat of these birds will last us all right for three or four days but we are getting short of seal meat for the dogs. We have a quantity of dog pemmican but propose to reserve some of it for our own consumption. It is good enough when one is hungry but we suspect an equine origin.


I have been busy all the time on my storeroom & have nearly finished now.


Breakfast - Seal's liver & Beauvais pemmican (4 cakes), tea, milk & sugar.

Luncheon - Suet pudding 1/2 lb., jam 1/4 lb., cocoa, milk & sugar.

Dinner - penguin stew, flavoured with a bottle of mustard dressing & thickened with flour, cocoa, milk & sugar.



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