![head of Ross MacPhee](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot/5896440-2-eng-US/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot_full_495.png 115w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot/5896440-2-eng-US/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot_full_990.png 115w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot/5896440-2-eng-US/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot_full_1468.png 115w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot/5896440-2-eng-US/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot_full_1980.png 115w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot/5896440-2-eng-US/pole-ross-mcphee-headshot_full_2475.png 115w)
Click the (+) signs to explore the items in my scrapbook.
![The Long Journey Home](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/tothepole_t06_longjourney/5898798-1-eng-US/tothepole_t06_longjourney_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/tothepole_t06_longjourney/5898798-1-eng-US/tothepole_t06_longjourney_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/tothepole_t06_longjourney/5898798-1-eng-US/tothepole_t06_longjourney_full_1468.png 1200w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/tothepole_t06_longjourney/5898798-1-eng-US/tothepole_t06_longjourney_full_1980.png 1200w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/tothepole_t06_longjourney/5898798-1-eng-US/tothepole_t06_longjourney_full_2475.png 1200w)
![scrapbook page with Scott's last journal entry before leaving the team members who didn't survive and journeying home](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/pole_tothepole06_longjourney/5928658-1-eng-US/pole_tothepole06_longjourney_full_495.jpg 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/pole_tothepole06_longjourney/5928658-1-eng-US/pole_tothepole06_longjourney_full_990.jpg 926w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/pole_tothepole06_longjourney/5928658-1-eng-US/pole_tothepole06_longjourney_full_1468.jpg 926w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/pole_tothepole06_longjourney/5928658-1-eng-US/pole_tothepole06_longjourney_full_1980.jpg 926w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/pole_tothepole06_longjourney/5928658-1-eng-US/pole_tothepole06_longjourney_full_2475.jpg 926w)
![blizzard off in the distance](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change/5936905-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change_full_495.jpg 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change/5936905-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change_full_990.jpg 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change/5936905-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change_full_1468.jpg 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change/5936905-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change_full_1980.jpg 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change/5936905-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long01_change_full_2475.jpg 1000w)
Sudden Change of Weather
The British team knew they were racing against time: winter would bring bitter cold and blizzards. But they were shocked at how quickly the weather changed. The men were hungry, tired, and getting colder each day. Here, a blizzard approaches.
Scott's Last Journal Entry
Only, Scott, Bowers, and Wilson were left. In March, a nine-day blizzard kept them in their tent. With no food or fuel, they knew it was the end of their journey. In their final days, the men wrote farewell letters to friends and family.
"We shall stick it out to the end, but we are getting weaker, of course, and the end cannot be far. It seems a pity, but I do not think I can write more. Last Entry. For God’s sake look after our people." – R. Scott
![crew pushing into fierce wind while hauling their sleds](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle/5936901-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle_full_495.jpg 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle/5936901-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle_full_990.jpg 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle/5936901-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle_full_1468.jpg 1200w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle/5936901-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle_full_1980.jpg 1200w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle/5936901-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long02_struggle_full_2475.jpg 1200w)
Struggling to Move Ahead
Facing brutal cold and wind, the men kept hauling their sleds. But they were growing weaker and slowing down. One month after leaving the Pole, Edgar Evans died. Lawrence Oates was next, suffering from frostbite and an old war injury.
![mound of snow built over tent with cross places on top](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave/5936909-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave_full_495.jpg 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave/5936909-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave_full_990.jpg 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave/5936909-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave_full_1468.jpg 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave/5936909-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave_full_1980.jpg 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/earth/race-to-the-south-pole/pole-03_tothepole/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave/5936909-1-eng-US/enlarge_tothepole_long03_grave_full_2475.jpg 1000w)
A Snowy Grave
A search party set out as soon as winter ended, seven months later. They found the tent half buried in snow. Scott, Wilson, and Bowers were in their sleeping bags, frozen.
They built a mound of snow over the tent and placed a cross on top as a memorial. After a burial service, they left a note. Part of it read, “Inclement weather and lack of fuel was the cause of their death.”
Image Credits:
blizzard, man-hauling, and grave, © Scott Polar Research Institute; Scott's journal, courtesy of the British Museum; empty tent, © AMNH.