Farthest North: The Incredible Three-Year Voyage to the Frozen Latitudes of the North

by Fridtjof Nansen, Roland Huntford (Contributor)

Fridtjof Nansen (1861–1930) sai kuulsaks kahe polaarekspeditsiooniga. 1888–1889 ületas ta esimese inimesena suuskadel Gröönimaa mandriliustiku. See reis tegi temast Norra rahvuskangelase. Nanseni teine polaarekspeditsioon toimus aastatel 1893–1896 laeval «Fram».

I osa sisu:

Fridtjof Nanseni raamatud ja tähtsamad artiklid
Ettevalmistused
Ärasõit
Hüvasti, Norra!
Teekond läbi Kara mere
Ümber vana maailma põhjatipu
Polaaröö
Esimesed jõulud ja esimene uusaasta «Fram'i» pardal
Kevad ja suvi 1894
Teine sügis jääs
Teised jõulud ja teine uusaasta

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Adventure, Travel, Biography, Memoir, Nature

544 pages, Paperback

Published August 17, 1999

About the author

Fridtjof Nansen (1861-1930) was a Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

Best known for the Fram expedition, an attempt to reach the North Pole by using the natural drift of the polar ice in the ship Fram, carrying fuel and provisions for twelve men for five years.

Reviews

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Were I shopping to join a polar exploration around 1900, I could have done no better than go with the intrepid Fridtjof Nansen, the Norwegian leader of what strikes me as the most competently led polar journey ever. His Farthest North is the description of his trip, which consisted of five parts.

First was the voyage along the north shore of Russia until his ship, the Fram was stuck in the ice. No problem, as the ship was custom designed to ride atop the ice rather than be crushed by the pressure.

Second, the Fram and its crew rode the ice to as high a northern latitude as the ice traveled, which turned out to be around 86 degrees.

Third, at that point, Nansen and one crew member left the ship to press farther north; and, when they could go no further, turn south to find land. They managed to get only some twenty miles farther north than the ship floating on the ice, before they decided to head either for Franz Joseph Land or Spitzbergen using kayaks they carried with them on their sledges.

Fourth, they landed on an island in the Franz Joseph archipelago and headed south. They lived by hunting bears, seals, and walruses.

Fifth, they ran into a British expedition, which provided them transport back to Norway. In the meantime, the Fram ran out of ice pack north of Spitzbergen and sailed back to Norway, arriving one week after Nansen.

This is supposedly an abridged edition on Nansen's original work, but I suspect that what was edited out were mostly scientific observations, which is no loss to me.The journey was a success because what it mainly studied was the movement of the polar ice cap in response to wind and currents. Arriving at the North Pole would only have been a lagniappe rather than the avowed purpose of the expedition.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The spirit of mankind will never rest till every spot of these regions has been trodden by the foot of man, till every enigma has been solved."

In a time when a veil of mystery still shrouded the Arctic, when maps were left blank in the northern regions and theories about Arctic continents and warm polar seas ran rampant, Nansen and his men embarked on an expedition from which most people thought they would never return. Theirs is an incredible story of resilience, resourcefulness, and camaraderie, and Nansen tells it beautifully. His writing is poetic, insightful, and revealing--he gives us access to all of his hopes and fears, his longing for home, his need to explore and understand. He brings us along at every step of his remarkable journey: his careful preparation and his anxious and hopeful departure, when he felt keenly the weight of the hopes of an entire nation; his life on the ice aboard the Fram, with all of the poetry of polar nights and Arctic silence; his incredible year-long journey across the ice to 86 degrees North, on a dog sled and a handmade kayak; his triumphant and emotional return to a nation that would forever cherish him.

This book is a gift. It is the chance to accompany one of the world's greatest explorers, on one of history's most daring expeditions, to one of Earth's final frontiers.

[Calzean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nansen led a Norwegian expedition in 1895 to try to get to the North Pole. His book is incredibly detailed in describing the ship they built, the provisions, life on board once the ship was iced in and slowly drifted north, the dash to the North by Nansen and one companion and the return to Norway of both Nansen and his ship.
Amazing stuff that read like a non-fictional tale (except for the technical detail). Probably not everyone’s cup of tea with a bunch of animals being killed for food but the inventiveness, resilience and strength of these men were impressive.
Nansen went on to be a world-famous humanitarian winning the Nobel Peace Prize. His polar exploits being just one of his amazing achievements.

[Max · Rating 4 out of 5]

Be advised: there is a lot of animal abuse and gore in this book. The abuse is not on purpose, but a necessary evil that follows from three years of Arctic living. If this is not your thing, don't pick up this book.

This is a very interesting account of polar exploration. Nansen and his crew set out by boat to reach the farthest North they can get. Their ship is designed to be frozen in the ice, so it can drift on the ice in winter. After they feel they are at the most northern point they can get by ship, Nansen and a comrade continue by sledge, kayaks and a bunch of dogs.

The day to day life of the men on the ice is described in detail, and because there is not so much changing, it is repetitive. For casual readers it can be considered quite boring. But one can respect how intense these years can be, which makes it interesting to realise the monotony of this life. I love all things Arctic exploration, so to me this book was an entertaining read. I could have done with a little less animal gore, but that was part of life in those days.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a gem. It provides a good level of detail for Nansen's expedition to get as close to the North Pole as possible in the late 19th century. The adventurers of the era were of a different class than what we would expect today. The plan was a bit ludicrous at the time, building a ship to intentionally get stuck in the ice and slowly over the course of a few years drift, stuck in the ice.

Nansen does a great job conveying his thoughts. They range from his meticulous planning, to concerns about the ship, to the scientific approach he took to most everything, and the incredibly real nature of danger in their trip. A different era, where they were exploring the world without communication with the outside world for years.

[Ram · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gem of a book is the firsthand account of the author’s attempt to reach the north pole by drifting with the ice from the coast of Siberia.

Nansen first began to consider the possibility of reaching the North Pole after reading meteorologist Henrik Mohn's theory on polar drift in 1884. According to Mohn’s theory, there is a drift of ice pushed by Arctic Ocean currents from east to west across the polar sea and possibly over the north pole itself. The plan was to build a ship that will not be crushed by the ice but will withstand years of ice seizure while drifting, frozen in the ice, from east to west over the polar sea. The book describes the account of this expedition.

In June 1893, the ship, Fram, left Norway with 12 explorers on board, dogs, sleds and provisions for comfortable living for at least 5 years. The Fram, was frozen in the arctic ice for 3 years until August 1896, drifting from Laptev Sea off the coast of Siberia to the Spitsbergen Islands North of Norway. During this drift, the ship came close to the north pole and at this stage, Nansen and a crew member called Johansen left the ship and using Dogs and sleds attempted to reach the north pole over the ice. During this attempt, they managed to get close to the North pole but had to turn around before the pole itself and ended up at Franz Josef Land, a group of islands in the Barenta Sea where they spend the winter and eventually found a group of English scientist who could offer them a ride home.

Personally I like these type of books and find myself identifying with the adventurous descriptions. While the book did have some details that I found repetitive and boring, it was fascinating from beginning to end. The book is a first hand account of one of the pioneers and pillars of the North pole explorers and I would recommend the book to anyone who likes this type of adventures.

In his later years Fridtjof Nansen became a diplomat and In 1922 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on behalf of the displaced victims of the First World War and related conflicts.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

im dead

[Sho]

Read more than half, then realized I didn’t even suspect what the fuck would happen to so many animals, so I’m DNFing it. I’m in no mood for mental torture.

[Mark Mitten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fridtjof Nansen takes you there. 1893. The Polar Sea. The arctic ice was just a blank on the map, and where others have failed, Nansen will push on.

This is a first-person account, based on handwritten journals, day in, day out. Nansen must turn a deaf ear to those critical colleagues who say it can't be done. He sees what others have done wrong, and learns from it. He figures out a key to the arctic puzzle: the ice is not a fixed, frozen waste one can simply walk across. The ice that covers the north, moves. It drifts. From east to west, and what would happen if someone were to deliberately get their ship frozen in the ice? Would the ice carry you across the polar sea? Will it take you right across the North Pole itself?

My advice: study the map at the beginning. Get a feel for the geography, what's what and where's where. Then follow along as Nansen points his ship, the Fram, north, and heads straight for the ice.

This book was originally published in 1897. Reading it is connecting firsthand with history in the making.

[AudreySpo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read, several times, the original edition of this story (translated from Swedish, I believe) and published in two volumes. My favorite part is the early section of the book, which describes the massive preparation for this voyage before they even left the port. The planning is fascinating. Nasen was an amazing strategist and leader, but he also understood the human experience. He made sure there was a huge library aboard the Fram and that there were plenty of other outletsfor the men to explore, including new hobbies, during the long and cold voyage. I love this kind of mind. This type of thinker who mixes the science with the psychology and shows that thatcombination is more likely to be a winner in the end then a solution which does not consider both.

[Troy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to believe that a book devoted to this much time spent in essentially one spot in the polar ice cap can move along as well as it did. Interesting in the context of the science of the time, and typical 19th-century rah-rah trivialization of the EXTREME risks these guys took in the name of adventure. Inspirational from a standpoint of innovation and self-reliance in a land with limited resources. Very good.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and brilliantly-written report on a truly astounding expedition. Nansen’s crew was able to complete all of their scientific objectives with their ship deliberately frozen into the Arctic ice for over 1000 days, and return safe, healthy, and well-fed. An important and informative example of detailed and flexible planning, scientific curiosity, persistence, patience, and grit.

[Tara_buzinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are howlings and thunderings round you; you feel the ice trembling, and hear it rumbling under your feet; there is no peace anywhere. In the semi-darkness you can see it piling and tossing itself up into high ridges nearer and nearer you -- floes 10, 12, 15 feet thick, broken, and flung on the top of each other as if they were featherweights. They are quite near you now, and you jump away to save your life. But the ice splits in front of you, a black gulf opens, and water streams up. You turn in another direction, but there through the dark you can just see a new ridge of moving ice-blocks coming towards you. You try another direction, but there it is the same. All round there is thundering and roaring, as of some enormous waterfall, with explosions like cannon salvoes. Still nearer you it comes. The floe you are standing on gets smaller and smaller; water pours over it; there can be no escape except by scrambling over the rolling ice-blocks to get to the other side of the pack. But now the disturbance begins to calm down. The noise passes on, and is lost by degrees in the distance.

Not the most entertaining read, but that's a selfish opinion from someone who read it on a cozy bus or tucked into bed. Instead of scurvy-stricked explorers or starving dogs, the Nansen expedition had their own forge, handcrafted yet sturdy kayaks and sledges, and Christmas dinners that rivaled those at Redwall Abbey.
While Nansen is still aboard the frozen Fram, he writes: "I am lying on my berth in the light of the electric lamp, eating cake and drinking beer while I am writing my journal; presently I shall take a book and settle down to read and sleep." Even when he and Johansen strike out on foot, they end up GAINING weight -- even after spending an entire Arctic winter in a makeshift shelter.

I am impressed with how boring their journey was. I wonder if I can dig up any old scientific journals with data from this expedition.

[Niklas Laninge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard to rate but if you love Robinson C then this might be your kind of book.

[Marco Tamborrino · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Sono qui seduto da solo nella mia cuccetta e i pensieri scivolano indietro ai due anni trascorsi. Qual è il demone che tesse i fili delle nostre esistenze e che fa ingannare noi stessi, quello che ci spinge sempre avanti su sentieri che non abbiamo tracciato noi - sentieri sui quali non abbiamo desiderio di incamminarci? È stato il puro senso del dovere a spingermi? No di certo! lo ero semplicemente un bimbo che anelava la grande avventura nell'ignoto, così a lungo sognata che alla fine ho creduto che fosse lei ad attendere me. E certamente mi è stata data la grande avventura del ghiaccio profondo e puro come l'infinito; la notte polare illuminata di stelle e silente, la natura nella sua profondità, il mistero della vita, l'incessante circumnavigare dell'universo, il banchetto della morte eterna in se stessa - senza sofferenza, senza rimpianto. Eccoti qui nella grande notte in tutta la tua nuda meschinità, faccia a faccia con la natura; te ne stai seduto con devozioni ai piedi dell'eternità in riverente ascolto e conosci Dio [...]. Tutti gli enigmi dell'universo a te paiono chiari e ridi di te stesso per esserti consumato a meditare, poiché è tutto così piccolo, così indicibilmente piccolo..."

La poesia con cui Nansen descrive il paesaggio artico si scontra inevitabilmente con la brutalità del trattamento riservato ai cani da slitta e al resto della fauna locale. Nansen sembra rincarare la dose raccontandoci le scene strazianti delle madri di trichechi e orsi polari che non si capacitano della morte dei loro cuccioli. Ho trovato la descrizione di questi ripetuti episodi decisamente evitabile dopo il primo o il secondo caso. Un appunto sarebbe stato sufficiente. Tuttavia l'importanza scientifica della spedizione di Nansen è innegabile, il coraggio che gli ci è voluto per metterla in atto è fuori dagli schemi, per noi abitanti del mediterraneo è semplicemente inconcepibile.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a very cool story. The first half of the book was great!! Nansen had a plan that worked pretty much exactly as he anticipated. And his writing of the expedition on the Fram was candid and a fun read. Once he left the ship to attempt to reach the North Pole, the story felt a little repetitive. But was still interesting. The trek across the ice flows, though not a super riveting read(to me) was still an amazing feat. And to have himself and the ship arrive back in Norway almost exactly like he predicted was proof as to how well his theory actually was. An amazing accomplishment to say the least. I have always wished I could have lived back in the early days of exploration. But I woulda gone to Africa or South America or Australia. But the Arctic? Not in a million years! I would break down in that environment. So I am always impressed by these guys. That's toughness....or insanity. Either way, my hats off to you Mr. Nansen. Great journey and pretty darn good book.

[Robert Bergstrom · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Fram Expedition 1893-96
The North Pole was his next goal. He developed a bold plan, to sail a ship to Siberia, get the ship frozen in the polar ice, to be carried over the pole by the ice drift, and come out near Spitzbergen and Greenland.
This plan was based on several key observations. There was abundant driftwood in Greenland, despite the fact there are no trees there. Nansen believed the driftwood came across the polar icecap from forests and rivers in Siberia.
An American ship, the Jeanette, had been crushed in the ice north of Siberia in 1881, in attempting to reach the North Pole by sailing thru the Bering Strait. Wreckage from the Jeanette was found three years later in sea ice flows in southwest Greenland, have been carried there by ocean currents from Siberia.

See my blog on Fritdjof Nansen and Visiting the Fram Museum
https://www.northernmists.photography...

[Adi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've heard the name Fridtjof Nansen before, but I never really knew what he's famous for. This book introduced me to him and to a brief period of his life - his Fram expedition to the North Pole. It was fascinating to read about all the preparations, the plans, the obstacles they had to overtake. Even more curious was the part, where Nansen and Hjalmar Johansen depart on their own, leave the ship behind and attempt to reach the pole on dog sled.
What somehow decreased my enjoyment of the book was the constant animal killings. I admit, these types of expeditions require resources, which includes hunting for the food. Apparently, the crew rarely hunted for fun, and they were really using the meat and the furs. Still, the explanations were sometimes too vivid for my taste.
And yet, my biggest issue came from the dog killings as Nansen and Johansen were going alone towards the pole. Granted, it seems like none of them enjoyed this, but it was so cruel.

[Florence Buchholz · Rating 2 out of 5]

These Norweigians organized a scientific, well-planned and executed trip north toward the north
pole. They endured relatively luxurious conditions on their well equiped ship, The Fram, which was designed to withstand pressure from the sea ice and did so for two winters.

Dr. Hansen and a companion suffered hardships after they left the ship to press onward toward the pole accompanied by their dogs.

Sorry, but my personal enjoyment of the saga was tempered by the brutality toward animals. Whether the men were in dire need of food or not, they seemed to shoot at every living thing they encountered. The way they treated their dogs, loyal companions throughout, was unspeakable, especially toward the end of the journey. I was unable to read the most brutal descriptions of slaughter that took place throughout.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book took more than a year to read! It was worth it – it’s an adventure on par with Shackleton’s story. From June 1893 until Sept. 1896, they drifted in the Arctic ice on Fram with the full crew (held in the ice for 3 years), and then Nansen set out with just one man for the final 15 months of the saga, to see how far north they could get (86 degrees, 14 minutes) , and everyone came home – on the same day! All went pretty well until the last few weeks when the kayaks went adrift and he had to swim after them, and then a walrus punched a hole in a kayak, and then Johansen almost got eaten by a bear. Otherwise, they were intrepid and sensible, and came back with a proven theory and loads of Arctic data. Although methodically reported in the style of the time (making early reading a bit tedious) it is truly an amazing story.

[Bobo Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not that Nansen is a spectacular writer, but this book is engaging. What's probably most amazing about it is that most of the story is about people -- well, sitting there, getting moved by ice. The author writes vividly of the experiences of his crew as they attempt to reach the North Pole by intentionally trapping their boat in sea ice and waiting for the current to carry them across. Written by the expedition's scientifically-driven leader, "Farthest North" is occasionally plodding, but the duller sections are quickly wiped out by the final push to make the pole.

While Amundsen gets the credit for reaching the pole first, it was Nansen who made the first genuine exploration of the region, and his calculated risk results in an interesting tale.

[A.L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an epic adventure! Nansen mixes fact and philosophy, stamina and longing. He comes across as a deeply feeling man, willing, for example, to kill animals in order to stay alive, but never happy about it. The premise of his journey - freeze ship in ice, drift in ice to North Pole, leave ship for final attempt on Pole, get back to civilisation by sledge and kayak - seems utterly insane, but he gets through it alive. He should be much more well known than he is. I've read that the book lacks literary polish. Who cares? This is a raw account of a man trying to accomplish a dream. It doesn't need polishing.

[Drewms64 · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had potential but really dragged at multiple points. I guess there isn't too much to variance in your daily life to write about when you're frozen in an ice floe for a year at a time. If you're interested in the subject, I'd say skim around until you find some interesting parts, which there are many. I was also disappointed in the fact that this was the illustrated version and there were maybe 1-2 drawings and 0 photographs, which they always mentioned that they were taking during their adventure.

[Maria Mng · Rating 5 out of 5]

Parim raamat kuumalaines ja krõbeda külmaga lugemiseks. Nanseni seisundlik olustikukirjeldus ja huvitavad kirjanduslikud loojutustusvalikud köidavad vaheldumisi. Karge ja elav raamat.

[Larkin H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nansen is undoubtedly an extraordinary figure but he is of an age where a humble and stoic attitude was as valued as one’s accomplishments (a trait which we may be smart to try and copy ourselves...). But because of that demeanor there is very little added ‘excitement’ in his recounting of his incredible journey.

The journey alone is exciting, and the encounters with bears, walrus', the polar night, the elements, etc. are enough to make for a stirring read, but he does not write in a style that makes this a page-turner. And I doubt he would have wanted it any other way. It is really interesting, just not one that the reader will be drawn into from first to last page.

Lastly, given the lack of knowledge that most readers will have of the polar region and/or the (modern day) Russian islands of the Arctic, the publisher really failed by not including better maps. The journey would have been much easier to follow without needing to check online for more detailed illustrations of the Fram’s path.

[Luke Koran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah, yes, another exciting polar exploration story around the turn of the twentieth century! However, this one features a unique twist as much of the journey was spent onboard a ship and intentionally drifting amid frozen ice across the North Pole for a period of three years. Thankfully, further drama and adventure was half-unexpectedly inserted halfway through in the form of a two-man fifteen-month long sledge journey across the Arctic icecap. Dr. Nansen tells his gripping tale filled with bitter cold, uncertain traveling conditions and run-in's with polar bears and walruses with an easygoing narrative. It's not always about whether you accomplish everything you set out to do on an adventure such as this; the real success comes simply by doing it, testing the very limits of your abilities, and going where no man has gone before

[Kaupo Rebane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Normaalselt kirjeldatud ebanormaalne ettevõtmine (aga me hindame siin ikka raamatut, mitte ajalugu).
Suur osa geograafiast jooksis mul külgi mööda maha, hea kui mered ja poolsaared positsioneerisin kuidagimoodi. Kirglikud jahistseenid mind tüütasid. Palju on igatsusi ja sisemisi kõikumisi, kuid inimestevahelistes suhetes ei esine väiksemaidki konflikte. Kontrastina koerad sõna otseses mõttes tapavad üksteist. Refräänideks on virmaliste ning menüü kirjeldused.

[Atushi Racia]

Ch 81 P3
when souls are reunited, when the buried girl is asked for what offence she has been killed, when scriptures are unrolled ...

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really interesting, but it was a little boring at some parts. This book is really informative.

[Patrick Whalen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bit of a slog. My man had a detailed ahh journal