My Life as an Explorer

Roald Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer whose team were the first to reach the South Pole – this is his astonishing story, in his own words. Amundsen begins by explaining that he was not born with an urge to explorer the farthest, uncharted regions of the world. At fifteen he received as a gift the memoirs of Sir John Franklin, a famous British explorer, which roused an immediate interest. This was increased further by Amundsen’s compulsory military service, part of which consisted of roaming the rugged, snowy outdoors. Almost immediately after the end of his time in the army, further explorations deep in the Arctic circle beckoned. At twenty-five, Amundsen was accepted into the Belgian Antarctic Expedition – an event he considers very lucky. For it was here that he gained his first experiences of the Antarctic climate, and began to contemplate organizing a team to reach the South Pole. It was an epic journey; Amundsen’s team,