Alone on the Ice: The Greatest Survival Story in the History of Exploration

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars | 1,888 ratings

Price: 13.62

Last update: 12-20-2024


About this item

His two companions were dead, his food and supplies had vanished in a crevasse, and Douglas Mawson was still 100 miles from camp.

On January 17, 1913, alone and near starvation, Mawson, leader of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, was hauling a sledge to get back to base camp. The dogs were gone. Now Mawson himself plunged through a snow bridge, dangling over an abyss by the sledge harness. A line of poetry gave him the will to haul himself back to the surface.

Mawson was sometimes reduced to crawling, and one night he discovered that the soles of his feet had completely detached from the flesh beneath. On February 8, when he staggered back to base, his features unrecognizably skeletal, the first teammate to reach him blurted out, “Which one are you?”

This thrilling and almost unbelievable account establishes Mawson in his rightful place as one of the greatest polar explorers and expedition leaders.


Top reviews from the United States

  • FishT
    5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent read for those interested in the Age of Exploration
    Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2024
    Mawson was an incredible individual, excellent writer, organizer, and survivor. His solo 300 mile return to the base camp dragging half a sledge with meager supplies, falling into two glaciers, and climbing out is one for the history books of Antarctic exploration.
  • Karen S.
    4.0 out of 5 stars The Polar Expedition You Probably Don't Know About—But Should
    Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2016
    A captivating true tale about one of the last of the "heroic" polar explorations: the Australasian Antarctic Expedition from 1911 through 1914. The expedition was led by Douglas Mawson, a geologist by trade, who was himself a tireless worker who expected the same level of effort and commitment from his men. Many of his men thought he was wonderful and a great leader, but some chafed at his discipline and expectations. Like all of these polar expeditions, this one was beset by horrible weather, some bad decisions, a great deal of heroism, and some tragedies, both avoidable and unavoidable. The importance of this expedition and its scientific discoveries was eclipsed by what happened to the Scott and Shackleton expeditions that were contemporaneous, and, of course, the first World War, which began the same year as the AAE concluded.

    Mawson himself had a most horrific experience as he and two companions were trying to return to their winter quarters from one of their research trips. One of the three (Ninnis by name) was manning a dog-pulled sledge that had most of their critical gear on it: food, tents, stoves, etc. The sledge, man, and dogs all fell into a huge crevasse and were killed. That left Mawson and the other man Mertz to continue on their way with only 1.5 weeks worth of food for a month-long journey. Soon Mertz got sick and finally died. Mawson stayed with Mertz for 8 days while he was too weak to travel, thus endangering Mawson's own survival by continued exposure to the cold. After Mertz's death, Mawson had to get back on his own across the frozen waste, through bad weather, and with no-one to help rescue him should he fall into a crevasse. He finally staggered back into winter quarters a month later ... and the ship that was to have taken the men (Mawson and others left at the winter quarters) back to Australia had left FIVE HOURS earlier, thus necessitating they stay at winter quarters another year until the ship could get back to them. Talk about endurance and fortitude!

    And yet, they endured. If you like polar and exploration sagas, this one is a must-read. Mawson was knighted upon his return to Australia, and was celebrity-famous for decades in his home country.
  • Bill Gallagher
    5.0 out of 5 stars Roberts Gives Mawson the Recognition He Deserves and the Reader a Great Adventure Story
    Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2013
    After whipping through a couple great polar exploration books, I got a copy of Alone on the Ice. (Btw, I highly recommend both of these: Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage, which is the well known account of Shackleton's ill-fated, but miraculous survival in Antarctic and Arctic Adventure: My Life in the Frozen North, which though hugely popular in its day, is something of a lost classic that is a great read filled with lots of well told dramatic adventure while [unlike Endurance] giving insight into native Eskimo culture, which is fascinating.)

    In "Alone on the Ice," David Roberts tells the true story of what Sir Edmund Hillary called "the greatest survival story in the history of exploration." Hillary was referring to the 1912 expedition of Australian explorer Douglas Mawson and his fellow members of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (AAE). Mawson and cohorts set out to explore Antarctica with the intention of gathering specimens and to make scientific observations of the continent. What has left Mawson's considerable accomplishments and amazing survival story obscured by the layers of newsprint and time is--unlike Roald Amundsen and Robert Scott--he wasn't a pole bagger. Mawson, never grabbed headlines by "summiting" the south pole. Mawson and the AAE's expedition went virtually unnoticed by the public.

    Now, at the 100th year anniversary of the expedition, Roberts tells the story of Mawson, alone after his companions had died during the expedition, an expedition that saw them trek over 600 miles round trip while being face with 100 miles per hour winds, and left with little of their original provisions. Left as a lone explorer, Mawson was forced to make a ninety-five mile trek across the Antarctic Ice while battling extreme hunger, madness, and the deadly terrain of the continent.

    During his trek Mawson often had to crawl as a result of losing the flesh from the soles of his feet. And at one point, he fell into a deadly crevice that would have likely killed almost anyone else. However, Mawson, inspired by a poem by Robert. W. Service, was able to extricate himself out of the crevice with what could only be considered superhuman strength, determination, and extraordinary will. Roberts tells Mawson's story well and has seemingly done his research thorough, including some great, rarely-seen photos (one of an iced-over face is bizarre, as is the shot of an explorer's contortions to stay upright in a 100-mile an hour wind). The photos are by Frank Hurley, who is famous from his Endurance photos.

    In sum, this is a very engaging read. Robert's detailed description of Mawson's determination, perseverance, and courage gives Mawson the heroic recognition while provided classic adventure story entertainment.

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