Return from the Wordie Ice Shelf – Noble (continued)
By now the Vikings, my team, had taken the lead and I was very aware of possible difficulties once we started to round Red Rock Ridge. This is a promontory that juts out into Marguerite Bay and affects the stability of the local sea-ice. The last thing we wanted was to start jumping from floe to floe in the darkness. Yet it is in such conditions, or extremes, that brings together an awareness of how men and dogs become utterly dependent on each other. It is the spirit of the team that comes to the fore. My lead dog Signy, female and six years old was very experienced in leading her team in such conditions. She was alert to weak ice that is best described as having a ‘cat-like’ tread. On my shouted commands Signy would react quickly to my left or right turns, but only if she genuinely agreed with them!
Time and distance now told me that we should be near Jenny Island, a small rocky island that was an important beacon to keep us on course for the last few miles to home. On more than one occasion Signy had broken away from the course that I had wanted, she seemed unsettled and I finally thought ‘if she does it again I will let her run’. It was not long before she decided on her own to turn eastward without prompting and we were soon to hear the faint and distant dogs tethered round our base that told us we were home..
John Noble, GA – Stonington 1966 & 1967