and he was very familiar and cordial with the inuit people and learned the skills of dog sledding and also learned the skills of their warm wear, their types of clothing, all of which he used for his magnificent drive in the south pole. >> host: when you say he wintered there -- >> guest: yes. >> host: how many months was that, what was the temperature? then how long did it take him, how many miles was it to the so-called south pole? >> guest: well, by wintering down there is you have, you know, it varies because you never quite know when it's going to ice this and when it's going to open up. but you have, basically, four months of total darkness. that is, the sup has set because -- sun has set because you're below the antarctic circle there. and the sun has set, and it's just totally dark may, june, july, august, totally debt. the sun sets in late april, it comes back up in september. but april and may are unsled bl. even though there's some light, of course, there's a dawn, but there's some actual sunlight during that period. he tried to set out in september, and that's why i say it