On April 6, 1909, Robert Peary and me established “Camp Jesup.”
(See photo above.) In his diary for April 7, Peary wrote:

“The Pole at last!!! The prize of three centuries, my dream
and ambition for twenty-three years. Mine at last.”

Unfortunately, we were still 5 miles away from the North Pole. 
But the National Geographic Society said “Close enough,”
and awarded Bob its highest honor, the Hubbard Gold Medal.
Consequently, no major exploration followed.

Personally, I always felt Bob chose to declare Camp Jesup as
“The Pole” because it had all these exposed rocks, handy for
building nifty little monuments like this one.
Nothing says “I was here” like a pile of rocks.
Ask any Egyptian, he’ll tell you.

I knew all along, of course, that we hadn’t reached the pole.
Elves. Fat man. Red suit. Toys everywhere.
These are the indicators.
Ask any 3 year-old. 
He’ll tell you.