When we resumed our journey at 5 o'clock next morning, there was a
strong breeze right ahead with thick drift, the temperature being +6°. A
walk of three miles brought us to the coast about a mile from Point
Hargrave. There was a great deal of rough ice along the shore, which
gave both men and dogs much hard work to drag the sledges over. It had
now begun to snow, and the drift was so thick that we could not follow
the smoothest route; we consequently advanced but slowly, taking four
hours to gain five and a half miles, which brought us to Cape Lady
Pelly.
Since leaving Fort Hope, I had measured every foot of the ground we had
passed over with a line, but now the increased difficulty of the route
made it requisite that all hands should be employed in dragging the
sledges. One of our best dogs became quite useless, and although
unharnessed would not walk, so that rather than lose the poor animal, we
dragged him on the snow several miles before reaching our intended
encampment.
After passing Cape Lady Pelly the coast turns rather more to the
westward. The weather continued very unfavourable all day, there being
much snow-drift; we however advanced seven miles farther, and at 4 P.M.
built our night's lodgings on the ice, a few hundred yards from the
shore. In an hour and a half we were comfortably housed. Finding that
our day's journeys were much shorter than I had anticipated, our
allowance of food for supper was somewhat reduced. The thermometer in
the evening stood at +11°. Our snow hut was situated in latitude 67° 35'
N., longitude 87° 51' W. both by account.
After a sound night's rest we resumed our journey at 5 in the morning of
the 9th. There was some snow falling, but the wind had decreased, and
the temperature of the air was +2°. Our course was N.W. by W. for three
miles, when we came to a low point formed of shingle and mud, with some
rocky rising grounds a few miles inland. This point received the name of
Swanston, after a friend. A short time before noon the sky cleared, and
very satisfactory observations for latitude and variation of the compass
were obtained, the former being 67° 40' 53" N., the latter 71° 30' W.
The dog that had been unharnessed the day before had become still
weaker, and as I did not wish to leave him to the mercy of the wolves,
he was shot. We offered some of his flesh to the other dogs, but there
was only one of them that would eat it.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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