The Three Voyages of William Barents to the Arctic Regions (1594, 1595, and 1596)Veer, Gerrit de
History
The Three Voyages of William Barents to the Arctic Regions (1594, 1595, and 1596)
Veer, Gerrit de
Barentsz, Willem, approximately 1550-1597; Northeast Passage
The 22 of June, in the morning, it blew a good gale out of the
south-east, and then the sea was reasonable open, but we were forced to
draw our scutes ouer the ice to get vnto it, which was great paine and
labour vnto vs, for first we were forced to draw our scutes ouer a
peece of ice of 50 paces long, and there put them into the water, and
then againe to draw them vp vpon other ice, and after draw them at the
least 300 [1231] paces more ouer the ice, before we could bring them to
a good place, where we might easily get out. And being gotten vnto the
open water, we committed our selues to God and set saile, the sunne
being about east-north-east, with an indifferent gale of wind out of
the south and south-south-east, and sailed west and west and by south,
till the sunne was south, and than we were round about enclosed with
ice againe, and could not get out, but were forced to lie still. But
not long after the ice opened againe like to a sluce [1232] and we
passed through it and set saile againe, and so sailed along by the
land, but were presently enclosed with ice; but, being in hope of
opening againe, meane time we eate somewhat, for the ice went not away
as it did before. After that we vsed all the meanes we could to breake
it, but all in vaine; and yet a good while after the ice opened againe
[of itself], and we got out and sailed along by the land, west and by
south, with a south wind.
The 23 of June we sailed still forward west and by south till the sunne
was south-east, and got to the Trust Point, [1233] which is distant
from the Ice Point 25 [100] miles, and then could go noe further
because the ice laie so hard and so close together; and yet it was
faire weather. The same day we tooke the hight of the sunne with the
astralabium and also with our astronomicall ring, and found his hight
to be 37 degrees, and his declination 23 degrees and 30 minutes, which
taken from the hight aforesaid, there rested 13 degrees and 30 minutes,
which substracted out of 90 degrees, the hight of the Pole was 76
degrees and 30 minutes. [1234] And it was faire sunne-shine weather,
and yet it was not so strong as to melt the snow that we might haue
water to drink; so that we set all our tin platers and other things
[1235] full of snow [in the sun] to melt, and so molt it [by the
reflection of the sun, so that we had water to drink]; and [we also]
put snow into our mouthes, to melt it downe into our throates; [1236]
but all was not enough, so that we were compelled to endure great
thirst.
The stretching of the land from the house [1237] where we wintered,
along by the north side of Noua Zembla to the Straights of Waigats,
where we passed ouer to the coast of Russia, and ouer the entry of the
White Sea to Cola, [1238] according to the card [1239] here ensueing.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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