The Voyage of the Vega round Asia and Europe, Volume I and Volume IINordenskiöld, A. E. (Adolf Erik)
History
The Voyage of the Vega round Asia and Europe, Volume I and Volume II
Nordenskiöld, A. E. (Adolf Erik)
Arctic regions -- Discovery and exploration; Northeast Passage; Vega (Ship)
The knowledge we possess regarding the navigable water to the east
of Cape Chelyuskin towards the Lena, is mainly founded on the
observations of the expeditions which were sent out by the Russian
Government, before the middle of last century, to survey the
northern part of Asia. In order to form a correct judgment of the
results obtained, we must, while fully recognising the great
courage, the extraordinary perseverance, and the power of bearing
sufferings and overcoming difficulties of all kinds, which have
always distinguished the Russian Polar explorers, always keep in
mind that the voyages were carried out with small sailing-vessels of
a build, which, according to modern requirements, is quite
unsuitable for vessels intended for the open sea, and altogether too
weak to stand collision with ice. They wanted, besides, not only the
powerful auxiliary of our time, steam, but also a proper sail rig,
fitted for actual manoeuvring, and were for the most part manned
with crews from the banks of the Siberian rivers, who never before
had seen the water of the ocean, experienced a high sea, or tried
sailing among sea ice. When the requisite attention is given to
these circumstances, it appears to me that the voyages referred to
below show positively that even here we ought to be able during
autumn to reckon upon a navigable sea.
The expeditions along the coast, east of Cape Chelyuskin, started
from the town Yakoutsk, on the bank of the Lena, in 62 deg. N.L.,
upwards of 900 miles from the mouth of the river. Here also were
built the vessels which were used for these voyages.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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