It was now, however, requisite to cut a canal through the ice, which, since their departure, had extended a considerable distance into the sea; and to draw the ships up it into the harbour. In this operation, two parallel lines were cut, distant from each other, little more than the breadth of the ships; and the ice was divided into square pieces, which were subdivided diagonally, and were either floated out of the canal, or sunk beneath the adjacent ice. The labour of cutting this canal may be imagined, when it is stated that the length was more than four thousand yards, and that the average thickness of the ice was seven inches. At three o'clock of September the 26th, the third day spent in this operation, the vessels reached their winter quarters; an event which was hailed with three hearty cheers, by the united ships' crews. The group of islands which had been discovered, were called the _North Georgian Islands_. As the ships had now attained that station where, in all probability, they were destined to remain for eight or nine months, every precaution was taken for their security, and for the preservation of the various stores which they contained. A regular system also was adopted, for the maintenance of good order, cleanliness, and the health of the crews, during the approaching long, dark, and dreary winter. All the masts, except the lower ones, were dismantled; and the boats, spars, ropes, and sails, were removed on shore, in order to give as much room as possible on the deck. The ropes and sails were all hard frozen, and it was requisite to keep them in that state, till the return of spring. A housing of planks, covered with wadding-tilt, such as is used for stage-waggons, was formed upon the deck of each of the vessels; and thus constituted a comfortable shelter from the snow and the wind.