Voyages in Search of the North-West PassageHakluyt, Richard
History
Voyages in Search of the North-West Passage
Hakluyt, Richard
Arctic regions -- Discovery and exploration; Northwest Passage; Voyages and travels
The 6th being very clear, we put our barque with oars through a gap in
the ice, seeing the sea free on the west side, as we thought, which
falling out otherwise, caused us to return after we had stayed there
between the ice.
The 7th and the 8th, about midnight, by God's help we recovered the open
sea, the weather being fair and calm; and so was the 9th.
The 10th we coasted the ice.
The 11th was foggy, but calm.
The 12th we coasted again the ice, having the wind at west-north-west.
The 13th, bearing off from the ice, we determined to go with the shore,
and come to an anchor, and to stay five or six days for the dissolving of
the ice, hoping that the sea from continually beating it, and the sun
with the extreme force of heat, which it had always shining upon it,
would make a quick despatch, that we might have a further search upon the
western shore. Now when we were come to the eastern coast, the water
something deep, and some of our company fearful withal, we durst not come
to an anchor, but bore off into sea again. The poor people, seeing us go
away again, came rowing after us into the sea, the waves being somewhat
lofty. We trucked with them for a few skins and darts, and gave them
beads, nails, needles, and cards, they pointing to the shore as though
they would show us great friendship; but we, little regarding their
courtesy, gave them the gentle farewell, and so departed.
The 14th we had the wind at south. The 15th there was some fault either
in the barque or the set of some current, for we were driven six points
out of our course. The 16th we fell in with the bank of ice, west from
us. The 17th and 18th were foggy. The 19th, at one o'clock afternoon,
we had sight of the land which we called Mount Raleigh, and at twelve of
the clock at night we were athwart the straits which we discovered the
first year. The 20th we traversed in the mouth of the strait, the wind
being at west with fair and clear weather. The 21st and 22nd we coasted
the northern coast of the straits. The 23rd, having sailed 60 leagues
north-west into the straits at two o'clock afternoon, we anchored among
many isles in the bottom of the gulf, naming the same the Earl of
Cumberland's Isles, where, riding at anchor, a whale passed by our ship
and went west in among the isles. Here the compass set at 30 degrees
westward variation. The 24th we departed, shaping our course south-east
to recover the sea. The 25th we were becalmed in the bottom of the gulf,
the air being extremely hot. Master Bruton and some of the mariners went
on shore to course dogs, where they found many graves, and trains spilt
on the ground, the dogs being so fat that they were scant able to run.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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