Ilatsiak - 17
Not for the first time, David overheard the officers on the Erebus complaining about the behaviour of the Terror. Crozier seemed to lag behind and at one point head directly westward rather than follow them south into Peel Strait. Fitzjames finally flew signal flags to direct the Terror southward, but it was some time before she was seen to turn and follow them. Clearly, the feelings among the officiers of the two ships was beginning to wear thin and it was becoming more obvious to all now that they were at sea and not all under the direct eye of Sir John. In fact, there was a story circulating between decks that Capt. Crozier had actually written to Sir John Ross from Greenland the previous July suggesting to him that Sir John be relieved of command because of his lack of judgement, his ignorance of ships in the ice, not to mention his too easy way with the men. How true this was, David had no way of knowing, but it was said to have been discussed among the officers on the Terror during the winter lay over. Certainly Commander Franklin did not live up to the stories David had always heard of the harsh discipline handed out by Royal Navy captain for even minor offenses.
As the eastward heading stream of ice became thicker the ships began to strain against it. On the fourth day, Prince of Wales Island was in sight and by mid-day the two ships found themselves through most of the heavy ice pans they had encountered the day before. Then, as if by magic, the heavy ice had suddenly disappeared entirely. It was as if the Northwest Passage was opening up before them. Once again, orders rang out to set all sails and the ships steered through the occasional clumps of loose pans with relative ease. On the southern shore of Barrow Strait, with Cape Walker clearly visible ahead, heavy multi-year ice was once again encountered. This time it was a solid cover and did not appear to move. Rather it seemed to be frozen solidly to the shorelines only a few miles to the south. Accordingly both ships set out ice anchors alongside the floes and waited to see what would happen. This practice had become a familiar one to those on board both ships. A year previously, nearly to the day, they had been tied up to an ice floe in Baffin Bay, waiting for a chance to sail into Lancaster Sound when two whalers, the Enterprise and the Prince of Wales were sighted and several officers had been entertained for dinner by Captain Dannett. Those two ships were the last they had seen since entering the ice, however there were bets on for the first ship sighting of the year. So far there had been no ships sighted, but some still had hopes of winning the monetary prize.
This situation continued for another few days of clear calm weather. On the third day as the tide changed a call came down from the mast-head lookout that the ships were in fact drifting eastwards. The ice had begun to move. Once again sails were set and as the two ships, now sailing in close company again, began to make their way southward into the open entrance of Peel Sound. The further they sailed, the more the ice appeared to separate and pull apart, allowing the ships easier and easier passage southward in Peel Sound. It was becoming more and more clear to Franklin and his captains that Prince of Wales Island could well be the key to the passage they were seeking as it served to block the heavy ice streaming out of Melville Sound through the western part of Parry Channel. Peel Sound could very well continue directly southward into the area around King William Land first seen by Sir John Ross in 1833 if no land bridge were found to connect Somerset Island to the east with Prince of Wales to the west. This possibility existed and some tentitive charts had dotted lines suggesting a barrier had been seen but not confirmed. In any event, the clear sailing which was opening up to the ships would provide the answer to this question within a day or two at the most. If Peel Sound was in fact a strait, the passage was in hand. Once through the strait, they had but to navigate the passage seen by Ross along King William Land’s western coastline to join the passage travelled in Dease and Simpson in 1838. Once there, then it would seem the secret of the Northwest Passage was at hand!
Just as had occurred last summer, all hands were elated at their success and how easy the passage was going to be. The brilliant sunshine lasting twenty-four hours a day helped as well to brighten the spirits of the men. The fourteen in sick bay on board the Erebus were brought up on deck and David was kept busy seeing to their care on the heeled-over open deck.
Several days later the answer was not so assured. While Peel Sound did indeed open into a strait leading south, the ships once again both encountered old, heavy, solidly packed ice just north of King William Island and especially in the southwest quarter, exactly the direction in which they wished to go. Once again, the order was given to anchor, and wait for either a melt or some other clearing trend to occur.
When an easterly wind blew all night while at anchor, the report from the crow’s nest in the early watch revealed that there was open water to the southeast. Although it was thought that there was no navigable exit at the head of James Ross Inlet which led into Poctes Bay, sufficent doubt exisited in Ross’s notes to encourage Sir John to decide to proceed in a southeasterly manner to check. Cautiously, the two ships entered the inlet under steam power. Strict instructions were given to cast for soundings frequently as it was apparent from the state of the grounded ice extending some distance especially from the low lying shores of the islands seen to the northeast of Cape Felix that numerous reefs must extend for a considerable distance eastward. As the day progressed, the shallows forced the two ships with their deep 17 foot draughts more and more to the east against the equally uncharted shore of Boothia.
In the late afternoon, the officers on duty on theErebus received a message yelled down from the crow’s nest that theTerror was signaling that she was aground about a mile to the west of the Erebus. At the news Capt. Fitzjames immediately brought the Erebus into the wind and set the ship’s anchors. The order was given to lower boats and proceed to assist the Terror.
As the eastward heading stream of ice became thicker the ships began to strain against it. On the fourth day, Prince of Wales Island was in sight and by mid-day the two ships found themselves through most of the heavy ice pans they had encountered the day before. Then, as if by magic, the heavy ice had suddenly disappeared entirely. It was as if the Northwest Passage was opening up before them. Once again, orders rang out to set all sails and the ships steered through the occasional clumps of loose pans with relative ease. On the southern shore of Barrow Strait, with Cape Walker clearly visible ahead, heavy multi-year ice was once again encountered. This time it was a solid cover and did not appear to move. Rather it seemed to be frozen solidly to the shorelines only a few miles to the south. Accordingly both ships set out ice anchors alongside the floes and waited to see what would happen. This practice had become a familiar one to those on board both ships. A year previously, nearly to the day, they had been tied up to an ice floe in Baffin Bay, waiting for a chance to sail into Lancaster Sound when two whalers, the Enterprise and the Prince of Wales were sighted and several officers had been entertained for dinner by Captain Dannett. Those two ships were the last they had seen since entering the ice, however there were bets on for the first ship sighting of the year. So far there had been no ships sighted, but some still had hopes of winning the monetary prize.
This situation continued for another few days of clear calm weather. On the third day as the tide changed a call came down from the mast-head lookout that the ships were in fact drifting eastwards. The ice had begun to move. Once again sails were set and as the two ships, now sailing in close company again, began to make their way southward into the open entrance of Peel Sound. The further they sailed, the more the ice appeared to separate and pull apart, allowing the ships easier and easier passage southward in Peel Sound. It was becoming more and more clear to Franklin and his captains that Prince of Wales Island could well be the key to the passage they were seeking as it served to block the heavy ice streaming out of Melville Sound through the western part of Parry Channel. Peel Sound could very well continue directly southward into the area around King William Land first seen by Sir John Ross in 1833 if no land bridge were found to connect Somerset Island to the east with Prince of Wales to the west. This possibility existed and some tentitive charts had dotted lines suggesting a barrier had been seen but not confirmed. In any event, the clear sailing which was opening up to the ships would provide the answer to this question within a day or two at the most. If Peel Sound was in fact a strait, the passage was in hand. Once through the strait, they had but to navigate the passage seen by Ross along King William Land’s western coastline to join the passage travelled in Dease and Simpson in 1838. Once there, then it would seem the secret of the Northwest Passage was at hand!
Just as had occurred last summer, all hands were elated at their success and how easy the passage was going to be. The brilliant sunshine lasting twenty-four hours a day helped as well to brighten the spirits of the men. The fourteen in sick bay on board the Erebus were brought up on deck and David was kept busy seeing to their care on the heeled-over open deck.
Several days later the answer was not so assured. While Peel Sound did indeed open into a strait leading south, the ships once again both encountered old, heavy, solidly packed ice just north of King William Island and especially in the southwest quarter, exactly the direction in which they wished to go. Once again, the order was given to anchor, and wait for either a melt or some other clearing trend to occur.
When an easterly wind blew all night while at anchor, the report from the crow’s nest in the early watch revealed that there was open water to the southeast. Although it was thought that there was no navigable exit at the head of James Ross Inlet which led into Poctes Bay, sufficent doubt exisited in Ross’s notes to encourage Sir John to decide to proceed in a southeasterly manner to check. Cautiously, the two ships entered the inlet under steam power. Strict instructions were given to cast for soundings frequently as it was apparent from the state of the grounded ice extending some distance especially from the low lying shores of the islands seen to the northeast of Cape Felix that numerous reefs must extend for a considerable distance eastward. As the day progressed, the shallows forced the two ships with their deep 17 foot draughts more and more to the east against the equally uncharted shore of Boothia.
In the late afternoon, the officers on duty on theErebus received a message yelled down from the crow’s nest that theTerror was signaling that she was aground about a mile to the west of the Erebus. At the news Capt. Fitzjames immediately brought the Erebus into the wind and set the ship’s anchors. The order was given to lower boats and proceed to assist the Terror.
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