File:An Arctic boat journey, in the autumn of 1854 (1871) (14780762402).jpg

Identifier: arcticboatjourne02haye (find matches)
Title: An Arctic boat journey, in the autumn of 1854
Year: 1871 (1870s)
Authors: Hayes, I. I. (Isaac Israel), 1832-1881
Subjects: Grinnell Expedition 1853-1855)
Publisher: Boston, J. R. Osgood and company
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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ore at our feet, whirling great sheets ofsnow down upon us from the overhanging cliffs,and howling like an army of demons. We couldnot face the storm of drift, which pelted mercilesslyupon our backs, and to go forward appeared to beimpossible; yet this we must try. Advancing tothe point, I discarded my mittens, and, clingingwith my bare hands to the crevices in the rock, Imoved cautiously along the sloping shelf. Twentyfeet vertically below me, the water, black as ink,except where it was breaking into surf, yawned toreceive any victim whom an inadvertent step mightprecipitate into it. I shall not soon forget the emo-tions of joy and thankfulness with which I foundmyself safely landed upon the broad belt at thefurther side of the dangerous place. Now came the troublesome operation of gettingover the dogs. These were driven forward by theirmasters, and being seized by their collars, were oneby one dragged around the point. Then the sledgeswere pushed along the shelf, and were there held
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ARRIVAL AT ETAH. 319 on one runner until the dogs could stretch theirtraces, when, bounding forward in obedience to afierce ka! ka! the animals whirled them intosafety before they could topple over the precipice.The teams, each accompanied by its driver, havingall been thus brought over, the remainder of theparty followed. Except some frost-bites upon ourfingers, the scars of which we will carry with usto our graves, the passage was made without anaccident. Continuing on our course, tortured at every turnwith anxiety lest we should ultimately reach a spotwhere the ice-foot was gone altogether, we were atlength gladdened by a glimpse of the broad ice-field of Etah Bay, and by the discovery that thislimited the open water. Since first coming within view of Cape Alex-ander we had travelled fully fifteen miles, at leastone third of which distance wras upon this unsafeshelf above a foaming sea. All of us had beenmore or less frozen in the interval. The ice-foot grew wider as we advanced ;

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