322 NEAREST THE POLE 



Getting started again in the tail end of the storm, we 

 advanced as far as the open water, a few miles east 

 of Cape Brevoort, and camped. This open water, 

 about three miles wide at the Greenland end, extended 

 clear across the mouth of Robeson Channel to the 

 Grinnell Land coast, where it reached from Lincoln 

 Bay to Cape Rawson. Beyond it, to the north and 

 northwest, as far as could be seen, were numerous lanes 

 and pools. The next day was devoted to hewing a 

 trail along the ice-foot to Repulse Harbour, and on the 

 23d, in a violent gale, accompanied by drift, I pushed 

 on to the " Drift Point" of Beaumont (and later Lock- 

 wood), a short distance west of Black Horn Cliffs. 



The ice-foot as far as Repulse Harbour, in spite of 

 the roadmaking of the previous day, was very trying 

 to sledges, dogs, and men. The slippery side slopes, 

 steep ascents, and precipitous descents wrenched and 

 strained the men, and capsized, broke, and ripped 

 shoes from the sledges. 



I was not surprised to see from the "Drift Point" 

 igloo that the Black Horn Cliffs were fronted by open 

 water. The pack was in motion here, and had only 

 recently been crushing against the ice-foot, where we 

 built our igloo. I thought I had broken my feet in 

 pretty thoroughly on the journey from Etah to Conger; 

 but this day's work of handling a sledge along the ice- 

 foot made me think they had never encountered any 

 serious work before. A blinding snowstorm on the 

 24th kept us inactive. The next day I made a re- 

 connoissance to the Cliffs, and the next set the entire 

 party to work hewing a road along the ice-foot. That 

 night the temperature fell to -25° F., forming a film 



