1911] KING EDWARD'S LAND 57 
of the 2nd, when we made heavy pack with a number of small 
bergs in it right ahead. 
The sea was breaking heavily on the pack edge, so we altered 
course to the southward, and after a few hours’ steaming against 
a nasty head sea we got round it. About eight o’clock the wind 
fell, and shortly afterwards we sighted what was apparently ice- 
covered land on the starboard bow—soundings gave 208 
fathoms. The day was lovely, and we had a good view of 
the land, which proved to be Cape Colbeck, a long convex ice 
dome without a rock showing. Sextant angles made the summit 
750 feet high, while the ice face averaged 100 feet. Some heavy 
pack and a large number of bergs were lying off the cliff, but 
working our way slowly through we found open water under 
the cliff. Our prospects were now bright; open water ahead 
and a perfect day. However, in the afternoon our hopes were 
blighted; about 10 miles east of Cape Colbeck we came on a 
line of solid unbroken pack, into which a number of bergs were 
frozen, stretching from the ice cliffs of King Edward’s Land out 
to the N.W. as far as we could see from the crow’s nest. We 
steamed up to the edge of the ice, stopped, and sounded, getting 
bottom at 169 fathoms. 
Several seals, one of which looked like a sea leopard, and 
some Adélie and Emperor penguins were on the ice, while large 
flocks of Antarctic petrels were flying about everywhere. 
The ice cliffs, stretching as far as we could see, gave us 
no hope of finding a landing-place. 
There is evidence of a great deal of pressure here and the 
upper edge of the cliff near us, 100 feet high, showed a pressure 
ridge, where evidently a large berg had been forced against it. 
At 5 P.M. we reluctantly turned and retraced our steps, the 
only chance of a landing-place being Balloon Bight or some 
inlet at the east end of the Barrier. Soundings off Cape Colbeck 
gave us 89 fathoms. During the night we sailed as close as 
possible to the ice face but passed nothing but high cliffs. About 
3 o'clock on the morning of the 3rd a strong S.E. wind sprang 
up, bringing a low mist, but not thick enouch to prevent us 
keeping close to the coast. Soon after the cliff dipped a little 
and appeared on both bows, showing we were running into a 
bay; this was the place where I had had great hopes of effecting 
a landing, but we were unable to do so. 
