i9l TOWARDS MT. MELBOURNE 77 



first, when we saw the open water, and by 9 the same evening 

 we were secured alongside the sea ice about i y* miles from the 

 piedmont, north of Evans Coves. It was a lovely evening, and 

 with the help of the ship's people we soon had our outfit on 

 the piedmont by a big moraine, where we had arranged to make 

 our depot, and be picked up by the ship on February 18. 



Our stores were six weeks' sledging rations, one 1 2-ft. sledge 

 (Priestley, Dickason, and myself), and one lo-ft. sledge (Le- 

 vick, Abbott, and Browning). In addition to this I landed a 

 depot consisting of seven boxes of biscuits, one box of cocoa 

 (24 tins), one box of chocolate (36 Ibs.), one box of sugar 

 (56 Ibs.), 4 weekly bags of pemmican (14 Ibs. each), 2 weekly 

 bags of raisins, 2 cheeses, i bag of onions, 14 tins of oil, a little 

 spare clothing, a spare sleeping-bag, and a spare tent and poles. 

 Also my small primus stove, and two spare sledges, one of 

 which was fitted with iron runners. By midnight we were 

 camped, and saw the last of the ship steaming out of the bay. 



January 9. Turned out at 6 A.M., but we did not get away 

 until 10.30, shaping course N.W. for some foothills between 

 us and Mt. Melbourne. Hard rough ice and a strong S.W. 

 breeze made our sledges skid and did the runners no good. 

 Crossed many thaw pools and channels covered with thin ice, 

 through which we broke. After about an hour's pulling, how- 

 ever, we got on to a snow surface, which was better going. We 

 camped early to try and repair the sledgemeter. Got a good 

 round of angles after hoosh. Night calm but overcast. Length- 

 ened the traces as we may expect crevasses. 



January 10. Overslept ourselves, not turning out until 7. 

 It was 9 o'clock before we were under way. Our course lay 

 over the piedmont ice, close under the northern foothills which 

 lay between us and Mt. Melbourne. Some way ahead it looked 

 as if a glacier from Mt. Melbourne came out on the piedmont, 

 thereby giving us a road to the north. Soon after starting snow 

 began to fall, and that, combined with a slight up-grade, made 

 our sledges very heavy. About noon we rounded a point (Cape 

 Mossyface), on which we found a quantity of lichen, and came 

 on to a smooth glacier, of easy gradient, and snow-covered, 

 which I hoped came from Mt. Melbourne; but the weather was 

 so thick with snow we could see nothing, so camped for lunch 

 in the hope of its clearing, as I had no wish to pull the heavy 



