CHAPTER XXVI. 







NORTH DEVON AND ST. HELENA. 



I ARRANGED with Simmons that he was to go a botanical trip to 

 the north side of the land, and we would meet him with a boat 

 up at Nordstrand on August 6 and fetch his collections. On 

 July 20, the day after we arrived at the mouth of the fjord, he and 

 Peder started to drive up it with our dogs, while Schei, Isachsen, 

 Stolz and I took over the boat and shaped the course across 

 Jones Sound, towards North Devon, to map the unknown parts 

 of that country. We had sledges with us. There was a slight 

 westerly wind, and a favourable current, so that we hoped soon 

 to be able to row so well to windward that we could hoist sail and 

 steer on the little island north of the point. But out in the sound 

 wind and current were against us, and when, later in the day, the 

 breeze freshened, we did not make an inch of way ; in fact, we 

 rather fell to the east. All our efforts were in vain, and we had 

 to sail to the north. After a rough sail we just managed to make 

 Maageberget, and hauled the boat up into a little creek, where we 

 camped, to await a more favourable current. We now saw that 

 sailing in these waters without a rudder was not to be advised. 

 We therefore fixed on straps to hold a steering-oar, and made some 

 other necessary alterations. 



On Sunday evening, July 21, we rowed in calm weather along 

 the coast eastwards to Jammerbugten. There a wind sprang up ; 

 we sailed straight across Jones Sound, and arrived about six o'clock 

 at a little island which we named ' St. Helena.' Surrounding it 

 was a massive barrier of ice, which gave us a deal of trouble 

 when we w^ere bowsing up the boat. 



St. Helena is a very interesting limestone island. Surrounded 



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