was inaiiitaiiicd tlirouiiiiout tlio month. Dui'iiifi' the fii'st week, small 

 fields of brash and slush hampered shipjiinu' in C'a])ot Strait and on the 

 main steamer track as far as Heath Pohit, Anticosti Island. Rotting 

 patches remained in Cabot Strait until 18 April. Thereafter no 

 further sea ice was ol)served for the season except small patches 

 persisting in Xorthumberland Strait to the months end and heavy 

 winter ice which blocked the extreme northeast arm of the Gulf. 



Early in April reports of growlers and bergy bits from the Gulf of 

 St. Lawrence ])etween Heath Point and C^ape St. George were regarded 

 at first as large rafted Hoes of sea ice. How^ever, as this ice invaded 

 the main shipping track between Anticosti Island and Bird Rocks 

 during the third week of April, reports of icebergs became frequent 

 and the glacial origin of this ice was recognized. Berg reports, espe- 

 cially in such numbers from this part of the Gulf are extremely rare. 

 By the last week in April these bergs were observed drifting seaward 

 through Gabot Strait at a rate of about 25 miles per day. From 

 24-30 April at least seven l)ergs were sighted south of latitude 48° N., 

 w^ithin the Gulf and many otiiers were grounded along the west coast 

 of Newfoundland and at Anticosti and Magdalen Islands. These 

 bergs wei'c tlie same as reported in March to be transiting the Strait 

 of Belie Isle. As was tlien noted, the explanation ])robably is in the 

 prevailing northeast winds fi-om December to mid-March and the light 

 winter sea ice existing in the Strait which otherwise would impede 

 the berg's progress. 



Other unusual ice sightings occuiicd on 4 (i April w hen OSV Fraro 

 sighted two small bergs near 5()°8()' \., r)l°2()' \V., and again on 

 26 April when SS A^^o/m, reported a large herg in 5()°40' X.. 45°40' W. 



Ice reports for April are |)l()lted on figure 14. ^riie existence of 

 a large berg reported the 23d in 43°40' N., 48°00' W., by the Factory 

 Fishing V^essel Faitiry III is open to ([uestion. This berg was reported 

 at night and could not ])c I'elocated the following day l)y intensive 

 aerial searcii uiuh'r ideal conditions of visibility. 



In addition to the 33 bei'gs (h-ifting south of latitude 48° X., in 

 the east, 8 more can be a(l(h>(l in the (Jiilf of St. Lawrence making 

 a total of 41 foi- the month. 



At the beginning of May, icebergs approaching the noi-thern slope 

 of the Baidvs wei'(» more westward than the earlier arrivals in Api'il. 

 This was, in part, (hie to strong northerly winds occurring the last 

 week in April over the Belle Isle area which had the effect of con- 

 centrating the pack ice close along the Labrador coast and shifting 

 the berg movement more toward the Xewfoundland coast. 



In addition to conditions (h'scribed in the foregoing paragraph, a 

 sevei'e storm over the CJrand Banks 1-3 May with attendant north 

 to northeast- winds altered radically the (list rihiit ion of ice over the 



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