south to 65°30' N., and on another to 65°20' N., on the east coast. 

 The outer Hmits of the pack in this area were far beyond those 

 normally encountered during March and April. Winds which push 

 the ice eastward north of Iceland tend to reduce the amount of ice 

 that drifts south along the Greenland east coast. 



During the latter part of April the ice field north of Iceland 

 shrank toward its normal limits and an increased amount of ice 

 moved south to round Cape Farewell and drift north along the 

 west coast. Here the northern limits of the storis had pushed 

 beyond the 62nd parallel by 24 April and in June a tongue extended 

 to an extreme limit near 64°10' N., 55°30' W. Large quantities 

 of this heavy ice continued to feed past Cape Farewell until early 

 August, and, except for occasional breaks of short duration, blocked 

 the coast north to Cape Thorvaldsen. The direct approach to the 

 coast from the entrance of Arsuk Fjord (61° 05' N.) northward 

 was occasionally blocked for a week and more at a time during the 

 period April through July. The approach to Arsuk Fjord could 

 generally be made by skirting the northern tip of the pack and 

 then coming south between the pack and the coast, but this was 

 not always possible owing to the ice frequently reaching the beach 

 north of the fjord. 



The 1944 ice season was the worst encountered for some years 

 along the west coast of Greenland. Navigation through the areas 

 was dependent largely upon taking advantage of the local condi- 

 tions such as wind shift clearing the ice from the coast or opening 

 leads through the pack. 



Not many sightings were reported from the area along the east 

 coast of Greenland between Cape Farewell and the 65th parallel. 

 Those few indicate, however, that the storis belt along that part 

 of the coast was relatively narrow, averaging not more than 20 

 to 30 miles wide, and did not presage the large amount of ice that 

 appeared along the west coast. 



In August the pack cleared from the west coast and by the middle 

 of the month all ice south of 65° N., on the east coast was in broken 

 fields or patches. Figure 27 shows the outer limits of the main 

 Arctic pack off East Greenland during the period 21 July to 31 

 October. The field receded to its minimum near the 73rd parallel 

 about 23 September, after which it again spread southward her- 

 alding the approach of another winter. 



Icebergs are so abundant in the Greenland area that the posi- 

 tions of individual bergs except those near or beyond the pack 

 limits have little significance. From the available reports of posi- 

 tions it has not been possible to make a reliable month by month 

 estimate of the berg limits. During the period at which the area 

 occupied by the field ice is expanding most bergs will normally be 

 found in the field or within 20 to 50 miles of its outer edge. A reced- 



60 



