49 



perienced en route. The trip to the relieving point was uneventful. 

 The Pontchartrain was met at 1530, April 5, 1938, in latitude 43°10' 

 N ., longitude 52°27' W. Lt. G. Van A. Graves, ice observation officer, 

 and the observer's party reported aboard and at 1535 the Tahoe re- 

 lieved the Pontchartrain as Ice Patrol vessel. The Tahoe headed east 

 for the southern part of the Banks so as to be in position to commence 

 scouting for ice at daybreak should weather be favorable. 



Fog made scouting impossible until 1100 the next day. The re- 

 mainder of that day, however, was fine and clear and the Tahoe was 

 able to search around the Tail and up the eastern edge of the Banks 

 to latitude 43°40' N. No ice was sighted. Increasing northwest 

 winds reaching gale force the next morning, April 7, prevented all 

 scouting for ice that day, the next and the morning of April 9. The 

 northwest wind maintained gale force for 41 hours in all and reached 

 force 9 at its height for 8 hours. With the moderating of the wind 

 and sea on the morning of the 9th, the Tahoe, with good visibility, 

 began again a search for ice. That day and the next the cold current 

 was scouted out from latitude 42°40' N., just south of the Tail to 

 latitude 45°25' N. One berg was sighted in latitude 45°09' N., 

 longitude 48°47' W., and a growler m latitude 43°06' N., longitude 

 49°35' W. On the 9th and 10th the following French barkentines 

 from St. Malo, France, were identified and reported to the authorities 

 at St. Pierre, Miquelon, all well aboard: Zazpiakhat, Cancalais, and 

 Anne de Bretagne. 



The day of the llth brought strong south and southwest wmds with 

 fog and rain so no effective scouting could be done, but the Tahoe 

 steamed slowly south during the day in an effort to locate a berg 

 reported April 10 in latitude 45°22' N., longitude 48°52' W., and to 

 relocate the large berg sighted the previous day. Both were found. 

 The former in latitude 44°57' N., longitude 48°55' W., and the latter 

 in latitude 44°26' N., longitude 48°43' W., both moving south in the 

 cold current. The Tahoe drifted with the southernmost of these 

 throughout the remainder of that day and night. This berg was as 

 large one, with fairly typical early season form having precipitous 

 sides rising nearly vertically from the sea about 80 feet to an undulat- 

 ing top surface with peaks and domes the highest of which reached 

 120 feet, all surrounding a deep central embayment into which the 

 heavy swell poured, dashing spray and mist high in the air. This 

 continued action will cause rapid disintegration when this berg reaches 

 warmer water and the many large pieces in the vicinity are evidence 

 of frequent calving even in 32° F. water. The next day, April 12, 

 the Tahoe stood by this berg to await the General Greene, which had 

 just completed the first current map. The General Greene arrived at 

 0930 and Chief Boatswain Thomas Noland and Senior Physical 

 Oceanographer F. M. Soule reported aboard for a conference with 



