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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



the next morning we had our initiation 

 into the difficulties and dangers of Ant- 

 arctic navigation. 



After leaving the "roaring forties." we 

 had crossed the "furious fifties" and were 

 now in the "ice-clad sixties," where con- 

 stant watchfulness and careful seaman- 

 ship were necessary to prevent disaster. 



Towering ice islands loomed up on 

 every side out of the fog, mist, and driv- 

 ing snow. They became so numerous 

 that the course had to be changed fre- 

 quently and quickly, while the small 

 pieces of ice, or "calves," scattered about 

 were a constant menace. It seemed like 

 trying to sail down Broadway with all 

 the skyscrapers gone wild and drifting 

 around in our pathway. 



These huge bergs were immediately 

 north of the close ice pack encountered 

 by Ross in 1842. They had broken away 

 from the great ice barrier which sur- 

 rounds the Antarctic Continent and were 

 slowly drifting northward, where they 

 would finally break up, melt, and disap- 

 pear in the warmer latitudes. 



THIRTY BERGS SEEN IN ONE DAY 



More than 30 icebergs were sighted 

 the first day, the largest number seen 

 in a single day during the entire trip 

 around the South Pole. The temperature 

 of both the air and the sea water dropped 

 to half a degree below freezing, the low- 

 est temperature experienced during the 

 cruise. Our heaviest snowfall accom- 

 panied the lowest barometric pressure re- 

 corded — 28.26 inches. 



For more than eight days we were sail- 

 ing almost due east among icebergs more 

 or less numerous, with cold, damp 

 weather, fog, and blizzards. The last 

 berg seen before nearing South Georgia 

 was sighted near the position given for 

 Dougherty Island, and at a distance was 

 mistaken by everyone on board for an 

 island. 



Orders were given to start the engine in 

 order to land on the new island, but an 

 approach within three miles revealed the 

 fact that our new discovery was another 

 iceberg. The reflection of the light from 

 the vertical face resembled a dark, rocky 

 cliff, and the sloping top showed white, 

 making the whole appear as a snow- 

 capped, rocky island. 



