The Geographical Journal (Journal of the Royal Geographical Society): Volume IX, No. 4 [‎184r] (38/172)

THE FIRST CROSSING OF SPITSBERGEN.
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a German tourist steamer came in and emptied its passengers upon the
shore. We felt that we had returned from the wilderness to a centre
of advanced civilization.
Having thus very briefly related how we accomplished the main
purpose of our expedition, I shall now still more briefly describe
the second part of our journey. Whilst making the needful pre
liminary inquiries in England, as to what had been done in Spits
bergen, and what still needed to be done, I fell under the fascination of
the varied and peculiar literature that concerns itself with these in
hospitable shores, till the study of that literature became, for me, an
object in itself, and not merely a means to an end. There is much in
it that is topographically obscure; much, too, that depends for its interest
upon the undescribed setting of scenery in which recorded events took
place. Thus the attainment of some general knowledge of the Spits
bergen coasts from personal observation became a matter of importance
■to me, little though I expected to fall in with so rare a chance of accom
plishing that end as the summer of 1896 afforded.
For this year the ice left the Spitsbergen coasts. While we were
'Crossing the island, a tourist steamer advanced without difficulty or
danger to 81° 32'—an amazing record. The sea was open away to the
east as far as any vessel explored it. There was no ice in Hinloopen
strait or in Wijde bay. When knowledge of these facts came to us, I
hastened to hire the little 12-ton steamer Expres, which had been taking
tourists up to see Andree’s balloon, and, as soon as we could obtain
possessiomof her, away we sailed.
Quitting Advent point on August 5, we ran to Green harbour, picked
up our geologizing companions, who had been working there, and steamed
northward in dark and heavy weather. Snow and rain besoms swept
across the sea one after another in rapid succession, and all the coast
hills were hidden in cloud. The only cabin in our boat was no bigger
than a grand piano, so that the five of us, having to cook and live in
such close quarters, were not easily fitted together. There was no deck
to stand on. Every inch of room was occupied by barrels full of coal.
We tumbled in this fashion up Keerwyk (or Foreland sound), across
the mouth of King’s bay, then up the coast, past seven wide glaciers,
called the Seven Icebergs, and through the South gat into Dutch bay,
on whose western shore once stood Smeerenburg, the blubber-boiling
establishment of the Dutch. Over against it, on Danes island, just where
the “ cookery of Harlingen ” used to stand, we found the balloon, which
we visited under Herr Andree’s guidance. His skipper sold us more
coal, and away we went in the gloomy weather northward to find the ice.
Alas ! the edge of the pack had come down more than a degree
during the last fortnight. We found it all too soon in 80° 15', and
turned east by south along it for an hour’s steaming, then north-east
for four hours. The pack now stretched southward, a great cape of ice.