Towards the middle of August the ice to the east of Hope Island had cleared away, and on the 22nd August 76° 45′ was reached, but contrary winds prevented a higher latitude being attained. The course was again set eastwards along the margin of the ice, and on the 31st of August the latitude was 78° 30′.
They had now arrived at the conclusion that the Novaya Zemlya Sea was not filled with impenetrable ice, as was generally supposed, but that it was probably open every year up to 78°, and that the most favourable time for navigation was towards the end of August.
The Isbjorn returned to Tromsoe on 4th October.
It was now considered desirable that a well-equipped expedition should be dispatched to the Novaya Zemlya seas, either to penetrate towards the north, or to attempt the North-East Passage—hence the Austro-Hungarian Expedition.
The Tegetthoff, a vessel of 220 tons burden, was fitted out for two and a half years. The engine was of 100 horse-power, and the ship carried 130 tons of coal. The officers and crew numbered twenty-four. Some spoke German, some Italian, and others either Slavonic or Hungarian. The command was twofold: Weyprecht had charge of the ship, and Payer had command of the sledge-expeditions.
The Tegetthoff left Bremerhaven on the 13th of June 1872, and Tromsoe was reached on the 3rd of July. Here they remained a week while the ship was overhauled and repaired and the supply of coal replenished. Captain Olaf Carlsen joined the ship as ice-master and harpooner. He had deservedly gained fame through having circumnavigated Spitzbergen and Novaya Zemlya. Tromsoe was left on 13th July.
Ice was first seen on 25th July in latitude 74°. On the 29th they were able to continue their course only under steam, and the vessel encountered heavy shocks in charging the ice. Next day they were beset, and did not escape from the ice until 3rd August, when they broke through into the open coast-water of Novaya Zemlya. A belt of ice 105 miles broad lay behind them, and they steered due north in view of the mountainous coasts.
Great was their astonishment and joy when on 12th August they met the Isbjorn and found on board Count Wilczek, who had given a large donation towards the expense of the expedition, and who was about to establish a dépôt of provisions at Cape Nassau. The two ships now proceeded north in company to the Barentz Isles, where a dépôt of provisions was established. Here they parted from the Isbjorn, and steamed towards the north on the 20th August. Within a few hours the Tegetthoff became beset, and was destined never to be again released. The position was now 76° 22′ N. latitude, 63° 3′ E. longitude. Well might Payer write: “Happy is it for men, that inextinguishable hope enables them to endure all the vicissitudes of fate, which are to test their powers of endurance, and that they can never see, as at a glance, the long series of disappointments in store for them!”
From day to day they hoped they would be able to escape from the ice; then they hoped from week to week, then from season to season, and lastly in the chances of new years!
The ship drifted slowly towards the north, and had passed the 77° on 2nd October. On the 6th October the first bear was killed and was divided among the dogs. They had on board eight dogs, six of which had been brought from Vienna, and the other two from Lapland.