They returned on the 4th April. They arrived at Discovery Bay on the 25th of March, and left again on the 30th. The temperature was very low during this journey, and great difficulties as regards snow and ice had to be overcome.
The great sledge-party to the west and north left the ship on the 3rd of April. It consisted of fifty-three officers and men. Each man in the northern division dragged 230 lb., and those of the western division 242 lb.
“The programme was as follows: Lieutenant Aldrich, assisted by a sledge-crew under the command of Lieutenant Giffard, was to explore the shores of Grant Land towards the north and west, along the coast-line he had discovered the previous autumn. Commander Markham, seconded by Lieutenant Parr, with two boats, and equipped for an absence of seventy days, was to force his way to the northward over the ice, starting off from the land near Cape Joseph Henry; three sledge-crews, under the commands of Dr. Moss and Mr. George White, accompanying them as far as their provisions would allow.”
On the 20th April, Lieutenants Beaumont and Rawson, and Dr. Coppinger, with twenty-one men dragging four sledges weighted to 218 lb. a man, started for the north coast of Greenland.
On the 25th of May, Captain Nares decided to go to Cape Joseph Henry to obtain a view of the northern ice from the lofty mountains in the locality. He arrived there on the 29th, and ascended Mount Julia, the highest peak near the sea, which rises to an elevation of not less than 2000 feet. The atmosphere being very clear, an extensive view was obtained. The hills of Greenland, 120 miles distant, were plainly seen in the neighbourhood of Cape Britannia. He was satisfied that no land exists to the north within 50 miles of Cape Joseph Henry, and no high land within 80 miles. In his narrative of this journey he writes:—
“Whether or not land exists within the 360 miles which stretch from the limit of our view to the northern axis of the globe is, so far as sledge-travelling is concerned, immaterial. Sixty miles of such pack as we now know to extend north of Cape Joseph Henry is an insuperable obstacle to travelling in that direction with our present appliances; and I unhesitatingly affirm that it is impracticable to reach the North Pole by the Smith Sound route.”
Let us now follow the northern sledge-party which left the Alert on 3rd April 1876. The dépôt of provisions at Cape Joseph Henry was reached on 10th April, and the remainder of that day was employed in bringing the provisions off to the sledges, which were left on the ice. Up to this point the northern and western parties had travelled together. Next day they separated, and the two supporting sledges returned to the ship.
The ice over which the northern party had to travel was of an extremely rugged character. Roads had frequently to be made before the sledges could be dragged forwards. To make matters worse, the snow in many places had drifted to such a depth that the men were frequently floundering in it up to their waists. Little mention is made of snow-shoes throughout the expedition, and here undoubtedly they would have been of great service. At first they attempted to console themselves with the idea that the irregular and broken sea of ice was only caused by the proximity to the land, and that they should afterwards meet with smooth level floes, on which they should advance rapidly. The belts of hummocks that separated the floes varied from 20 yards to half a mile in breadth, and were from 15 to 50 feet in height. In order to keep the sun as much as possible at their backs, they travelled between noon and midnight. During the first week the temperature was usually about 30° below zero, and little sleep could be obtained. On the 14th one of the crew complained of pains in his ankles and knees. Although ignorant of the fact, this was the first appearance of the dreaded scurvy. During the 15th and 16th they were confined to tent by a gale, with a temperature of 67° below freezing-point. On the 17th another of the crew was found suffering from swollen and puffy knee-joints.
On the 19th, Markham decided to abandon the larger boat. This boat had always been regarded as an incubus by the party, and every one was well pleased to get rid of it. Even then, in order to advance the three sledges, the road had to be frequently walked over five times. On this day, the 19th, a third man fell ill. On the 24th the 83rd parallel of latitude was crossed. Other two of the party exhibited symptoms of scurvy on the 27th. The temperature on the 28th rose to 2°, the first day the thermometer registered above zero. On the 2nd of May Markham became convinced that his invalids were suffering from scurvy. Great as were the natural difficulties which surrounded him, this was rightly regarded as the most formidable of all obstacles to their advance that could possibly be imagined. On the 7th May three of the invalids had to be carried on the sledge, and the other two could scarcely walk. On the 10th, Markham arrived at the determination of dragging the sledges no farther in a northerly direction. He decided to give the invalids two days’ rest. In order to insure being within 400 miles of the North Pole, the whole of the party, with the exception of the invalids and two men to look after them, started on the 12th to the northward, carrying with them the sextant, artificial horizon, and all their colours and banners. Shortly before noon, the artificial horizon was set up, and the flags and sledge-standards displayed. The latitude was found to be 83° 20′ 26″ N., or 399½ miles from the North Pole. The announcement of the position was received with three cheers, with one more for Captain Nares; then all sang the “Union Jack of Old England,” winding up, like loyal subjects, with “God Save the Queen.”
The return journey was then commenced. Day by day their strength diminished. Gradually, but surely, the men, one after the other, began to feel the cruel grasp of the scurvy, as they struggled manfully on, dragging their helpless companions. Towards the end of May, although the temperature of the outside air was below the freezing-point, the sun was so powerful that it would raise the temperature inside the tent to as much as 70° or 80°. Snow fell heavily during the greater part of the return journey, and fogs were very prevalent. On the 19th of May ominous symptoms of a disruption of the pack were seen. A crack in some ice had opened considerably. On the 25th the 83rd parallel of latitude was recrossed.