It was frightfully cold. Nothing like it had ever been experienced by any one in the party.
No one dared to remain out on deck for long. He would have been converted into an icicle.
The machine was brought to a halt by the great wall of ice. The Scorcher could not surmount it, nor did there seem any pass to go through.
What was to be done?
The party was intensely anxious to get a look at the ship. There seemed but one way.
This was to leave the Scorcher and go forward on foot. This plan was discussed.
The cold, by good fortune, now began to moderate. It brought signs of snow, but it enabled the voyagers to go forth without the extreme peril of freezing to death.
A party was quickly made up to scale the icy heights. These were Randall, Frank Reade, Jr., Barney and Mains. They wrapped up as warmly as possible and set forth.
It was no light undertaking.
To climb that immense barrier, with its treacherous surface, with its hundreds of chasms and pitfalls, was a feat.