Early the next morning, August 14th, at 5 o'clock, we pushed on in company with the Beluga, standing out of Camden bay and delaying a short time off Barter island, to communicate with the natives. At noon, while off Manning point, the smoke of several steamers was seen to the eastward, and when they had come up we found all but two of the steam-whalers that had gone east. They were led by the steamer William Lewis, commanded by Captain Albert Sherman, probably the boldest and most active of the Arctic whalers. They were all in the cabin of the Thetis in a short time, and I found that they had reached Mackenzie bay and the vicinity of the Mackenzie river. The two missing ones, the Orca and Thrasher, had last been seen in the vicinity of Herschel island. The ice-conditions were reported to be better than those we had passed through. After reflection I considered it my duty, as it was my desire, to go on to the eastward to ascertain the cause of the detention of the two missing whalers, and as time was precious I determined to run on, day and night. By this time night had assumed the conditions of twilight, and the stars had begun to appear in the skies. The threatening appearance of the weather detained us at first, but at 9 o'clock in the evening we got under way, and with her colors hoisted the good ship started again on her easterly course, followed in about half an hour by our old friend and companion, the Beluga. Before leaving we had hoisted out the whale-boat with Joe and native friends, who had been joined at this point by the women of the family. Joe was uncertain about his movements here, and as he expected to secure stores from some of the whalers I left him in their company.
We found the shore bolder as we progressed, and the mountains nearer the coast; as a result, the ice generally sets directly and in heavy masses on the shore without grounding, and this point has never been passed before by the whalers, but fortunately a wide lane was open. The sight of the mountains, standing in their silent and gloomy grandeur, was peculiarly impressive, and our inability to make a closer examination and exploration is to be regretted. So far as I can ascertain, no white man has ever penetrated these mountainous regions, which are known upon the maps in turn under the varying names of the Romanzoff, British, Buckland and Richardson mountains, being so named by Sir John Franklin during his boat journey along the coast. The British mountains are at the extreme northeastern corner of our territory of Alaska, reaching also across the boundary-line into British America. We passed Demarcation point, where our boundary-line reaches the Arctic ocean, early upon the morning of the 15th of August, and commenced again our cruising in British waters. The character of the shore remained the same, the mountains, however, showing little traces of snow, testifying in this way both to the extreme mildness of the winter and our approach to the valley of the Mackenzie. A few Eskimo huts were seen as we came up to the shoal ground developed by our lead in the vicinity of the mouth of the Malcolm river. The lead was constantly going while we were in these waters, and the ship was steered by it as much as by our compass. In fact the three L's (latitude, lead, lookout) are the great necessities for navigation in these unknown regions, as the three R's are supposed to be in elementary schooling. At 11 o'clock in the morning Herschel island was sighted, this large island forming the western boundary of Mackenzie bay, or, as the ancient explorers often termed it, Mackenzie sea. At 1.30 in the afternoon we anchored off the southwest end of the island inside some grounded ice and off a long gravelly spit, thickly covered with heavy drift-wood from the Mackenzie river.
The island is about 500 feet in height and has a rounded outline, sloping gradually down from the center upon all sides. It shows the appearance of former glacial action, and appears to be an ancient moraine covered with a black vegetable mould. The vegetation was confined to grasses and small Arctic flowers, diminutive in size, delicate in color, and evidently shortlived.
Soon after we anchored a party was sent on shore to erect a sign to mark our visit; it consisted of a board with the name of the ship and the date of the visit in brass letters; under the staff supporting it there are placed in a glass bottle the names of the officers and men of the ship. The Beluga joined us soon after our arrival, and when the party from shore had returned we got under way to continue our look for the two whalers. Captain Brooks came on board the Thetis and shared my perch and lookout in the foretop, while his ship followed, in charge of his mate. As we reached the bluffs at the north end of the island we saw a noble expanse of open water stretching to the northward as far as the eye could reach. The ice was still heavy to the westward and northwestward, but to the north, beyond the light, scattering ice through which we were going, was clear sea, the waves leaping in the beautiful Arctic sunshine.
We looked with eagerness to the sea which stretched, apparently, to the north pole, and then headed to the southward into Mackenzie bay.
After three hours' steaming from our first anchorage we reached the southeast side of the island and found the two missing whalers lying quietly at anchor, Captain Brooks giving a hearty and relieved cry of Sail ho!, when the vessels were seen, and we were all pleased to see them safe and secure. We came to anchor close by them and the two captains were soon on board. They reported that they had remained behind to watch for the return of whales from the northeastward, but so far without any success. They had determined to remain until September, and contemplated the possibility of wintering at this place. Soon after we anchored, Eskimos who lived at the mouth of the Mackenzie came on board, and they looked at the ship with the greatest surprise and interest. They had not seen vessels before this summer, though the traditions concerning the "Enterprise" and "Investigator," under Collinson and McClure, still survived.
Sleeping soundly that night, for the first time in many days, the following morning boat parties were dispatched to complete the circumnavigation of the island and to make running surveys in the vicinity.
A small, snug harbor was found and surveyed near-by our anchorage, capable of receiving vessels of less than 16 feet draught; this was named Pauline cove. It would prove a fairly good place for one of the light-draught steamers going up this year to use as winter-quarters.
The waters between Herschel island and the mainland were found after examination too full of shoals and sand- and gravel-bars to form a ship-channel. A rise and fall of tide of three feet was found, and the ship swung regularly to an ebb and flood.
While the boats were out sounding I went ashore and, climbing nearly to the top of the island, had a beautiful view of the clear and open water of Mackenzie bay, to the east and northeast; while to the southeastward were the islands clustering about the shallow mouth of the Mackenzie, and directly to the south were the British and Buckland mountains, merging gradually into the Rocky mountains and the great chains which form the backbone of the American continent.