A BLIZZARD IN THE ROSS SEA

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22250, 26 October 1935, Page 4 (Supplement)

A BLIZZARD IN THE ROSS SEA

By GEOFFREY B. WRAY.

the old barquentine Bear of Oakland nosed her way out of the packice alvi into the open water of the ftoss Sea, all hands were called to prepare the vessel for what promised to be the hardest stage of the long voyage from Boston to the Great Ice Barrier. Toward early morning the weather became very thick, and visibility was accordingly very poor. Captain Johansen, the Norwegian ice pilot, was very apprehensive, and soon ordered the upper topsail to be taken in. Four of us were despatched aloft to deal with the heavy sail, and it was certainly no picnic. The wind was increasing, and with it Bnow was falling heavily. Wo lay along the yard, hands and feet frozen, for an hour or more before we succeeded in mastering tho madly, thrashing canvas. Tho temperature was about 15 degrees below zero, and it was getting colder and colder as the blizzard increased. By 9 a.m. it was bo bad that all hands were called to take in the mainsail, leaving the vessel practically " hove to " under mizzen and jib. Tho seven of us in onr watch made ourselves as comfortable as possible in tho galley, where coffee and a smoke soon caused our blood to circulate through our frozen limbs. Wo smoked and yarned for an hour before we were again called out. This time tho look-out had startled everyone with the dreaded shout, " 'Berg to weather!" Sure enough we co lid see a hovering mass of ico to windward, and it was bearing down on us fast. "Full speed ahead!" Tho engines throbbed, and the mate yelled at us through tho blinding snowstorm to haul on tho weather brace. ThJ holm was put hard down and slowly, all too slowly it seemed, we moved out of the danger zone. It was now' blowing a proper Antarctic " buster." Tho driving snow and the tremendous seas battered our little craft relentlessly, but she, sound old ship that sho was, rode it out for forty-eight hours before the blizzard moderated sufficiently to allow moro canvas to be bent and tho ship to proceed on her way.