plainly told us that a landing was out of the question. After carefully
searching the shore with glasses while the ship steamed slowly along it
all, ideas of a landing were abandoned and we set course for McMurdo
Sound. As soon as the ship was headed for her new destination we
commenced to make a running survey of the coast to Cape Bird. This took
until ten o'clock at night, and we found a great bight existed in Ross
Island which quite changed its shape on the map. After 10 p.m. we ran
into some fairly heavy pack ice, gave up surveying, and had a meal.

I went up to the crow's-nest in order to work the ship to the best
advantage, and spent eleven hours on end there, but the excitement of
getting the "Terra Nova" round Cape Bird and into McMurdo Sound made the
time fly. Occasionally the ship crashed heavily as she charged her way
through the ice masses which skirted the shore. Whilst I conned the ship
leadsmen sounded carefully, and I was able to work her close in to the
coast near Cape Bird and avoid some heavy ice which we could never have
forced. At 4.30 a.m. I broke through the Cape Bird ice-field and worked
the ship on as far as Cape Royds, which was passed about 6.30 a.m.
Looking through our binoculars we noticed Shackleton's winter hut looking
quite new and fresh.

Leaving Cape Royds we made our way up McMurdo's Sound as far as
Inaccessible Island, where we found the Strait frozen over from east to
west. Skirting along the edge of the sea ice I found there was no way in,
although I endeavoured to break into it at several points to reach what
looked like open water spaces a mile or two from the ice edge.
Accordingly, we stopped and I came down to report on the outlook. Captain
Scott, Wilson, and I eventually went aloft to the cross-trees and had a
good look round; we finally decided to land and look at a place where
there appeared to be a very good beach. In "Discovery" days this spot was