Open
water inside the pack in that latitude might have the appeal of
sanctuary to the whales, which are harried by man farther north. The
run southward in blue water, with a path clear ahead and the miles
falling away behind us, was a joyful experience after the long struggle
through the ice-lanes. But, like other good things, our spell of free
movement had to end. The 'Endurance' encountered the ice again at 1
a.m. on the 10th. Loose pack stretched to east and south, with open
water to the west and a good watersky. It consisted partly of heavy
hummocky ice showing evidence of great pressure, but contained also
many thick, flat floes evidently formed in some sheltered bay and never
subjected to pressure or to much motion. The swirl of the ship's wash
brought diatomaceous scum from the sides of this ice. The water became
thick with diatoms at 9 a.m., and I ordered a cast to be made. No
bottom was found at 210 fathoms. The 'Endurance' continued to advance
southward through loose pack that morning. We saw the spouts of
numerous whales and noticed some hundreds of crab-eaters lying on the
floes. White-rumped terns, Antarctic petrels and snow petrels were
numerous, and there was a colony of adelies on a low berg. A few
killer-whales, with their characteristic high dorsal fin, also came in
view.
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