Voyages of Samuel de Champlain, vol 3 | Page 2

Voyage to the Strait north of Labrador,
from the 53d to the 63d degree of latitude, discovered in 1612 by the
English when they were searching for a northerly course to China.
PARIS.
JEAN BERJON, Rue St Jean de Beauvais, at the Flying Horse, and at
his store in the Palace, at the gallery of the Prisoners.
M. DC. XIII.
WITH AUTHORITY OF THE KING.

CHAPTER I.
DEPARTURE FROM FRANCE TO RETURN TO NEW
FRANCE.--THE DANGERS AND OTHER EVENTS WHICH
OCCURRED UP TO THE TIME OF ARRIVAL AT THE
SETTLEMENT.
We set out from Honfleur on the first day of March. The wind was
favorable until the eighth, when we were opposed by a wind
south-southwest and west-northwest, driving us as far as latitude 42°,
without our being able to make a southing, so as to sail straight forward
on our course. Accordingly after encountering several heavy winds, and
being kept back by bad weather, we nevertheless, through great
difficulty and hardship, and by sailing on different tacks, succeeded in
arriving within eighty leagues of the Grand Bank, where the fresh
fishery is carried on. Here we encountered ice thirty or forty fathoms
high, or more, which led us to consider what course we ought to take,

fearing that we might fall in with more during the night, or that the
wind changing would drive us on to it. We also concluded that this
would not be the last, since we had set out from France too early in the
season. We sailed accordingly during that day with short sail, as near
the wind as we could. When night came, the fog arose so thick and
obscure that we could scarcely see the ship's length. About eleven
o'clock at night, more ice was seen, which alarmed us. But through the
energy of the sailors we avoided it. Supposing that we had passed all
danger, we met with still more ice, which the sailors saw ahead of our
vessel, but not until we were almost upon it. When all had committed
themselves to God, having given up all hope of avoiding collision with
this ice, which was already under our bowsprit, they cried to the
helmsman to bear off; and this ice which was very extensive drove in
such a manner that it passed by without striking our vessel, which
stopped short, and remained as still as if it had never moved, to let it
pass. Although the danger was over, our blood was not so quickly
cooled, so great had been our fear, and we praised God for delivering
us from so imminent a peril. This experience being over, we passed the
same night two or three other masses of ice, not less dangerous than the
former ones. There was at the same time a dripping fog, and it was so
cold that we could scarcely get warm. The next day we met several
other large and very high masses of ice, which, in the distance, looked
like islands. We, however, avoided them all, and reached the Grand
Bank, where we were detained by bad weather for the space of six days.
The wind growing a little milder, and very favorable, we left the banks
in latitude 44° 30', which was the farthest south we could go. After
sailing some sixty leagues west-northwest, we saw a vessel coming
down to make us out, but which afterwards wore off to the
east-northeast, to avoid a large bank of ice, which covered the entire
extent of our line of vision. Concluding that there was a passage
through the middle of this great floe, which was divided into two parts,
we entered, in pursuance of our course, between the two, and sailed
some ten leagues without seeing anything, contrary to our conjecture of
a fine passage through, until evening, when we found the floe closed up.
This gave us much anxiety as to what was to be done, the night being at
hand and there being no moon, which deprived us of all means of
returning to the point whence we had come. Yet, after due deliberation,

it was resolved to try to find again the entrance by which we had come,
which we set about accomplishing. But the night coming on with fog,
rain, snow, and a wind so violent that we could scarcely carry our
mainsail, every trace of our way was lost. For, as we were expecting to
avoid the ice so as to pass out, the wind had already closed up the
passage, so that we were obliged to return to the other tack. We were
unable to remain longer than a quarter of an hour on one tack before
taking another, in order to avoid the numerous masses of ice drifting
about on all sides. We thought more than