The no stop on Fury Beach

73’30.8N 090’41’2W course 025′ speed 5,7kn

Leaving our secluded anchorage early yesterday morning, was done in style. As the anchor came out, the mizzen was set keeping our bow into the wind. We started drifting backwards, almost on the track that we had laid when we entered this beautiful anchorage. With 2,4 knots, sailing backwards we made it out of the arm, set the forestaysail creating pressure on the front of the ship and almost turning on a coin we then made our way out of the bay. As the wind died out almost straight after that, we had to do the rest under engine, but it was a good start of the day!

We stayed under engine the rest of the day. Some whales were spotted just before lunch, but we could not get close enough to see what they were. So we continued with the plan to land on Fury Beach around dinner time. This beach was named after a Bomb ship used in two separate expeditions of Parry in search of the North West Passage. Sadly the Fury got damaged by the Ice in Prince Regent Inlet in 1825 and she emptied and abandoned in August. Emptying her stored onto the beach and leaving them for future explorers saved the lives of other expeditions. As the position of her wreck was known, the crew of the Victory under leadership of John Ross and with his nephew James Clark Ross already on board, had to abandon their ship after 4 years in the ice in 1832. They set off with sledges to the Fury and used her food stores and her longboats (after another year in the ice) to be rescued by a whaling ship in Lancaster sound! These grounds hold so much history and we are sailing past them now, in Prince Regent Inlet, which is ice free except for some ice bergs!

To get a taste of this history we wanted to walk on Fury Beach in the evening, just for an hour or so and then leave again as this is surely no safe anchoring spot!
But as we closed in on Fury beach, something white was spotted. We said, no surely not a Polar bear… But yes, and not one! But 4 polar bears were soon spotted!! What a view. We saw one big one on the beach, walking South and a mother with two cubs on the higher ridge quickly making their way North, away from the other bear. The mother and cubs even swam for a fairly long distance along the beach at some point. We stayed and watched them for a while, but decided not to land on a beach where we could have an encounter we would not soon forget. This was close enough for us!

So now we are on our way to Beechey Island. Big icebergs are floating around, the scenery is changing by the day. Land is much higher and more impressive to look at. And as we are staying close in shore, we have lots to look at!

All is well on board, Jet