Report from the South Sandwich Islands

24 Nov 2010

Report from the South Sandwich Islands

By prisca.campbell

Bob Headland our senior historian is on board Kapitan Khlebnikov off the South Sandwich Islands in Antarctica. Bob was on board our first expedition through the Northeast Passage in 1991. He wrote this about the centennial of the expedition of the transit of the icebreakers Taymyr and Vaygach.

"These two newly commissioned icebreakers had sailed from Saint Petersburg through the Suez Canal to Vladivostok.  In 1910 they made a reconnaissance voyage to the Bering Strait before beginning major explorations in 1911.  They left Vladivostok on 4 August 1911, visited Provideniya, passed Mys [Cape] Dezhnev, visited Uelen, crossed the Arctic Circle for the first time on 26 August, and reached the estuary of the Kolyma River, 8 September.  On 14 September ‘Vaigach’ began a special voyage to visit Wrangel Island which was reached on the 16th.

A comprehensive survey of the southern coast was made and a prominent beacon erected near Mys [Cape] Blossom.  This was the first Russian landing on the island.  I have a good account of it by the medical officer aboard (Starakadomskiy). The two icebreakers returned to Vladivostok for the 1911-12 winter.

During subsequent summers they continued exploring and mapping the Northeast Passage.  This included visits to Alaska and more surveys of Wrangel.  On 2 September 1913 Severnaya Zemlya was seen through the mist, this is the last large land area of the Earth to be discovered.  A landing was made on 4 September at Mys [Cape] Berg (there is a cairn there - we (Quark) landed about 1996).   Ostrov [Island] Zhokov and Vilkitskiy were discovered in 1914.  On 16 October the voyage was finished in Arkhangelsk, having completed the survey of the Northeast Passage and making the 2nd and 3rd transits."

Our 20th anniversary End of an Era transit will mark the centennial of that expedition, and pay tribute to the officers and crew of Taymyr and Vaygach.

 

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