Ocean Journey
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The following day the weather broke completely, the sky was cloudless and a strong wind blew across the sea from the west, bringing with it heavy seas.
We were now in open water and I could see the line of islands that surrounded our destination far too leeward, but there would be little shelter here, even if we got into the sheltered waters behind them; at least not until we reached the southernmost group of islands, which lay about thirty leagues distant.
At this point, the ocean became quite shallow, so it is doubtful whether any ship could ever get in or out without grounding on some of these reefs, yet this did not deter many vessels as they made their way up the coast. The whole place, including the islands themselves, seemed crowded with boats carrying all kinds of things and people, men, women, children, and animals.
There were great ships too, laden with goods, anchored in deep water well offshore where the reefs ended, but there was regular trade between them. These vessels, however, had their anchors hauled out whenever they needed to come alongside a quay. A few fishing craft also ventured into this area of shallow water.
They were small two-masted boats, usually propelled by one oarsman. Some of them carried no sails, and they had been used by the natives to hunt whales, as I learned later when Captain Bonney explained to me why they were so-called.
It seems that the name of the whale itself, “whale” meaning “tooth”, is due to the fact that its teeth are said to have such a large surface area relative to its size.
On the first afternoon of our passage, I took my seat on deck again to watch the land. From time to time, the lookout shouted down: “Land ahead!” and we watched for some minutes as the boat approached, but then he would call out, “No land! False signal!” and we would continue on our course.
As evening came on we were still sailing eastwards towards the island group, so I climbed to the foretopmast head. I found myself looking down on an island with steep sides covered with trees, a forest almost.
On the other side were fields and pastures, while behind it stretched a wide plain, perhaps ten miles in width. I could make out a number of white houses scattered over the island like ants’ nests on the ground and beyond these buildings were hills, rising up to more mountains that formed another range of hills further southward.
Beyond these were more forests; a beautiful country. It seemed strange to think that it belonged to England, for all that had happened to it.
As night fell the sky cleared away and the stars shone brightly. There were four moons out that night. One was full, but the other three were waxing crescents. The next day dawned clear and bright. In the morning we sighted several of the boats making their way along the coast.
We saw some of the white houses as well. Then suddenly the sun broke through the clouds just as we passed under the shadow of the easternmost islands, which were high cliffs covered with trees growing out from between the rocks. I thought I was looking at a picture.
The islands rose in front of us and we sailed northwards between them, and then to starboard and round a bend where we saw the land drop sharply away towards the south. This was a mountainous area that must be where the mountains of Patagonia begin.
Suddenly there was a break in the line of peaks that ran right down into an inland sea, which must lie far below. It looked as though a giant had taken a knife and cut a long slice out of the island, throwing up a sheer cliff to the sea. Further back, the sea curved away again forming a long coastline that continued far off to the left.
The whole of this area reminded me of Scotland, especially Glencoe. But where was the Loch Ness? I could not see it; nor was there any sign of the River Ness. However, a few minutes later we caught sight of a long lake lying far off to the southeast.
There was no sign of any settlement on any of the islands or along the coast. All this part of the coast was rugged and inaccessible except for a few lonely fishing huts. I wondered how these people managed to live in such isolation, for they seemed to do so quite comfortably.
Perhaps their lives depended upon what fish they could catch in the surrounding waters. They could not have any sheep or cattle to graze on the grassy slopes; the vegetation was mainly ferns, herbs, and shrubs. There were very few birds either, only gulls, terns, and cormorants.
As we sailed on I noticed that the islands had gradually changed shape, becoming smaller and flatter as we moved northwards, and I realized that this was because they were growing apart as a result of tectonic forces. We now had an unobstructed view of the mountains running straight up from the sea to a height of more than seven thousand feet above us.
They appeared black against the clear blue sky, but I noticed that their sides sloped down to form a sort of rampart and that they were broken by a number of narrow passes, some of which led to low hills where there were settlements.
These looked like little villages, surrounded by fences and gardens, although I did not get much of a chance to look at them closely since we were too busy watching for signs of life ahead.
At last it was evident that there was something moving about to the north-northwest. The boat sent a couple of men aloft to take a look. A minute or two later the lookout called, “Ship’s bell!” Then came the reply: “Two ships!” So I went up to the top of the main mast and looked out westward. Sure enough, there they were – two big merchantmen lying close together, heading in the same direction as ourselves.
They were probably trading along the coast of the island group. Their sails were flying white flags as well. I guessed that they could be from Liverpool or Bristol. They might even be carrying letters of marque, but if so they would certainly have had permission from the Admiralty to do so.
If so, we should be in luck, for then they could provide us with food and water – we certainly needed both. The boat was already sending a messenger aloft to tell them where we were headed.
“They won’t help you,” said Murchison.
“I don’t expect them to.”
“Why not?”
“Because there is a prize court here. If we are taken by these boats they’ll hand us over.”
Murchison frowned.
We passed between a couple of islands, sailing steadily on through calm seas. After an hour or two, the islands became larger and more numerous, while the land rose higher until it reached the level of the snow-capped peaks.
At one time we were forced to tack, but at length, we rounded a point where the coast opened before us. Ahead lay a vast expanse of open water that stretched away to the northwest and beyond that a large bay in which there were several islands and the outline of some buildings. Beyond the bay, there was another range of high mountains standing out against the clear blue sky.
It was late afternoon when we sighted the bay. We had been becalmed ever since crossing the strait and had not seen so much as a puff of wind. The sun was low in the west and the light fell on the bay in golden shafts. I stood beside the mainmast and stared in amazement.
This must be a beautiful place!
The wide, sandy beach facing the bay was backed by high cliffs rising sheer from the sea to a height of more than four thousand feet above us. Beyond the beach, a series of green valleys rolled away into the distance, while in the center of the bay itself there were three small islands that seemed to be inhabited.
The whole region reminded me strongly of the Mediterranean coast around Naples and the Greek islands. Here, however, instead of olive trees and cypresses there were pine forests and cedars, and above the trees rose great crags capped by snow.
It was the most magnificent sight I had ever seen – and yet it was all new and fresh, with nothing to show that human hands had touched it. This part of the world was still wild and untamed, unspoiled by the hand of man. In my opinion, it could not be more beautiful anywhere else on earth.
I felt myself smiling with pleasure and wonder as I gazed at it. But I did not allow myself to become carried away and lose sight of what we must do next. There were too many possibilities for disaster if we were not careful.
“You see how peaceful it is?” said Murchison, looking at me. “But let’s not forget that if they’re going to give us food and water we’ll need to pay for them, and I don’t think any amount of money will buy those cliffs.”
He spoke with real anxiety and it showed in his voice. He had spent nearly three weeks alone on this ship, and he was beginning to feel isolated and lonely.
“I don’t care about the cliffs,” I said, trying hard to sound cheerful and confident, though in truth I shared his concern. “And as long as they have guns they can’t stop us from going on our way.”
We had no choice. If we were to make our escape successfully we must pass between those cliffs. But just then a thought occurred to me. Why not sail right through the bay? It would mean passing between the island group and the mainland, but I knew from our charts that we would have plenty of room to manoeuvre once we entered the bay.
It would also allow us to get past those cliffs much quicker than we could by sailing around them.
“If we try a run down the middle of the bay like that, the other two vessels will cut us off from escaping,” said Murchison. “No – we’ve got to go past them.”
I saw no reason why he should not take the lead in deciding how we should deal with the situation. The fact was that both he and I feared being caught, and we would naturally come up with different solutions to the problem. But we needed to find a solution that satisfied everyone.
“Then we’ll have to decide where we want to go after we leave their bay,” I said. “Where do we head?”
Murchison looked doubtful.
“Well, I’m not sure whether we’ll find any French ships out in the Pacific, but if we do we’ll need to find somewhere to shelter from a strong breeze. We’d also need to find a good anchorage where we can make repairs to the rigging before setting sail again.”
“What about the French fleet?” asked Biddeford, who was standing close behind me. “Will there be any ships left to look for in that direction?”
Biddeford looked at him as though he was asking the stupidest question he had ever heard.
“Don’t you know anything?”
“Of course I do!” replied Biddeford with a note of irritation. “But I didn’t think there would be any French warships still left to search for in that area.”
“They’ll be gone!” I snapped angrily. “The whole fleet sailed south to fight with the English – except one vessel, which I believe was sent north.”
“That sounds reasonable enough,” replied Murchison. “If the rest of the fleet sailed to fight the English then why shouldn’t the last ship in the fleet also go south to join them?”
I nodded, pleased with his reasoning. Then I looked back at Biddeford. “Do you agree?”
“Yes,” said Biddeford, who did not seem to realise the seriousness of the situation. He was so excited that he seemed unaware of everything else; even the danger ahead.
“Good,” I said. “So far your plan seems to make sense. We’ll follow your plan.”
“Right,” said Murchison. “Then let’s put it to the test.”
It was time to make our move.
The End