7
Novaya Zemlya was towed from Lapominskaya to Arkhangel’sk on 13 May and final
fitting-out proceeded there. The brig finally got away from Arkhangel’sk on 14 July bound
downriver to the sea. Passing the Novodvinskaya Fortress Litke saluted it with seven guns,
receiving the same number in reply. The vessel crossed the bar at the river-mouth on the 15
th
,
and after handing his last mail to the pilot as he returned to the pilot station Litke set a
northwesterly course across the White Sea. Although slowed by calms by the morning of the
17
th
Novaya Zemlya was passing the cape of Zimniye Gory (near the present village of
Zimnegorskiy), which marks the northern cape of Dvinskaya Guba and the southern entrance
to the gorlo (literally ‘the throat’), i.e. the narrow entrance to the White Sea. From here,
however, Litke had to contend with a northeasterly wind which meant tacking to and fro across
the gorlo, at first in fog and then in clear conditions, resulting in interesting mirages such as
vessels appearing upside-down. By 5 pm on the 17
th
the brig was off Ostrov Sosnovets, just off
the western shore and by 8 pm on the 18
th
, just off Ostrov Morzhovets, just northeast of the
north end of the
gorlo. The northern end of the g
orlo is strewn with shoals, many unmarked at
that time. The maps which Litke possessed showed one shoal with a depth of (2 fathoms – 3.66
m), 19 miles east of Mys Orlovskiy on the west shore and another (1½ fathoms – 2.7 m) 20
miles west of Konushin Nos on the east shore. He was confident of being able to thread
between them, but in the early hours of the 19
th
it fell calm and the brig drifted gently aground,
in a depth of only 3.05 m forward. A kedge anchor was led out aft, in hopes of warping off but
unfortunately the tide was dropping fast. A fresh northeasterly wind had now risen and the brig
started to roll over on its port side. Litke tried to prop it up using spare yards and masts but
they all snapped in succession and the vessel heeled over quite alarmingly. But then, quite
incomprehensibly the brig suddenly swung upright again. Low water came at about 8 am –
presenting quite a remarkable scene. Novaya Zemlya was sitting high and dry on a sand-bar
measuring about 1 km by 500 m, with no land in sight in any direction. With nothing that could
be done for the moment Litke gave the crew permission to enjoy this unique situation, ‘Around
the brig men strolled in various attitudes, some examining the exposed hull; others (officers)
were making astronomical observations or were strolling unconcernedly around the sandy
expanse, collecting souvenirs of shells or pebbles – altogether it comprised an unusual
picture’.
21
This situation must have been extremely embarrassing and worrying for Litke – at the
start of his first voyage with his first independent command. But worse was to come. The
northeast wind was strengthening again, raising large waves; meanwhile the tide was rising
steadily and soon the waves were breaking against the ship. In the meantime Litke had led out
a second kedge anchor astern. With the impact of the waves the brig started pounding. At 11.45
by which time the depth aft was 3.73 m although the bows were still aground, by hauling in on
both kedge anchors the crew managed to refloat their vessel.
22
Since the sea was by now too
rough to send a boat to recover the kedge anchors, and since he was reluctant to take his vessel
back close to the shoal, Litke decided to abandon the kedge anchors, although this meant that
he was left with only one, and a small one at that.
By 2 am on the 20
th
the brig was under way, heading west. It was approaching the coast
by 8.30, but in thick fog; the fog had lifted by 10 o’clock, however, and Litke was able to take
bearings on the coast near the mouth of the Ponoy River. By evening he had beat north to Mys
Orlovskiy, on which a lighthouse was under construction. Continuing north, by 9 pm on the
21
ibid, p. 118.
22
ibid, p. 119.
8
21st the brig was off Mys Gorodetskiy, from which Litke took his departure, heading north
across the Barents Sea.
In fog, rain, drizzle and headwinds, progress across the Barents Sea was slow and far
from comfortable. Moreover on the 26
th
it was discovered that out of four barrels of potatoes
the contents of three were rotten and had to be discarded. When the fog cleared on the 30
th
Litke was able to shoot the sun at noon; the brig’s position was 70°52′N; 46°43′E. At 4 am on
the 31
st
the air temperature suddenly dropped to +1.5°C and a whole fleet of ice floes was
sighted; shortly afterwards a continuous belt of ice was visible extending from NW to NE.
Then the fog closed in again.
Litke swung south, aiming to try to reach the coast of Novaya Zemlya as far south as
possible. He continued to work his way south, skirting the ice edge and probing it repeatedly to
try to reach land. His noon latitude on 5 August was 70°56′N but, frustratingly, on the 10
th
it
was 71°8′N, i.e. a current had carried the brig back north by 12 minutes, i.e. 12 nautical miles
(22.2 km) despite sailing steadily south. Finally, at 7 pm on the 10
th
land was sighted from the
crosstrees and then from the deck, bearing NEbN. From his map Litke guessed that it was the
coast of Ostrov Mezhdusharskiy, but he was unable to spot the entrance to Kostin Shar.
Repeated attempts to close with the land were blocked by ice, however. By noon on the 14
th
land was still in sight to the NE and ENE, but Litke was unable to identify it, and unable to get
closer because of ice. Concluding that the coast of Novaya Zemlya from about 70° to 72°N was
completely inaccessible due to offlying ice:
For these reasons I decided not to linger any longer off the south coast but to hasten to
the coasts lying further north, although it seemed contrary to probability and the natural
order of things, that they would be freer of ice than the former.
23
During the 14
th
several herds of walrus were seen resting on floes, with 10-15 animals in each
herd. Several shots were fired at one herd, but after two shots they paid no further attention,
although presumably at least one animal had been hit. On the 15
th
a bear was seen swimming
among the ice near the ship, over 32 km from land. Litke remarked ‘Having fallen asleep on
the ice these animals are sometimes carried out a great distance from shore’.
24
He was
evidently unaware that the sea ice is the natural habitat of this species, as is indicated by its
Latin name, Ursus maritimus.
Litke’s observed latitude at noon on the 18
th
was 71°53′N, and on the 22
nd
72°24′N, i.e.
off the prominent cape of Mys Britvin, according to Rozmyslov’s map.
25
Soon after noon on
the 22
nd
land was sighted, running SSW to NNE, and at its northern tip a conspicuous mountain
with a domed, snow-covered summit, later name Gora Pervousmotrennaya (First-observed). In
fact this mountain lies some 40 km almost due northeast of Mys Britvin, which would suggest
that Rozmyslov’s reported latitude was significantly too far south. Remarkably, the sea at this
point appeared to be completely free of ice. Baffled as to his exact location Litke consulted one
of his men, Smirennikov, who had twice been to Matochkin Shar previously, by karbas. He,
however, could not recognize the coast in sight, but felt that they had overshot the entrance to
Matochkin Shar; in fact it still lay about 50 km to the northeast.
23
ibid, p. 129.
24
ibid.
25
ibid, p. 131.