the flat surface of the Barrier.  Joyce thought that a big crevasse had caved in.  “We took some photographs,” wrote Joyce.  “It is a really extraordinary fill-in of ice, with cliffs of blue ice about 70 feet high, and heavily crevassed, with overhanging snow-curtains.  One could easily walk over the edge coming from the north in thick weather.”  Another bergstrom, with crevassed ice around it, was encountered on the 11th.  Joyce reached the Bluff depot on the evening of the 14th and found that he could leave 624 lbs. of provisions.  Mackintosh had been there several days earlier and had left 188 lbs. of stores.

Joyce made Hut Point again on November 20 after an adventurous day.  The surface was good in the morning and he pushed forward rapidly.  About 10.30 a.m. the party encountered heavy pressure-ice with crevasses, and had many narrow escapes.  “After lunch we came on four crevasses quite suddenly.  Jack fell through.  We could not alter course, or else we should have been steering among them, so galloped right across.  We were going so fast that the dogs that went through were jerked out.  It came on very thick at 2 p.m.  Every bit of land was obscured, and it was hard to steer.  Decided to make for Hut Point, and arrived at 6.30 p.m., after doing twenty-two miles, a very good performance.  I had a bad attack of snow-blindness and had to use cocaine.  Hayward also had a bad time.  I was laid up and had to keep my eyes bandaged for three days.  Hayward, too.”  The two men were about again on November 24, and the party started south on its third journey to the Bluff on the 25th.  Mackintosh was some distance ahead, but the two parties met on the 28th and had some discussion as to plans.  Mackintosh was proceeding to the Bluff depot with the intention of taking a load of stores to the depot placed on lat. 80° S. in the first season’s sledging.  Joyce, after depositing his third load at the Bluff, would return to Hut Point for a fourth and last load, and the parties would then join forces for the journey southward to Mount Hope.

Joyce left 729 lbs. at the Bluff depot on December 2, reached Hut Point on December 7, and, after allowing dogs and men a good rest, he moved southward again on December 13.  This proved to be the worst journey the party had made.  The men had much trouble with crevasses, and they were held up by blizzards on December 16, 18, 19, 22, 23, 26, and 27.  They spent Christmas Day struggling through soft snow against an icy wind and drift.  The party reached the Bluff depot on December 28, and found that Mackintosh, who had been much delayed by the bad weather, had gone south two days earlier on his way to the 80° S. depot.  He had not made much progress and his camp was in sight.  He had left instructions for Joyce to follow him.  The Bluff depot was now well stocked.  Between 2800 and 2900 lbs. of provisions had been dragged to the depot for the use of parties working to the south of this point.  This quantity was in addition to stores placed there earlier in the year.