We could not allow the load of ice to grow beyond a certain point, and in turns we crawled about the decking forward, chipping and picking at it with the available tools.
When daylight came on the morning of the sixth day out we saw and felt that the 'James Caird' had lost her resiliency.

She was not rising to the oncoming seas.

The weight of the ice that had formed in her and upon her during the night was having its effect, and she was becoming more like a log than a boat.

The situation called for immediate action.

We first broke away the spare oars, which were encased in ice and frozen to the sides of the boat, and threw them overboard.