The reduction of weight relieved the boat to some extent, and vigorous chipping and scraping did more.
We had to be very careful not to put axe or knife through the frozen canvas of the decking as we crawled over it, but gradually we got rid of a lot of ice.

The 'James Caird' lifted to the endless waves as though she lived again.
About 11 a.m.the boat suddenly fell off into the trough of the sea.
The painter had parted and the sea-anchor had gone.

This was serious.
The 'James Caird' went away to leeward, and we had no chance at all of recovering the anchor and our valuable rope, which had been our only means of keeping the boat's head up to the seas without the risk of hoisting sail in a gale.

Now we had to set the sail and trust to its holding.

While the 'James Caird' rolled heavily in the trough, we beat the frozen canvas until the bulk of the ice had cracked off it and then hoisted it.