below zero.
The last day's journey before we reached shore began at 5 P.M.in that same brilliant, clear, calm weather.

A short distance from camp we encountered an impracticable lead which the captain's trail crossed.

In one fruitless attempt to pass it we got one of our teams in the water.
Ultimately the lead swung to the east, and we found the captain's trail, took it up, and worked around the end of the lead.
[Illustration: APPROACHING THE PEAKS OF CAPE COLUMBIA OVER THE SURFACE OF THE "GLACIAL FRINGE"] Only a short distance further on we got our first glimpse of the edge of the glacial fringe ahead of us and stopped our march long enough to take some photographs.

Before midnight that night the whole party had reached the glacial fringe of Grant Land.

We had now left the ice of the polar sea and were practically on _terra firma_.