ii!!
W h e n clear of T e r ra del Fiiego, I should recommend s tre tc h in g to the westward as
far as th e meridian o f 82" or 83», about the p arallel o f Cape P illar, before shaping a course alono-
th e coast o f Chili. ®
From Chili to tlie A tia iitic ships sliould pass outside Massa F u e ra , and if opportunity
offered, g e t as far we st as 85" or 90», iu order th a t the south-westerly winds, which
th e y will afterwards be ce rtain to meet, and gen e rally blowing strong, may be tu rn ed to
advantage. I would even recommend k eep in g to th e westward o f 83“ u n tii past the parallel
o f 53° S. T h is pre caution appears to be the only one necessary, as the remainder o f the
passage from th a t situa tion is in gene ral very easily performed. W ith regard to passing inside
o r outside th e F alkland Islands, 1 th in k th e la tte r preferable, especially in win te r,°a s the
winds sometimes hang in the ea ste rn q u a rte r a t th a t period, and are ap t to ru n a ’ship in
with th e R iv e r Pla te.
l r o m the h alk lan d Islaiuls to Rio Jan e iro the M-inds are very uncertain. Ships may,
however, g en e ra lly reckon upon en c ountering a t lea st one pampero between 33" and 37» N.»,
a n d on mee tin g with northerly or north-north-ea ste rly winds, when within two hundred or
th re e hundred miles o f Cape F rio . I t is b etter, in tbe la tte r instance, to stand out to th e eastward
in preference to the other tack, as it will almost always happen th a t th ey will th ere meet
an ea ste rly wind to carry them up to th e Cape. I t has been found very difficult to g e t up
n ea r th e shore from Ila Gran d e and S t. Cath erin e’s.
PASSAGE FROM VALPARAISO TO OTAHEITE.
N ovember U h to Ma rc h \8 th .
T h is was made in th e summer, when th e trade-wind extends fu rth e r south than a t
other times o f the y e a r; otherwise it would be advisable to g e t in to a low'er latitu d e than th a t
in which our course was directed. T h e winds with us were very variable, b u t always fair.
I know o f nothing worthy of rema rk h ere exc ept the cu rren t, which, on our arrival a t
Elizabe th Island, was found to have set th e ship th ree h undred and forty-nine miles to the
westward in th irty -n in e days, or a t th e ra te o f 8-95 miles p er day.
O u r route from Elizabeth Islan d was directed to each of the islands ly in g between It
an d O tah e ite , and we afterwards met with too many interru p tio n s to estimate tlie ra te of the
c u rre n ts ; b u t a t this time of the y ea r in particular, there does not appear to be miicli in any
d irection. A t other times, however, I am told tliat th ere is g re a t difficulty in g e ttin g to windward.
In this sea the westerly monsoon, which sometimes extends as far as these islands,
checks th e re g u la rity of the trade-wind, and it is not uncommon a t such times to meet a
we ste rly wind with heavy ra in . T liis is liable to occur from De cem b e r to F eb ru a ry or
March. T h e trade-wiiid in this route in gene ral hangs more to the eastward than the 8. E.
trade in th e Atlantic.
*■ These winds appear to be of frequent occurrence off the lliver Plate; they are generally preceded by
strongN.W. ■winds, and a low altitude of the barometer. Care is necessary to avoid being taken aback by the
wind shifting suddenly to the S. W., which it sometimes does after a heavy squall. In deep laden ships it
would be prudent to lie to with the head to the N. E., as they would then bow the sea, wliich often runs very
high on the sliift of wind; whereas, on the other tack they would have their stern exposed to it
T
N A U T IC A L R EM A R K S .
REMARKS ON THE PASSAGE FROM TJIE SOCIETY GROUP TO THE SANDWICH ISLANDS.
A p r il lo M a y \Htlu
In making the passage from the Society Group to the Sandwich Islands, th e time of the
y e a r should be considered. Between tlie months of Ap ril and Oc tobe r the trade -wind is
said to h an g more to the eastward than a t other times, and is con.sequently favourable to the
passage; b u t it is advisable even a t th a t season to cross the line w'cil to w iidw a rd , i f possible
between 145” and 148°, as all th a t is gained in th a t direction wall u ltimately be of use. B e tween
De cembe r and Ap ril a more n o rth erly trade may be expected, and consequently easting
is of more consequence. T h e S. E . trad e is not as reg u la r as th a t to th e northward of
th e equator. I t gen e rally blows a t E . or E . N. E ., and when th e sun is to the southward
o f th e equator it is sometimes in terru p te d by N. and N. W . winds. T h e s e should be
taken advantage of in order to g e t to the eastw’ard, even a t th e expense o f a few miles of
latitude, u n til well advanced to th e northward, and un til the N. E . trade is fallen in with.
T h e Blossom left Otahe ite on th e 26th of April, 1826, and crossed th e equa tor on the
9 th o f May in long. 150« 01' W . From th e time o f sailing th e winds were lig h t from tbe
E . and E . N. E , b u t sometimes veered to N. E . and N . ; with these we tacked an d endeavoured
to gain easting, b u t did n o t succeed as we washed. W e k e p t th e ea ste rly wind to
th e lat. o f 4" N. and long. 149° 47' W ., when the N . E. trade m e t us ; it commenced with hard
squalls and ra in a t N. E . by E ., a t wdiich point it continued with scarcely an y v a ria tio n ; and
W'e had as much wind as would allow us to ca rry conveniently courses an d double-reefed topsails,
and latterly topgallant-sails, un til we made Owyhee on the 18th, about forty miles due
west of us. AVe now fe lt th e advantage of being w"ell to windward, and k eep in g th e same
distance in order to ensure th e sea breeze th roughout the n ig h t, made Mowee the following
morning, and the same n ig h t arrived close off Diamond P o in t (AVoahoo).
T h e cu rren t from Otahe ite to the equator set to th e AV. N. W . from ten to th irty miles
p e r day, a t an average ra te of sixteen and a h a lf miles p e r day. From th e eq u a to r to the
fourth degree N., wdieiiwe m e t the N. E . trade, it ra n N. N. E . fifteen to tw'enty-three miles
a day, ave raging e ighteen miles a day, afte r which it ceased entire ly. O n onr arrival off
Ow-ybee th e cu rren t from leaving Otah e ite had set N. 54° W . 164 miles, or 7.1 one mile
per day.
REMARKS ON THE PASSAGE FROM THE SANDWICH ISLANDS TO AWATSKA BAY", KAMSCHATKA.
J u n e I i i to 2Sth.
T h is passage was very favourable, both in regard to w'ind and weather, and occupied
only twenty-seven days. On q u ittin g Oneehow, instead o f keeping within the tropics for the
advantage o f a fresh trade-wind, I endeavoured to pursue the SOth or S ls t parallel down to
191° or 192° W .; and then to avail myself of the w’esterly winds, said to prevail there , in
order to g e t to th e northward.
Q u ittin g Oneehow", I passed to th e north-castw'ard o f B ird Island, and the chain o f reefs
situa ted near th e F ren c h F rig ate's Bank, and then bore aw"ayw"est. AA'ekept th e trade-wdnd
with b u t one interruption, u n til in latitude 29° 46' N . and longitude ISS" AV., w'hich was on
th e 10th day o f our d e p a rtu re ; here the wind veered to the S. and S. S. AV., and continued
4 M 2