The land, except in some places close to the sea, is all of a considerable height, and hilly; but Mount Edgecumbe far out-tops all the other hills. It was wholly covered with snow; as were also all the other elevated hills; but the lower ones, and the flatter spots, bordering upon the sea, were free from it, and covered with wood.
As we advanced to the north, we found the coast from Cape Edgecumbe to trend to north and north easterly for six or seven leagues, and there form a large bay. In the entrance of that bay are some islands; for which reason I named it the _Bay of Islands_. It lies in the latitude of 57° 20ʹ[55]; and seemed to branch into several arms, one of which turned to the south, and may probably communicate with the bay on the east side of Cape Edgecumbe, and make the land of that cape an island. At eight o’clock in the evening, the cape bore south-east half south; the Bay of Islands N. 53° E.; and another inlet, before which are also some islands, bore N. 52° E., five leagues distant. I continued to steer N. N. W., half W., and N. W. by W., as the coast trended, with a fine gale at N. E., and clear weather.
At half an hour past four in the morning, on the 3d, Mount Edgecumbe bore S. 54° E.; a large inlet, N. 50° E., distant six leagues; and the most advanced point of the land, to the N. W., lying under a very high peaked mountain, which obtained the name of _Mount Fair Weather_, bore N. 32° W. The inlet was named _Cross Sound_, as being first seen on that day, so marked in our calendar. It appeared to branch in several arms, the largest of which turned to the northward. The south east point of this sound is a high promontory, which obtained the name of _Cross Cape_. It lies in the latitude of 57° 57ʹ, and its longitude is 223° 21ʹ. At noon it bore south-east; and the point, under the peaked mountain, which was called _Cape Fair Weather_, north by west a quarter west, distant thirteen leagues. Our latitude at this time was 58° 17ʹ, and our longitude 222° 14ʹ; and we were distant from the shore three or four leagues. In this situation we found the variation of the compass to be from 24° 11ʹ to 26° 11ʹ E.
Here the north-east wind left us, and was succeeded by light breezes from the north-west, which lasted for several days. I stood to the south-west, and west-south-west, till eight o’clock the next morning, when we tacked and stood toward the shore. At noon the latitude was 58° 22ʹ, and the longitude 220° 45ʹ. Mount Fair Weather, the peaked mountain over the cape of the same name, bore N., 63° E.; the shore under it twelve leagues distant. This mountain, which lies in the latitude of 58° 52ʹ, and in the longitude of 222°, and five leagues inland, is the highest of a chain, or rather a ridge of mountains, that rise at the north-west entrance of Cross Sound, and extend to the north-west in a parallel direction with the coast. These mountains were wholly covered with snow, from the highest summit down to the sea-coast, some few places excepted, where we could perceive trees rising, as it were, out of the sea; and which, therefore, we supposed grew on low land, or on islands bordering upon the shore of the continent[56]. At five in the afternoon, our latitude being then 58° 53ʹ, and our longitude 220° 52ʹ; the summit of an elevated mountain appeared above the horizon, being N. 26° W.; and, as was afterward found, forty leagues distant. We supposed it to be Beering’s Mount St. Elias; and it stands by that name in our chart.