[Sidenote:  Frobishers Streites choked vp with yce.] The second day of Iuly early in the morning we had sight of the Queenes Foreland, and bare in with the land all the day, and passing thorow great quantity of yce, by night were entred somewhat within the Streites, perceiuing no way to passe further in, the whole place being frozen ouer from the one side to the other, and as it were with many walles, mountaines, and bulwarks of yce, choked vp the passage, and denied vs entrance.  And yet doe I not thinke that this passage or Sea hereabouts is frozen ouer at any time of the yere:  albeit it seemed so vnto vs by the abundance of yce gathered together, which occupied the whole place.  But I doe rather suppose these yce to bee bred in the hollow soundes and freshets thereabouts:  which by the heate of the Summers Sunne, being loosed, doe emptie themselues with the ebbes into the sea, and so gather in great abundance there together.

And to speake somewhat here of the ancient opinion of the frozen sea in these parts:  I doe thinke it to be rather a bare coniecture of men, then that euer any man hath made experience of any such Sea.  And that which they speake of Mare glaciale, may be truely thought to be spoken of these parts:  [Sidenote:  Salt water cannot freeze.] for this may well be called indeede the ycie sea, but not the frozen sea, for no sea consisting of salt water can be frozen, as I haue more at large herein shewed my opinion in my second voyage, for it seemeth impossible for any sea to bee frozen, which hath his course of ebbing and flowing, especially in those places where the tides doe ebbe and flowe aboue ten fadome.  And also all these aforesayd yce, which we sometime met a hundredth mile from lande, being gathered out of the salt Sea, are in taste fresh, and being dissolued, become sweete and holesome water.[83]

And the cause why this yere we haue bene more combred with yce then at other times before, may be by reason of the Easterly and Southerly winds, which brought vs more timely thither now then we looked for.  Which blowing from the sea directly vponn the place of our Streites, hath kept in the yce, and not suffered them to be caried out by the ebbe to the maine sea, where they would in more short time have bene dissolued.  And all these fleeting yce are not only so dangerous in that they wind and gather so neere together, that a man may passe sometimes tenne or twelue miles as it were vpon one firme Island of yce:  but also for that they open and shut together againe in such sort with the tides and sea-gate, that whilst one ship followeth the other with full sayles, the yce which was open vnto the foremost will ioyne and close together before the latter can come to follow the first, whereby many times our shippes were brought into great danger, as being not able so sodainely to take in our sayles or stay the swift way of our ships.