Editing John Rae (explorer) (section)

=== Gulf of Boothia ===
[[File:Boothia and melville peninsula 1.PNG|thumb|upright=1.3|In 1846 and 1847 Rae explored the [[Gulf of Boothia]], which lies between the [[Boothia Peninsula]] and the [[Melville Peninsula]].]]
From 1836 to 1839, the Scottish explorer and fur trader [[Thomas Simpson (explorer)|Thomas Simpson]] sailed along much of the northern coast of Canada. His cousin [[George Simpson (HBC administrator)|Sir George Simpson]] proposed to link the furthest-east point Thomas Simpson had reached by sending an overland expedition from Hudson Bay. Rae was chosen because of his well-known skill in overland travel, but he first had to travel to the [[Red River Colony]] to learn the art of [[surveying]]. On {{nowrap|20 August 1844}}, Rae left [[Moose Factory]], went up the [[Missinaibi River]], and took the usual [[Canadian canoe routes|voyageur route]] west.

When he reached the Red River Colony on 9 October, he found his instructor seriously ill. After the man died, Rae headed for [[Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario|Sault Ste. Marie]] in [[Ontario]] to find another instructor. The two-month, {{convert|1200|mi|adj=on}} winter journey was by [[dog sled]] along the north shore of [[Lake Superior]]. From there, Sir George told him to go to [[Toronto]] to study under [[John Henry Lefroy]] at the [[Toronto Magnetic and Meteorological Observatory]]. Returning from Toronto, he received final instructions at Sault Ste. Marie.

Rae finally departed on the voyage to Simpson's furthest-east on 5 August 1845, taking the usual [[voyageurs|voyageur]] route via [[Lake Winnipeg]] and reaching [[York Factory]] on 8 October, where he wintered. On 12 June 1846, he headed north in two {{convert|22|ft|adj=on}} boats and reached [[Naujaat|Repulse Bay]] at the south end of the [[Melville Peninsula]] in July. The local [[Inuit]] told him that there was salt water to the northwest, so he chose this as his base. On his first journey, which began on 26 July, he dragged one of his boats {{convert|40|mi}} northwest to [[Committee Bay]] in the south of the [[Gulf of Boothia]]. Here he learned from the Inuit that the Gulf of Boothia was a bay and that he would have to cross land to reach Simpson's furthest-east.

In 1830, [[John Ross (Royal Navy officer)|John Ross]] had also been told that the Gulf of Boothia was a bay.<ref>Hayes, map 129.</ref> He sailed partway up the east coast of the Gulf, but soon turned back because he needed to make preparations for winter. He became one of the first Europeans to winter in the high [[Arctic]] without the aid of a [[depot ship]]. By December he had learned how to build [[igloo]]s, which he later found warmer than European tents.

Rae's second journey began on 5 April 1847. He crossed to Committee Bay, travelled up its west coast for four days and then headed west across the base of the [[Simpson Peninsula]] to [[Pelly Bay]]. He went north and from a hill thought he could see [[Lord Mayor Bay]], on the west side of the Gulf of Boothia, where [[John Ross (Royal Navy officer)|John Ross]] had been trapped in ice from 1829 to 1833. He circled much of the coast of the Simpson Peninsula and returned to Repulse Bay. His third journey began on 13 May 1847. He crossed from Repulse Bay to Committee Bay and went up the east coast hoping to reach the [[Fury and Hecla Strait]], which [[William Parry (explorer)|William Edward Parry]]'s men had seen in 1822. The weather was bad and they began to run short of food. On 28 May, Rae turned back at a place he called Cape Crozier which he thought was about {{convert|25|mi}} south of the strait.

He left Repulse Bay on 12 August, when the ice broke up, and reached York Factory on 6 September 1847. He soon left for England and Scotland. Although he had not reached Simpson's furthest-east, he had reduced the gap to less than {{convert|100|mi}}.<ref>McGoogan 2002, §§3–4.</ref>