Lady Franklin Bay - Geography

Geography

Lady Franklin Bay is in a generally northeast to southwest direction, and as such it spreads inland about 70 mi (110 km) from Hall Basin. The main bay contains one noted branch to the northwest known as Discovery Bay,and the interior lengths of Lady Franklin Bay extending southwest are sometimes shown on maps as Archer Fjord.

The landscape surrounding Lady Franklin Bay is generally barren rocks, with some very shallow glacial till held in place with frost and permafrost. At this location, about 1,100 mi (1,800 km) above the Arctic Circle, sunlight is limited to perhaps three months of a year, snowfall is light, and water in the bay is icebound from year to year, with just chance openings allowing only difficult navigation. The off-and-on icebound conditions are well-known to exist in the sea during peak summer times as far as 200 miles (320 km) south of the Bay entrance. However, the glaciers and icecaps of Ellesmere Island have not been known to inundate Lady Franklin Bay.

The main reach of this bay can be approached by ship if ice flow conditions allow, via Baffin Bay, to Smith Sound, to Kane Basin, through Kennedy Channel, and thus through Hall Basin to the entrance of the Bay. The historically favored point for beginning such Polar trips has been St. Johns, Newfoundland.