Lyon, G. F. (George Francis), 1795-1832

Sir William Parry's second expedition to the Arctic began in May 1821, on board the HMS Fury and HMS Hecla. Parry and his crew departed from England intending to pass through Hudson Strait and explore the territory to the west of Baffin Island in search of the Northwest Passage. Passing north of Southampton Island, they entered Repulse Bay, then looked for a passage in the bays and inlets west of Foxe Basin, but found nothing. Forced to stop, they wintered close to the coast. The arrival of a group of Inuit in February created interest for the crew and led to a friendly relationship. The Inuit told Parry of a strait that led to the sea in the west. When he was able to sail again, Parry got to the strait but found it blocked by ice. He crossed it on foot and got as far as the Gulf of Boothia. He named this strait "Fury and Hecla", after his ships. Hoping to cross it with his ships the following year, he spent another winter in the far north, close to Igloolik Island. But the ice remained and, the following summer, Parry put an end to this expedition, returning to England in October 1823. This voyage uncovered a little known sector of the Arctic and provided them with a wealth of information on the culture and way of life of the Inuit. Parry's account of the expedition was published in 1824 as Journal of a second voyage for the discovery of a North-west Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific. G.F. Lyon's diary of the expedition was also published, under the title The private journal of Captain G.F. Lyon, of H.M.S. Hecla, during the recent voyage of discovery under Captain Parry.