It begins as a mission of mercy. Four and a half years after the disappearance of Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin and his two ships, HMS Investigator sets sail in search of them. Investigator's officers and crew soon find themselves trapped in their own ordeal, facing starvation, madness, and death. In the face of catastrophe, a desperate rescue plan is made to send away the weakest men to meet their fate on the ice. If only they can save themselves, they will bring back news of perhaps the greatest maritime achievement of the age: their discovery of the elusive Northwest Passage between Europe and the Orient. The Investigators are the first Europeans to contact the Inuit, and the first to record observations of the local wildlife. In a narrative rich with insight and grace, Brian Payton reconstructs the final voyage of the Investigator, drawing on long-forgotten journals, transcripts, and correspondence. Along the way, he vividly evokes an Arctic wilderness we now stand to lose.