On 17 May he signed a declaration stating that "I am leaving the McMurdo base to you", and that he would seek to land further east, either at the Barrier Inlet visited briefly during the Discovery Expedition, or at King Edward VII Land.
Den 17. maj undertegnede han en erklæring, som sagde, at "jeg overlader McMurdobasen til dig", og at han skulle søge land længere mod øst, enten ved Hvalbugten, som blev aflagt et kort besøg under "Discovery"-ekspeditionen, eller ved King Edward VII Land.