North Cape via Hammerfest, Vadsø, and into the White Sea, arriving at the mines on Rusinga Creek on June 23. Helms was joined the following day by two Russian officials who accompanied him on the remainder of the trip. The mines on Rusinga Creek proved difficult to access due to the steep cliffs and lack of anchorage; however Helms dispatched a team of miners to establish a base and begin prospecting, while he went for supplies at Arkhangelsk in the Vestfold on June 29. After resupplying at Arkhangelsk, Helms attempted to return to Rusinga on July 6, but inclement weather forced the ship west and they decided to head instead for Bear Island. During this journey the Vestfold ran aground and narrowly escaped disaster, but by unloading their entire cargo of mining timbers, and most of their coal, the crew was able to float the ship free, and reached Bear Island on July 8. They located and began pumping the flooded mines to determine their extent. Helms then sailed to Arkhangelsk on July 13 to replenish coal, and returned to Rusinga creek in the Vestfold. The Rusinga party had made progress investigating the copper mines, which showed promise, but Helms felt it did not justify the risk of continued activity on the rugged coast. He decided to move the men and supplies to Bear Island, including 30 cases of dynamite which they towed in a small boat, arriving at Bear Island on July 19. They investigated three silver mines on Bear Island, and were able to pump them dry and continue excavating. They found the 150 year old submerged timbers to still be sound, and the largest mine was 153 feet deep with eight drifts. Although it was clear much ore had been taken from these mines, they failed to find any promising new veins. Overall, Helms felt that reopening the mines would not be profitable and considered the effort unsuccessful. On August 27, the team departed Bear Island for Arkhangelsk, and home. The Vestfold sailed home to Christiania, and Helms resolved to return home to London via St. Petersburg. He traveled by steamboat down the Dvina River, disembarking at the Siya Monastery; travelled overland west to Vytegra on the shore of Lake Ladoga; and by steamship across Lakes Ladoga and Onega to St. Petersburg, where he arrived September 9. He later recounted this journey in Pioneering in the Far