This contribution focusses on Gerrit de Veer’s account of Willem Barentsz’ voyages to the Arctic Ocean 1494–1597 (de Veer 2010 [1876]). It investigates the representation of early modern travels on northern waters, on travels undertaken in order to gain wealth and glory but that most commonly were characterized by extreme physical and mental strain. De Veer’s travelogue presents a microcosm of suffering, of men who struggle to stay alive or who simply give up when life loses its meaning. Several passages in the text differ from the purely descriptive parts that were common in early modern travelogues; by adding illustrative passages of how the men feel in certain situations and how they deal with everyday tasks while trapped in the ice, the narration expands and replaces the measurable and observable by that which is experienced. It is the aim of this contribution to cast light on those aesthetic aspects of travel writing by reading de Veer’s text as a cultural response to humanitarian crisis.