Cape Columbia is the northernmost point of land of Canada, located on Ellesmere Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut.

The approximately 2 m (6 ft 7 in) thick pack ice of the Arctic Ocean moves several hundred metres per day from east to west.

From Cape Columbia his party planned to strike straight north over the ice of the Arctic Ocean.

His winter camp and ship the SS Roosevelt were situated some 140 km (90 mi) southeast, at Cape Sheridan near Alert.

While some polar historians believe that Peary honestly thought he had reached the pole, others have suggested that he was guilty of deliberately exaggerating his accomplishments.