Somers and Newport, too, knew there was no way to bring the Sea Venture to anchor. Her hull was so open, her planks so sprung, that the ship would sink like one of the cannon they'd already jettisoned if they tried to anchor in deep water. Their only hope was to run on until the battered ship took the ground. Closer and closer to land the vessel inched. By this time, Somers and the others could see a beach ahead. Sir George may have wanted to try to run the ship up on the beach. He surely wanted to get as close to terra firma as possible. For a few moments, as the ship wallowed toward land, the old salt may have thought he would be able to drive the ship high and dry on the beach. Suddenly, though, Somers would have seen white water ahead and probably heard the sound of waves breaking on what he would have instantly known was a reef. Even if the old admiral had wanted to, there was no way to turn the vessel--barely time, in fact, to shout a warning to the passengers and crew on the deck. Then the Sea Venture struck, driving into a V-shaped opening in the reef that surrounds the Bermudas like a ship-killing necklace. She plunged like a wedge between massive coral heads that tore at the vessel's hull like the claws of a huge beast.