At 6.20 a.m. we were again in the saddle, and steered south-east across very rocky hills till 8.0, when we entered a fine valley with low hills of limestone and trap, well grassed and thinly wooded with box-trees and acacia; at 10.0 ascended a rough sandstone range with white-gum, acacia, and triodia; at 11.0 again descended into a valley bounded by sandstone cliffs on the northern side, and camped at a fine pool of water in a small creek at 12.5. Several trees near this pool of water had been marked by the blacks, the bark having been removed, the wood was painted yellow with brown spots at regular intervals, and vertical waved lines in black. It is evident from the outline of the hills that we are travelling on the edge of the tableland of Northern Australia, and this accounts for the small size of the watercourses, while the abrupt and broken nature of the hills has caused the rocks to form channels of sufficient size to retain water throughout the year, while the same disruption of the strata has exposed the limestone and trap-rock, has caused fertile patches of country, and thus enabled us to traverse a country which is otherwise barren and inhospitable in the extreme, our chief difficulty being the rocky character of the country, which can only be traversed with well-shod horses. It is possible that some small tracts of available country may exist between our track and the shores of the Gulf of Carpentaria, but to the south there is little to expect besides a barren sandy desert, as on every occasion that the tableland has been ascended, nothing but sandy worthless country has been encountered.
Latitude by Vega 17 degrees 17 minutes 56 seconds.
KANGAROO ABUNDANT.
15th August.
Resumed our journey at 6.35 a.m., and followed a large creek up to the south-east, and at 7.45 crossed it below a fine pool of water, above which the creek came from the south-west, in which direction the country consisted of low sandstone hills of barren aspect. We then crossed a few miles of sandy tableland and descended at 10.20 into a deep valley trending east. This brought us to a small creek with good water, on which we encamped at 11.30. The country is very poor and rocky, thinly wooded with box-trees in valleys and white-gum on the hills, where the grass is replaced by triodia. Kangaroos are more numerous than in any other part of Australia yet visited by the Expedition, and as many as twelve or fifteen have been seen each day. Early in the morning a light breeze from west; at 7.0 a fresh breeze from south-east which lasted till 4 p.m., and at sunset a light air from west.
Latitude by Vega 17 degrees 23 minutes 26 seconds.
16th August.
At 6.30 a.m. steered south-east and followed the valley of the creek till 8.0, when it turned to the north-east; continuing our course along the valley south-east, though there was now no watercourse in it, at 11.20 came on a creek in a trap valley trending north-east, across the larger valley, and crossing a ridge of sandstone and basalt, came on a large creek trending north, in which were long pools of water fifteen to twenty yards wide. Following this creek upwards to the south-south-east, as the valley widened the water ceased for some distance, but at 12.40 p.m. came on a pool supplied by a spring at the upper end. Here we encamped, as there was some good grass. The rock which formed the hills on this day's journey is a hard red-brown sandstone, the lower part thin-bedded, beneath which trap or basalt has been forced between the strata, and was exposed in the deep valleys excavated by the creeks. The view at times extended twenty miles to the north-east over a level depressed country, beyond which were low ridges of hills. The country generally was poor and stony, thinly wooded with eucalypti and acacia, except when the basalt was exposed, and by its decomposition formed a richer soil, well covered with grass and very open in character.
17th August (Sunday).
Grass and water being sufficient, remained at the camp to rest the horses, though, as several had to be shod, it was not altogether a day of rest to the party. A fresh breeze from south-east cooled the air at noon, but died away towards sunset.