23rd June.
As to pass the eastern end of the range appeared likely to take us too
much off our course, we struck for what appeared to be a break in the
hills about seven miles to the south-west. The first five miles was
across an open grassy plain, at times subject to inundation, which
brought us to the bank of a fine river, containing permanent reaches of
fresh water, lined with canes, the channel generally being from 100 to
200 yards wide, with a depth of forty feet; it was now barely running,
but it was quite evident that it was too large for either the Alma or
Edmund, and its bed must be at least 200 feet below the level of those
rivers. We, however, determined to follow it so long as it ran to the
south of west, which it did until it came in contact with the range
observed yesterday, when it altered its course to west-north-west, and
appeared to continue that direction for many miles, probably until joined
by the Hardey, when, in all likelihood, it continues its course direct to
Exmouth Gulf. Anxious, as I naturally was, to continue the examination of
this promising river, time and the condition of our horses' feet did not
permit us to do so with advantage. Naming it the Ashburton, after the
noble President of the Royal Geographical Society, we quitted its verdant
banks, and took a south course up a stony ravine, which led us into the
heart of the range, where we soon became involved amongst steep rocky
ridges of sharp slaty schist, which very quickly deprived the horses of
many of their remaining shoes, and retarded our progress so much that by
nightfall we found ourselves to be in only latitude 23 degrees 28 minutes
15 seconds, hemmed in on all sides by rugged country yielding little else
but small acacia-trees and triodia. A little water and grass was,
however, obtained in the bed of a stream tributary to the Ashburton. The
summits of the hills passed over during the day had been seen from the
Lyons River in 1858, and were now named the Capricorn Range. Camp 28.
24th June.
A rather rough ride of four hours to the south-east brought us to a
watercourse sixty yards wide, trending to the north-north-east, in which
we found pools of water lined with reeds and flags. This was traced up to
the southward till 3.0 p.m., when we entered a deep gorge in a sandstone
range, the bed of the stream becoming very stony and full of
melaleuca-trees; it, however, contained many fine pools and strong
running springs, with a small supply of grass. There was now a fair
prospect of our reaching the Lyons, as the range we were now entering
must contain the sources of the Edmund, which river has a much more
restricted course than was originally supposed. Camp 29.
Latitude 23 degrees 42 minutes 15 seconds.
25th June.
The country continued hilly for about ten miles, when we arrived at the
summit of a granite and sandstone tableland, at the extreme sources of
the watercourse we had been following up. From this point we had at last
the satisfaction of observing the bold outlines of Mount Augustus,
bearing south-south-east about thirty miles, while more to the westward
could be discerned the summits of Mounts Phillips and Samuel, and yet
more to the right the southern face of the Barlee Range. Descending to
the south across an open plain, we struck for a remarkable gorge in a
granite range (the only one now between us and the Lyons), at which we
arrived by sundown. On examining this singular gorge, it was found to be
an almost perpendicular cut through a narrow ridge nearly 300 feet in
depth, the length of the pass not exceeding 200 yards, the plain on each
side being nearly on the same level. From the summit of this pass the
course of the stream could be traced across the fertile flats of the
Lyons until it was lost in the numerous channels of that river, and I was
able to obtain bearings to many well-remembered objects noticed on my
former visit to this part of the country. Camp 30.
Latitude 23 degrees 56 minutes 45 seconds.