18th September.
Started at 6.40 a.m. and in two and a half hours entered a deep and
wild-looking gorge, at which point it formed a junction with the DeGrey,
coming from the south-south-east, through a beautiful level tract of open
grassy country, a broad belt of flooded-gum trees growing for some
distance back on either side. Passing through the gorge, which was a
quarter of a mile wide and about a mile long, we came upon a camp of
natives, who, as usual, quickly dispersed without giving us an
opportunity of showing them that we intended them no harm. The river here
contains a fine reach of deep water, upon which was a large quantity of
whistling ducks and other water-fowl. Two miles lower down we halted on
the banks of a deep creek coming in from the northward; the rest of the
day being employed re-stuffing pack-saddles, etc., while some of the
party caught a quantity of fine fish--amongst them an eel, which,
however, was allowed to escape, being taken for a water-snake by one of
the party who had never seen one before. A large kind of bat, or vampire,
was first observed here, measuring about two feet across the wings. Camp
84.
19th September.
We continued to follow down the DeGrey for about eighteen miles in a
west-north-west direction, through open grassy plains extending for many
miles on either bank, the channel of the river still maintaining the same
sandy character, and with abundance of water in its bed. Camp 85.
Latitude 20 degrees 36 minutes 30 seconds.
20th September.
There was little or no change in the appearance of the country for the
eighteen or twenty miles that the river was traced down during to-day. We
encamped on the bank of a wide and deep reach of water more than a mile
long, surrounded by tall reeds. Fish were caught here in great abundance.
Camp 86.
Latitude 20 degrees 31 minutes 48 seconds.