26th September.
This morning we found the water in the well quite salt, in consequence of
the tide having risen during the night; and as our horses required water,
it was found desirable to fall back upon some of the fresh pools to form
a camp, while a day or two could be devoted to the examination of this
fertile and interesting tract of country. We accordingly crossed the
channel and proceeded westward for nearly three miles, when we came upon
the other branch, which proved eventually to join again several miles
below, forming an island containing some 8000 or 9000 acres of alluvial
flat soil, covered with a quantity of mixed grasses. To this was given
the name of Ripon Island. The western channel was found to be over 300
yards wide, and to contain several fine reaches of open water, some fresh
and others slightly brackish; they were all teeming with ducks and a
great variety of water-fowl. Having selected a suitable spot for a camp,
I started with Messrs. Brown and Harding to examine the country towards
the inlet. At a little more than two miles we crossed the river between
two pools of salt water, subject to the influence of the tides, and
proceeded northward over an open grassy flat for two miles further, when
the grass gave place to samphire and small mangrove bushes, which
gradually thickened to dense mangroves, cut up by deep muddy creeks,
which put a stop to proceeding further in that direction. Here we
observed several remarkable stacks of dead mangroves, evidently piled
together by the natives, but for what purpose we could not ascertain,
unless to escape upon from the tide when fishing. Having gained firm
ground, we made a detour more to the eastward, and at last succeeded in
reaching the bank of the river close to the head of the inlet. The tide
being at the ebb, I was able to walk over the mud and sand to the mouth
of the river, and obtain bearings to Points Larrey and Poissonier, and
observe the character of the entrance, from which I formed the opinion
that the breakers seen by Captain Stokes when surveying this portion of
the coast, and which deterred him from entering the inlet, were nothing
more than the sea-rollers meeting a strong ebb tide setting out of the
DeGrey, possibly backed up by freshes from the interior which would, from
a river of this size, occasion a considerable commotion where the tide
amounts to twenty feet; at any rate, I could not observe any rocks, and
there appeared to be a channel with at least five or six feet of water in
it at low tide. For the first mile the river has a breadth of from 400 to
800 yards, and would admit with the tide vessels of twelve or fourteen
feet draft of water with perfect safety up as far as Ripon Island, where
they could lie completely sheltered in all weathers quite close to the
shore, which here has steep banks twenty to thirty feet high; they would
however, be left aground at low water, as we did not observe any pools in
this part of the river. I had only just time to complete my observations
when the roaring of the incoming tide warned me that no time was to be
lost in returning to the horses, which were nearly a mile higher up the
river. Although I ran part of the way, the mud creeks filled up so
rapidly, there was some risk of my being cut off from the shore and
having to take up a roost on the top of the mangroves until the tide
fell; I had time, however, to observe that the head of the tide carried
with it thousands of fish of great variety, amongst them a very
remarkable one from three to six inches in length, in form resembling a
mullet, but with fins like a flying-fish; it is amphibious, landing on
the mud and running with the speed of a lizard, and when frightened can
jump five or six feet at a bound; I did not, however, succeed in
capturing one for a specimen. Swarms of beautiful bright-crimson crabs,
about two inches diameter, were to be seen issuing from their holes to
welcome the coming flood, on which was borne a great number of sea-fowl,
who, it was evident, came in for an abundant feast in the general
turmoil. Mounting our horses, that had stood for the last two hours
without touching a mouthful of the rank grass around them for want of
water, we returned to the camp by a different route, through open grass
flats bordering the deep reaches of water that encompass the north-west
side of Ripon Island.