Part 57

At 5.30 a.m. started and followed the creek on a general course south-west. There was a very irregular channel sometimes ten yards wide and very shallow, and then expanding into pools fifty yards wide. The sandy plain encroached much on the grassy flats, and reduced the winter course of the creek to half a mile in breadth. At 8.0 the course was changed to south, and at 10.15 camped at a swamp, which was nearly dry, and covered with beautiful grass. The country differed in character from that seen yesterday, there being a few scattered white-gum trees and patches of tall acacia. Salsola and salicornia are also very abundant, and show the saline nature of the soil.

Latitude by Canopus and Pollux 20 degrees 2 minutes 10 seconds.

SALT LAKES.

4th March.

Left the camp at 5.50 a.m., and steered south-west over a very level country, with shallow hollows filled with a dense growth of acacia, and at 7.30 struck the creek with a sandy channel and narrow flats, covered with salsola and salicornia. The pools were very shallow, and gradually became salt, and at 10.15 it spread into the dry bed of a salt lake more than a mile in diameter. This was connected by a broad channel with a pool of salt-water in it, with a second dry salt lake eight miles in diameter. As there was little prospect of water ahead and the day far advanced, we returned to one of the brackish pools and encamped. The country passed was of a worthless character, and so much impregnated with salt that the surface of the ground is often covered with a thin crust of salt.

Latitude by e Argus 20 degrees 10 minutes 40 seconds.

5th March.

Started from the camp at 5.45 a.m., and steered south-south-east through the acacia wood to the lake, and then south by east across the dry bed of the lake towards a break in the trees on the southern side. Here we found a creek joining the lake from the south-west, in which there were some shallow pools. We then steered east, to intersect any channel by which the waters of the lake might flow to the south or south-east, and passing through a wood of acacia entered the sandy desert. As some low rocky hills were visible to the east we steered for them. At 2.10 halted half a mile from the hills, and then ascended them on foot. They were very barren and rocky, scarcely eighty feet above the plain, formed of sandstone, the strata horizontal. From the summit of the hill nothing was visible but one unbounded waste of sandy ridges and low rocky hillocks, which lay to the south-east of the hill. All was one impenetrable desert, as the flat and sandy surface, which could absorb the waters of the creek, was not likely to originate watercourses. Descending the hill, which I named Mount Wilson, after the geologist attached to the expedition, we returned towards the creek at the south end of the lake, reaching it at 9.30.

6th March.

As the day was extremely hot and the horses required rest and food, we remained at the camp. Ducks were numerous in some of the pools, but so wild that only two were shot. The early part of the day was clear, with a hot strong breeze varying from west to south-east. At 1 p.m. there was a heavy thunder-squall from the south-east, which swept a cloud of salt and sand from the dry surface of the lake. The squall was followed by a slight shower.

Latitude by Canopus 20 degrees 16 minutes 22 seconds.

DRY BEDS OF SALT LAKES.

7th March.

As I had frequently observed that in the dry channels of creeks traversing very level country a heavy shower in the lower part of its course often causes a strong current of water to rush up the stream-bed and leave flood marks, which would mislead a person examining them in the dry season, it seemed probable that this must be the case with the creek entering the salt lake at its south-west angle, as it might be the outlet of the lake when filled by Sturt's Creek flowing into it, though in ordinary seasons the flow of water would be into the lake; accordingly I decided on following the creek and ascertain its actual course. Leaving the camp at 5.50 a.m., steered nearly south-west along the general course of the creek till 7.30, when it turned to the north and entered the dry bed of a lake. As the beds of the two lakes were lower than the channel between them, the water during the last heavy rains had flooded both ways from the central part of the channel. Having skirted the lake on the west to intercept any watercourses which might enter or leave the lake on that side, we came to a large shallow channel with pools of water--some fresh and others salt--with broad margin of salicornia growing on the banks; at 11.0 camped at a small pool of fresh water. The soil of the country on the bank of the creek is loose white sand with concretions of lime, covered with a dense growth of tall acacia, with salsola and a little grass in the open spaces.

TERMINATION OF STURT'S CREEK.

8th March.

Started at 6.5 a.m. and traced the creek into a salt lake to the west, but this was also dry. After some search we found a creek joining on the northern side and communicating with a large mud plain, partly overgrown with salicornia, and with large shallow pools of muddy water two to three inches deep. On the northern side the plain narrowed into a sandy creek with shallow pools, the flow of the water being decidedly from the northward. At 12.15 p.m. camped at a shallow pool, near which there was a little grass, the country generally being sandy and only producing triodia and acacia. Thus, after having followed Sturt's Creek for nearly 300 miles, we have been disappointed in our hope that it would lead to some important outlet to the waters of the Australian interior; it has, however, enabled us to penetrate far into the level tract of country which may be termed the Great Australian Desert.

Latitude by Pollux and e Argus 20 degrees 4 minutes 5 seconds.

9th March.

Left our camp at 6.35 a.m., and followed the creek up for half an hour, and then steered east to Sturt's Creek, which we reached at 9.5, the country being level, sandy, and covered with triodia and acacia in small patches; we then steered a southerly course down the creek till 11.0, and camped at the large brackish pool.

COMMENCE RETURN TO DEPOT. HOT WINDS.

10th March.

We had observed that a creek appeared to join the salt lake to the north-east angle. There yet remained a possibility that the waters of the lake might find an outlet to the east and pass north of Mount Wilson; we therefore steered east from the camp at 6.45 a.m. and passed close to the south of a small salt lake (dry) three-quarters of a mile in diameter, and then traversed a level sandy country thickly wooded with acacia and a few white-gum trees. At 8.15 struck a small grassy watercourse with broad shallow pools; this we followed down to the south-south-west to the large salt lake, close to which it was joined by a small sandy creek coming from the east. Having reached the bank of the lake at 10.0, steered south along its shore till 11.15, when its shore trended to the west-south-west, and there was a small well-defined bank without any break to the point which had been the limit of our examination from the southern part of the lake, and thus determined that there was no outlet for the water to the eastward. As the whole country to the south was one vast sandy desert, destitute of any indications of the existence of water, it was clear that no useful results could arise from any attempt to penetrate this inhospitable region, especially as the loss of any of the horses might deprive the expedition of the means for carrying out the explorations towards the Gulf of Carpentaria. I therefore determined on commencing our retreat to the Victoria River while it was practicable, as the rapid evaporation and increasing saltness of the water in this arid and inhospitable region warned us that each day we delayed increased the difficulty of the return, and it was possible that we were cut off from any communication with the party at the depot by an impassable tract of dry country, and might be compelled to maintain ourselves on the lower part of the creek till the ensuing rainy season. Returned to the creek at the north-east angle of the lake and encamped. The morning was cloudy with a strong hot wind from the east and south-east; the night calm and misty.

11th March.

At 6.10 a.m. left the camp and followed the creek to the north-north-east, but it soon spread into a number of small gullies, which drained a patch of clay land. At 7.0 steered north through a wood of acacia growing on loose sandy soil. Entering the open sandy plain at 8.15, a few small white-gum trees were scattered over this part of the plain, which was quite level, the loose sand being covered with triodia, which partially concealed the glaring red colour of the ground. Observing a low abrupt hill a little to the east of our course, deviated towards it, and ascended it at 10.0. It was less than 100 feet above the plains, and composed of the same sandstone which prevails over the whole of the country south of the Victoria. The view was cheerless in the extreme. From north 26 degrees east to north 166 degrees east, the country was a level plain with small isolated or grouped hills of red sandstone, but not forming any definite ranges; the even height and peculiar table summits appear to indicate that they are only small remaining portions of a sandstone tableland or plain nearly the whole of which has been removed, the strata, however, had a dip to the east of one or two degrees. The vegetation on this part of the country was reduced to a few stunted gum-trees, hakea bushes, and triodia, the whole extremely barren in appearance. The remaining portion of the horizon was one even straight line; not a hill or break of any kind was visible, and, except the narrow line of the creek, was barren and worthless in the extreme, the red soil of the level portions of the surface being partially clothed with triodia and a few small trees, or rather bushes, rendered the long straight ridges of fiery-red drifting sand more conspicuous. The wind being strong, we observed the smoke of several fires along the course of Sturt's Creek, and also one near Mount Mueller, to the north-east, indicating the existence of natives in that direction, and doubtless of water in that locality, as it was a day's journey from the creek. Our course was now north 340 degrees east, and on approaching the creek passed through a patch of casuarina forest, which was remarkable, as they are the only trees of this genus we had seen on the coast since landing at the Victoria, though abundant in all other parts of Australia. At 1.35 p.m. reached Sturt's Creek and halted at our camp of the 2nd March; there was a strong hot wind from the east during the day.

12th March.

Resumed our route at 5.50 a.m. and steered north 20 degrees east till 8.0, then 40 degrees and 60 degrees till 1.0 p.m., when we encamped at a shallow pool of water near the creek, and about three miles above camp 48, as the route only traversed the level flats near the creek. Nothing worthy of further notice was seen, the channel being split into small hollows, some of which retained a little water. The grass was much dried up and limited to the flat near the creek, the more remote portions being covered with triodia. The day was hot and nearly calm, but at noon we were benefited by a few passing clouds, and at 6.0 p.m. a dry thunderstorm cooled the air from 100 degrees to 93 degrees, but the temperature rose at 8.0 to 96 degrees.

13th March.