Forrest’s company was to consist of the leader and his brother Alexander, two white men, and two natives, one of whom had accompanied Forrest on his former trip.  A coasting schooner, the Adur, of 30 tons, was to accompany them round the coast, calling at Esperance Bay, Israelite Bay, and Eucla, supplying them with provisions at these depots.

On the 30th of March they left Perth.  The first part of the journey to Esperance Bay was through comparatively settled and well-known country, so that no fresh interest attached to it.  They arrived at Dempster’s station at Esperance a few days before the Adur sailed into the Bay, and on the 9th of May, 1870, they started on their next stage to Israelite Bay.

[Map.  Forest’s Route 1869; Forrest’s Route 1870; Forrest’s Route 1874; Giles’s Route 1873; Grey’s Route 1836 and 1837 and 1839.]

From Esperance Bay to Israelite Bay the journey lacked incident, and it was not until Forrest again parted from his relief boat that he had to encounter the most serious part of his undertaking.  He had now to face the line of cliffs which frowned over the Bight, behind which he had, as he knew, little or no chance of finding water for 150 miles.  Having made what arrangements he could to carry water, he left the last water on the 5th of April.  About a week afterwards he reached the break in the cliffs, where water could be obtained by digging in the sandhills.  Luckily they had found many small rock-holes filled with water, which had enabled them to push steadily on.  Forrest says that the cliffs, which fell perpendicularly to the sea, although grand in the extreme, were terrible to gaze from:—­

“After looking very cautiously over the precipice, we all ran back, quite terrified by the dreadful view.”

While resting and recruiting at the sandhills, he made an excursion to the north, and after passing through a fringe of scrub twelve miles deep, he came upon most beautifully-grassed downs.  At fifty miles from the sea there was nothing visible as far as the eye could reach but gentle undulating plains of grass and saltbush.  There being no prospects of water, he was forced to turn back, fortunately finding a few surface pools both on his outward and homeward way.

On the 24th they started from the sandhills for Eucla, the last meeting-place appointed with the Adur.  During this stage he kept to the north of the Hampton Range, and through a country well-grassed but destitute of surface water.  The party reached Eucla on the 2nd of July, and found the Adur duly awaiting them.  Whilst at Eucla, Forrest, in company with his brother, made another excursion to the north; he penetrated some thirty miles inland, and found as before boundless plains, beautifully grassed, though destitute of any signs of water.

After leaving Eucla, the explorers had a distressing stage to the head of the Great Bight, where they finally obtained water by digging in the sand.  On this stage the horses suffered more than on any previous one, having had to travel three days without a drink.  From this point they soon reached the settled districts of South Australia in safety.