Our prospect of a channel or strait, cutting off some considerable portion of Terra Australis, was lost, for it now appeared that the ship was entered into a gulph; but the width of the opening round Point Lowly left us a consolatory hope that it would terminate in a river of some importance.  In steering for the point we came into 4 fathoms, but on hauling to the eastward found 8, although a dry sand-bank was seen in that direction.  The depth afterwards diminished to 6, on which the course for Point Lowly was resumed; and we passed it at the distance of a mile and a half, in 9 fathoms water.  Here the gulph was found to take a river-like form, but the eastern half of it was occupied by a dry, sandy spit and shoal water.  We continued to steer upwards, before the wind; but as the width contracted rapidly, and there was much shoal water, it was under very easy sail, and with an anchor ready to be let go.  At four o’clock, in attempting to steer close over to the western side, we came suddenly into 21/2 fathoms; the ship was instantly veered to the eastward, and on the water deepening to 7, we let go the anchor and veered out a whole cable; for the wind blew a fresh gale right up the gulph, and between S. 4 deg.  W. and 30 deg.  E. there was no shelter from the land.  At sunset a second anchor was dropped under foot.

We had reached near five leagues above Point Lowly, at the entrance of the narrow part of the gulph; but the shores were low on both sides, and abreast of the ship not so much as four miles asunder.  At the back of the eastern shore was the ridge of mountains before mentioned, of which Mr. Westall made the sketch given in the Atlas (Plate XVII.  View 10.); and the highest peak toward their northern extremity, afterwards called Mount Brown, bore N. 32 deg.  E. On the western side, upwards, there was moderately high, flat-topped land, whose eastern bluff bore N. 36 deg.  W., about three leagues, and there the head of the gulph had the appearance of terminating; but as the tide ran one mile an hour past the ship, we still flattered ourselves with the prospect of a longer course, and that it would end in a fresh-water river.

WEDNESDAY 10 MARCH 1802

Early on the following morning, Messrs. Brown, Bauer and Westall, with attendants, set off upon an excursion to the eastern mountains, intending, if possible, to ascend to the top of Mount Brown; and I went away in a cutter, accompanied by the surgeon, to explore the head of the gulph, taking with me Arnold’s pocket time-keeper.  After crossing the middle shoal, upon which we had 21/2 fathoms in the ship, the water deepened to 10, but afterwards diminished to 2, on approaching the mangroves of the western side.  Keeping then upwards, I had from 7 to 10 fathoms in the mid-channel, but found shoal water extending a mile, and sometimes more, from the shore and no possibility of landing until we came near the broad,