It may here be remarked that we observed the first regular return of the tides in Warrender’s and Parry’s Bays, but their set could not be ascertained.  The rise of water did not amount to more than two feet.  Course today south one quarter east-nine miles and a quarter.

August 16.

Some rain fell in the night but the morning was unusually fine.  We set forward at five A.M. and the men paddled cheerfully along the coast for ten miles when a dense fog caused us to land on Slate-clay Point.  Here we found more traces of the Esquimaux and the skull of a man placed between two rocks.  The fog dispersed at noon and we discerned a group of islands to the northward which I have named after Vice-Admiral Sir George Cockburn, one of the Lords of the Admiralty.  Reembarking we rounded the point and entered Walker’s Bay (so-called after my friend Admiral Walker) where as in other instances the low beach which lay between several high trap cliffs could not be distinguished until we had coasted down the east side nearly to the bottom of the bay.  When the continuity of the land was perceived we crossed to the western shore and on landing discovered a channel leading through a group of islands.  Having passed through this channel we ran under sail by the Porden Islands, across Riley’s Bay and, rounding a cape which now bears the name of my lamented friend Captain Flinders, had the pleasure to find the coast trending north-north-east, with the sea in the offing unusually clear of islands, a circumstance which afforded matter of wonder to our Canadians who had not previously had an uninterrupted view of the ocean.

Our course was continued along the coast until eight P.M. when a change in the wind and a threatening thunder-squall induced us to encamp, but the water was so shallow that we found some difficulty in approaching the shore.  Large pieces of driftwood gave us assurance that we had finally escaped from the bays.  Our tents were scarcely pitched before we were assailed by a heavy squall and rain, which was succeeded by a violent gale from west-north-west which thrice overset the tents during the night.  The wind blew with equal violence on the following day and the sea rolled furiously upon the beach.  The Canadians had now an opportunity of witnessing the effect of a storm upon the sea and the sight increased their desire of quitting it.

Our hunters were sent out and saw many deer but the flatness of the country defeated their attempts to approach them; they brought however a few unfledged geese.  As there was no appearance of increasing our stock of provision the allowance was limited to a handful of pemmican and a small portion of portable soup to each man per day.  The thermometer this afternoon stood to 41 degrees.  The following observations were obtained:  latitude 68 degrees 18 minutes 50 seconds North, longitude 110 degrees 5 minutes 15 seconds West, but 109 degrees 25 minutes 00 seconds West was used in the construction of the chart as the chronometers were found, on our return to Hood’s River, to have altered their rates; variation 44 degrees 15 minutes 46 seconds East and dip of the needle 89 degrees 31 minutes 12 seconds.