February 11.

In consequence of having to repair packs and packsaddles we could not manage to leave until 1.10 p.m.  The three weeks’ rest the horses had on the rich pasture near the depot made a wonderful improvement in their condition.  They were so restive yesterday that several of them in galloping and plunging did considerable damage to the packs and packsaddles.  As the tracks of Walker’s party were so indistinct that I could only see them when pointed out to me by the aborigines of our party, I foresaw that it would be tedious if not impossible to follow them to where Mr. Walker said he had left the tracks of Mr. Burke’s party.  When we had come a short distance over fine well-grassed plains we reached a saltwater creek, which we followed up a short distance, then crossed it and encamped in haste, as we saw a heavy thunder-shower was about to fall.  Before leaving last camp I made an observation of the sun and found its meridian altitude 86 degrees 3 minutes.  The latitude is by this observation 17 degrees 53 minutes.  We came here on the following courses:  1.40 south-east and by east, one and a half miles; 2.22 south one and a half miles to saltwater creek; 2.25 north-east half a mile up the creek; 2.50 south-west and by west, half a mile up the creek to ford.  Distance come today four and a half miles.

February 12.

Camp 2, which we left this morning at 7.20, is situated about seven miles south-east from the Albert River depot.  In our journey today, although we often got off the tracks of Walker’s party, we did not altogether lose them.  Near where we encamped tonight Jemmy saw a dead horse.  From last camp we came over well-grassed, lightly wooded plains for five miles, then over flat country for four and three-quarter miles.  The land was covered with good grasses and wooded with box and excoecaria.  What I take to be excoecaria resembles the tree Mr. Walker describes as being probably the gutta-percha.  The box trees are similar to those that grow near the Murrumbidgee River.  In the middle of the day I halted to make an observation of the sun.  I made its meridian altitude 85 degrees 32 minutes.  The latitude is by that observation 17 degrees 59 minutes.  Afterwards we came out of the wooded country in one and a half miles, then came over plains for four and a quarter miles, then crossed a shallow watercourse and encamped.  These plains had a higher elevation than any we had seen since leaving the depot.  The soil was rich and luxuriantly covered with the best grasses, and slightly wooded with white-wood.  The white-wood I take to be the tree Mr. Gregory calls the erythrina.  We came here on the following courses:  9.20 five and a quarter miles; 11.33 east-south-east four and three-quarter miles; 1.30 east-south-east one and a half miles and crossed a shallow watercourse from the west; 2.40 east-south-east for four and a quarter miles and crossed another shallow watercourse; 2.5 east-south-east for three-quarters of a mile over low lands liable to inundation.  Distance today sixteen and a half miles.