Expedition into Central Australia eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 759 pages of information about Expedition into Central Australia.

Expedition into Central Australia eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 759 pages of information about Expedition into Central Australia.

The rock formation of this hill was a fine grained granite, and was in appearance a round and prominent feature.  Although its sides were covered with low dark brush, there was a considerable quantity of oat-grass in its deep and sheltered valleys.  We soon struck on Flood’s track after leaving this hill, which, as Lewis had been the first to ascend, I called “Lewis’s Hill;” and riding up the valley along which the men had already passed, at six miles crossed the ridge, which (as we had been led to hope) proved to be the range dividing the eastern and western waters.  On our descent from this ridge we proceeded to the north-west, but changed our course to north in following the cart tracks, and at four miles overtook Flood and Morgan on the banks of a creek, the channel of which, and the broad and better grassed valley through which it runs, we ourselves had several times crossed on our way down, and from the first had hoped to find it the main creek on the west side of the ranges.

At the point where we overtook Flood it had increased greatly in size, but we searched its hopeless bed in vain for water, and as it there turned too much to the eastward, for which reason Flood had stopped until we should come up, we left it and crossed the low part of a range to our left; but as we were going too much to the south-west, I turned shortly afterwards into a valley that led me more in the direction in which I was anxious to proceed.  The country had been gradually improving from the time we crossed the little dividing range, not so much in soil as in appearance, and in the quality of its herbage.  There was a good deal of grass in the valleys, and up the sides of the hills, which were clear and open on the slopes but stony on their summits.  After proceeding about two and a half miles, we got into a scrubby part of the hills, through which we found it difficult to push our way, the scrub being eucalyptus dumosa, an unusual tree to find in those hills.  After forcing through the scrub for about half a mile, we were suddenly stopped by a succession of precipitous sandstone gullies, and were turned to the eastward of north down a valley the fall of which was to that point.  This valley led us to that in which we had rejoined Flood, but lower down; in crossing it we again struck on the creek we had then left, much increased in size, and with a row of gum-trees on either side of it, but its even broad bed composed of the cleanest gravel and sand, precluded the hope of our finding water.  At about a mile, however, it entered a narrow defile in the range, and the hills closed rapidly in upon it.  Pursuing our way down the defile it gradually narrowed, the bed of the creek occupied its whole breadth, and the rocks rose perpendicularly on either side.  We searched this place for water with the utmost care and anxiety, and I was at length fortunate enough to discover a small clear basin not a yard in circumference, under a rock on the left side of the glen.  Suspecting that this was supplied

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Expedition into Central Australia from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.