Sunday, 24th February, 1861.—­Camp 9R.  Comparatively little rain has fallen above the branch creek with the running water.  The vegetation, although tolerably fresh, is not so rank as that we have left; the water in the creek is muddy, but good, and has been derived merely from the surface drainage of the adjoining plains.  The Melaleneus continues on this branch creek, which creeps along at the foot of the ranges.

Monday, 25th February, 1861.—­Camp 10R.  There has been very little rain on this portion of the creek since we passed down; there was, however, no water at all then at the pans.  At the Tea-tree spring, a short distance up the creek, we found plenty of water in the sand, but it had a disagreeable taste, from the decomposition of leaves and the presence of mineral matter, probably iron.  There seems to have been a fair share of rain along here, everything is so very fresh and green, and there is water in many of the channels we have crossed.

Tuesday, 26th February, 1861.—­Apple-tree Camp; 11R.

Thursday, 28th February, 1861.—­Reedy Gully Camp; 12R.  Came into the Reedy Gully Camp about midnight on Tuesday, the 26th; remained there throughout the day on Wednesday; starting at two A.M. on Thursday.

Friday, 1st March, 1861.—­Camp of the Three Crows; 13R.

Saturday, 2nd March, 1861.—­Salt-bush Camp; 14R.  Found Golah.  He looks thin and miserable; seems to have fretted a great deal, probably at finding himself left behind, and he has been walking up and down our tracks till he has made a regular pathway; could find no sign of his having been far off, although there is a splendid feed to which he could have gone.  He began to eat as soon as he saw the other camels.

Sunday, 3rd March, 1861.—­Eureka Camp; 15R.  In crossing a creek by moonlight, Charley rode over a large snake; he did not touch him, and we thought that it was a log until he struck it with the stirrup iron; we then saw that it was an immense snake, larger than any I have ever before seen in a wild state.  It measured eight feet four inches in length and seven inches in girth round the belly; it was nearly the same thickness from the head to within twenty inches of the tail; it then tapered rapidly.  The weight was 11 1/2 pounds.  From the tip of the nose to five inches back, the neck was black, both above and below; throughout the rest of the body, the under part was yellow, and the sides and back had irregular brown transverse bars on a yellowish brown ground.  I could detect no poisonous fangs, but there were two distinct rows of teeth in each jaw, and two small claws of nails, about three-eighths of an inch long, one on each side of the vent.

Monday, 4th March, 1861.—­Feasting Camp; 16R.  Shortly after arriving at Camp 16 we could frequently hear distant thunder towards the east, from which quarter the wind was blowing.  During the afternoon there were frequent heavy showers, and towards evening it set in to rain steadily but lightly; this lasted till about eight P.M., when the rain ceased and the wind got round to west; the sky, however, remained overcast until late in the night, and then cleared for a short time; the clouds were soon succeeded by a dense fog or mist, which continued until morning.  The vapour having then risen, occupied the upper air in the form of light cirrostratus and cumulus clouds.