Sep. 3, 1788
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Logbook Remarks GM
Sep. 5, 1788
Revised Jun 8 2021
Calm & fair Weather with light Winds in the latter part. The Afternoon I employed warping farther out into the Bay, and at Night anchored with Pengwin Island bearing No82°E Cape Fredrick Henry 125 E and the Watering place 1°51′W in 13 fathoms. In the morning at daybreak hoisted all the Boats in, and with a light Breeze Sailed at Noon. The Southermost of Marias Isles bore N52°E estimated about 5 or 6 leagues distant, Pengwin Island So86°W about 6 leagues. Cape Fredrick Henry No65°W and Tasmans Head So54°W. Sounded 7 fathoms.
In sailing past the Place where I had the interview with the Natives we observed their fires, but not one of them had the curiosity to come out on the Beach to look at the Ship, so that I had little reason to expect they would walk ten times the distance to have any communication with us.
From Cape Fredrick Henry which appears to be a bold/bald? Cape and has a high Spire Rock off it, the shore inclines to the NNW & NWBN by Compass, and continues in that direction as far as I could distinguish untill it forms the entrance into the Bay of Cape Fredrick Henry. Marias Isles make with this a very deep Gulph inclining to the North and NNE. The Land to the North appearing as hillocks like Islands, or Main Land, as you are nearer or farther off from it; but there is a remarkable high flat Topped Mountain to the NWBN by Compass, which terminates on this side. The mountainous part of the Country, having this mountain to bear as I have already mentioned NWBN and Steering in that direction will lead to Cape Frederick Henry. The southern part of Marias Isles are high with a Clift shore in most places, yet I have no doubt afford some good Harbours. A few leagues from the East end there appears an Inlet with a High Island in the Entrance, and its Western Cape is exceedinly remarkable from the pitch of it being cut into a number of upright Pillars of unequal heights. The face of the Country here is not wooded, but some of the interior parts has it in as great abundance as on the other side. Some of my Officers said they saw fires at least smoke in two Places, but I could see none myself, except far to the North where I supposed it was on the Main.
I beleive my Plan of this Country will give a better idea
of the Situation of it than any thing I can say more, but
it has met with little or no improvement from the State I
found it in when I was here with Captain Cook; for unless a
Person is immediatly on the business of Surveying, little
can be done with great exactness or certainty, altho sufficient
for the general management of a Ship: however I beleive few
places are better determined either as to Latitude or Longitude,
and the general direction of all the Coast my be relied on. We
have now got on board about 30 Ton of firewood besides necessary
Spars
& Plank for the use of the Ship. Among the Wood was
found many Scorpions &
Santapees
& a large kind of
black Ants full One Inch long. I saw no Musquitoes or other
insects but in the Summer months they are in great numbers.
I got my People to gather a quantity of the New Zealand Tea
Plant, which I beleive to be a very salutary drink when infused
in the Common method to make Tea. This Plant grows in large
Bushes and makes excellent broom Stuff, it bears a small fine
painted leaf of a pleasant smell, and its seed is contained in
a Berry about the size of a Pea notched into five equal parts
on the Top. I now sailed with every person on board in the most
perfect health.
At 20 hours 10′ Latitude 49°20′S. Longitude by
Time Keeper = 147°33′51″E
Penguin Island SSW½W 1 Mile
Longitude by Time Keeper at Noon found by the above
and a Set on the following Afternoon } 174°
Meridian Altitude 
Center } 39°36′40″
Before I finish my Observations at this Place it is necessary with the general method I have pursued in this Log to give a summary account of my Passage from the Cape of Good Hope, but however exact I could wish to be in it; to put every thing into one point of View, yet it is scarce possible to give a true Idea of Winds and Weather with other circumstances, unless such an Account was equally distinct as the Log itself, and which of course would be but a repetition of the same thing and therefore of no use here.
My principal plan on leaving the Cape was to accomplish my Passage in a Moderate Latitude, and to make as far as lay in my power a commodious and safe tract in the Winter Months for any of our Merchant Ships bound to our New Settlement in Botany Bay. It is therefore to be observed that I varied very little from a direct course to the Island St. Paul in 38°49′So during which time we had some hard Gales, but intervals of fair Weather. From this I continued my course to Van Diemens land edging gradually to the Southward in a New Track, and only twice exceeded the Latitude of 44°00So. by this means the Air was generally Moderate, and altho the Gales were at time very Strong, yet were short lived, and we had sufficient intervals to put things in good order which they had deranged. The general shiftings of the Wind was from North to South by the West, for Easterly ones we had scarce any, only four or five days in the whole passage did they incline that way. Three fourths of the Passage or more has been boisterous weather, but this season of the year has the advantage over the Summer months in this respect, that it is free of Fogs. The Winds also seem to be as much Southerly as Northerly, a Navigator is therefore only to steer a fair Course and not imagine he is more powerfully to be attached on one side more than the other. The approach of Strong Southerly Winds is announced by many kinds of Birds of the Albatross and Peterel Tribe, and the abatement of the Gale by their leaving you. The Thermmeter also very quickly shows the Change of these Winds and will vary sometimes 10 degrees in its height. The Winds from the Pole have the beginning of the Gale the Strongest, and abate by Squalls which are extremely Violent, but lessen in their force in proportion as the intermissions between each increasses. The Winds from the Equator come on Moderately at first, with Cloudy or thick weather abating by degrees, calms, or shifts of Wind, after they have been at the height.
With respect to Currents and to give an Account of them in an extensive ocean, it seems to little other purpose than to puzzle, without arriving to any degree of certainty as to their effects. I found my reckoning 3°40′ Wrong being that too far to the East, but a great part of this seems to have accumulated from making improper Allowances from day to day in corecting the Reckoning for on summing the effects of the Current as proved by the Time Keeper, the result is that only 1°45′ in Longitude is what upon the whole the ship has been set to the Westward. If this is worthy of further notice I shall subjoin a Table of the set of the Current as the Time Keeper gave it, founded on the Pincipal I have already stated in a former part of this Log.
[Two pages of winds, currents, compass variations, and observations, both astronomical and concerning the Time Keeper, have here been omitted.]
Adventure Bay is a most convenient and safe place for any number of ships to wood and water at, but it has this inconvenience, in the Winter Months when the Southerly Winds are prevalent, there is a troublesome surf on every part of the shore. For this reason I would recommend to every future Navigator to go into the Bay of Fredrick Henry, of which altho I have not been able to give any certain account, yet I can venture to assure them they will find it commodious and a secure Harbour, if I can at all judge from Appearances. I would most certainly have examined it had I discovered it a day or two sooner; but I could not be justifyable to delay a moment on that Account.
In the Summer Months there are plenty of Fish to be caught with the Seine; but at this time we found nothing to compensate to us for the trouble of Hauling it. Hooks & Lines were the resources, and as many Rock Cod were caught as afforded us a tolerable refreshment.
The Place I watered at, was a run of Rain Water from the Hills, and all the other runs in this Bay are derived from no other source as far as I can find, so that in dry Seasons I beleive it is rather a scarce Article except at the Lake; but this never dries, and is perfectly fresh and good at the tide. Many paths may be made to take water out of the middle of it across the low land not above 200 yards distant from the Water Side, and is much more elligible than taking the water out of any of the little Rivulets connected with it, as described in Captain Cooks last Voyage, they being a part of the same water branched out by the overflowing of the Lake upon the low land and more troublesome to be got at.
The principal thing to be first done on a Ships arrival here is to fix on the watering place for there the Wood can be got with great ease. There are two places besides the Lake which have a collected body of water more than any of the other runs, one lies in East Cove and the other at the East end of the Beach, and are both particularly marked in my Plan. The Place where the Resolution watered, the surf prevented us from landing at; but it is very Stoney and inconvenient at the best, however a Stranger has nothing more to do than to examine those places and take the best according to circumstances.
The upper part of this Bay is formed by a Sandy Beach 1½ mile long from one end to the other. The soundings are regular and to be relied on, and altho in some places, particularly on the West shore, there are many patches of Weed; yet there is from 5 to 9 fathoms water on them. On the whole this place is so easy of access that a Stranger may consider himself well acquainted before he enters it, and he can never miss it, if he attends to his Latitude. It bears by Compass from the South part of Marias Islands (that is Pengwin Island) S69°W distant nearly 11 leagues.
From Pengwin Island to Cape Fredrick Henry is N16°E distant 3⅓ leagues and about 33 fathoms water, which shoals to 20, 25 and less depths as you get to the Southward abreast of the Island The distance across here is 2 miles, and the deepest water about 15 fathoms. The Soundings from this to the Beach are very gradual and a good Sandy Bottom. You must not anchor more than 8 fathoms, if it is necessary for the Ship to be any way conveniently near the shore.
Mr. Nelson has just given to me an Account of the Soil and Productions of this Country as he met with it. I shall therefore mention it here in his own words.
The West and South Sides of the Bay is Black Mould with a mixture of fine white sand, and is a very rich soil from the great quantity of rotten wood and leaves.
The Trees are lofty and large, and the underwood grows so close together that it is impossible in some places to go through. The East side of the Bay is a rich loamy soil, but near the Tops of the Hills is very much encumbered with stones and Rocks, the underwood thinly placed and small.
I observed that the Trees on the South, SE and SW sides of the Hills grow to a larger size than those that are exposed to the three opposite Points, for the sides of the Trees open or exposed to the North, NE and NW winds are naked with few branches on them while the other side is abundantly supplied.
| Four species - three of which are very large many of them 150 feet high | |
| Philadelphus | Four species - two of which frow from 20 to 30 feet high |
| Mimosa | Four species - one of them 20 feet high the others small |
| Casarina | One species |
| Cypress | Two Ditto |
| Illiceum | One Ditto - besides a variety of small Trees and Shrubs unknown to us. |
| Gnaphalium | Four species |
| Dolichus | One Ditto - Very fine Scarlet Flowers |
| Lilly or Gladiolus | Three Ditto |
| Ferns | Six species - One of the Tree kind |
| Crassula | One Ditto |
| Oxalis | One Ditto |
| Mesembryanthemum | One Ditto - Besides many other sorts unknown. |
I have only to observe on the forgoing account of Mr. Nelsons that the Trees of the Metrocedrus specie, are what I have taken notice of as the Forrest Trees, and instead of there being only three kinds it is certain there is a fourth.
His remarks that the Trees which grow on the South, SE and SW sides of the Hills are of a larger size than those in any other part exposed to the Winds from the opposite points, I find does not imply as it may be understood, that the northerly winds are more hurtfull to their growth than the southerly ones; but only that these observations were made when the Trees were totally open and without shelter from that quarter, whilst the southerly side of the Hills by having others opposite them were not so — for these observations would not hold good unless he had been to the Southward on the Sea Coast about Tasmans head, where he was not, his route being more inland. This therefore proves only what will be generally allowed that the Trees grow most luxuriant in sheltered places, and not that the Equator are more hurtfull than the Polar Winds.
Sep. 3, 1788
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Logbook Remarks GM
Sep. 5, 1788