Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia: From Moreton Bay to Port Essington, a distance of upwards of 3000 miles, during the years 1844-1845Leichhardt, Ludwig
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Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia: From Moreton Bay to Port Essington, a distance of upwards of 3000 miles, during the years 1844-1845
Leichhardt, Ludwig
Australia -- Description and travel; Australia -- Discovery and exploration
The little creek, at which we were encamped, had formed its channel
through sandstone rock; and its narrow bed, containing a ferruginous
water supplied by springs, was crowded with high reeds, and shaded with
various trees of a dense green foliage. Frogs croaked, and crickets
chirped, the whole night; and the call of goat-suckers, and the hooting
of owls, were heard in every direction; large fish were splashing in the
water; wallabies were bleating as they came down to the creek, and saw
our horses; and mosquitoes by their loud humming prevented our sleeping.
This noise of animal life during the night formed an agreeable contrast
to the dead silence which we had observed at almost all our camps around
the gulf, with the exception of the one occupied on the 1st September,
and of that at the Marlow, where the flying-fox was the merry reveller of
night.
Sept. 10.--We were again too late for low tide, to cross at the fishery
of the natives, and consequently travelled about two miles and a half
higher up, passing in our way three other fisheries; where we crossed the
river, the bed was very wide, and covered with shrubs, shingle, and
blocks of sandstone; but its rapid stream of fresh water was only about
fifteen or twenty yards broad, and three feet deep. At the left side of
the river, we saw four or five fine Cycas palms, from eight to ten feet
high, and the stem from six to nine inches in diameter. High rocky
sandstone ridges extended on the same side, in a direction parallel to
the river, and at the distance of two or three miles. They were covered
with scrub, open box, and stringy-bark forest; and the wallabi and
kangaroo tracks going down to the river, were very numerous. The
appearance of the Cypress pine, which formed groups within the
stringy-bark forest, and particularly on the rises and sandy slopes, was
of a most striking character. A new species of Grevillea, and also of
Calythrix, were found in blossom. Beyond the ridges, the stringy-bark
forest was obstructed by the leguminous shrub with broad stem (Bossiaea).
Several Pandanus creeks went down to the north-east; and the second
contained a little water. After travelling about twelve miles to the
north-west by north, we encamped at a fine creek with large pools of
water, in lat. 16 degrees 21 minutes. During the night, we heard the
well-known note of what we called the "Glucking bird," when we first met
with it, in the Cypress pine country, at the early part of our
expedition. Its re-appearance with the Cypress pine corroborated my
supposition, that the bird lived on the seeds of that tree.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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