[Sidenote: May.] The first day of May in the morning, hauing the shippe in readinesse to depart, the factors inuited the duke Pheodor Micalouich Proicoorow, and the principall secretary Vasili Pheodorouich Shelepin, with other of the chiefes about the duke to a banket aboord the ship, where they were interteined to their good liking, and at their departure was shot off all the ordinance of the ship, and about nine of the clocke at night the same day they weyed anker, and departed, with their ship from Astracan, and being but little winde, towed her with the boat about three versts, and then ankered, hauing with them a pauos or lighter to helpe them at the flats. The second day at foure of the clocke in the morning they weyed and plyed downe the riuer Volga toward the Caspian sea. [Sidenote: Vchoog.] The seuenth of May in the morning they passed by a tree that standeth on the left hand of the riuer as they went downe, which is called Mahomet Agatch, or Mahomets tree, and about three versts further, that is to say, to the Southwards of the said tree is a place called Vchoog, that is too say, the Russe weare: (but Ochoog is the name of a weare in the Tartar tongue) where are certain cotages, and the Emperour hath lying at that place certaine gunners to gard his fishermen that keepe the weare. This Vchoog is counted from Astracan 60. versts: they proceeded downe the said riuer without staying at the Vchoog. [Sidenote: Shoald water.] The ninth and tenth dayes they met with shoald water, and were forced to lighten their ship by the pauos: the 11. day they sent backe to the Vchoog for an other pauos: This day by mischance the shippe was bilged on the grapnell of the pauos, whereby the company had sustained great losses, if the chiefest part of their goods had not bene layde into the pauos: for notwithstanding their pumping with 3. pumps, heauing out water with buckets, and all the best shifts they could make, the shippe was halfe full of water ere the leake could be found and stopt The 12. day the pauos came to them from the Vchoog, whereby they lighted the shippe of all the goods. [Sidenote: Flats.] The 13. day in the morning there came to them a small boat, sent by the captaine of Astracan, to learne whether the shippe were at sea cleare of the flats. The 15. day by great industry and trauell they got their ship cleere off the shoals and flats, wherewith they had beene troubled from the ninth day vntill then: they were forced to passe their shippe in three foot water or lesse. [Sidenote: Chetera Bougori.] The 16. day they came to the Chetera Bougori, or Island of Foure Hillocks, which are counted forty versts from Vchoog, and are the furthest land towards the sea. [Sidenote: The Caspian Sea.] The 17. day they bare off into the sea, and being about twelue versts from the Foure hillocks, riding in fiue foot and a halfe water about eleuen of the clocke in the forenoone, they tooke their goods