Mensies' Journal. 



Off Coast of California. 



fathoms but had no ground whicli shews that Soundings 

 extend but a very short way off this part of the Coast. 



The land we saw this afternoon presented a prospect 

 by no means unpleasant, it was of a very moderate height 

 varied with hills & Valleys, the former rising higher inland 

 & mostly coverd with tall dusky trees with here & there 

 clear spots mounting up their sides, the Valleys & lower 

 ground near the sea side seemd to form extensive pastures 

 as they appeard coverd with verdure or low bushes of a 

 much lighter hue than the wooded parts, the shore itself was 

 apparently streight without any appearance of inlet within 

 our view, & seemd to trend nearly North & South, but the 

 extreme points we saw were not very distant on account of 

 the thick hazy weather. 



The forenoon of the i8th we had but light airs of wind 

 with some rain & thick hazy weather, At noon we were 

 about 4 leagues from the shore / in Latitude 39° 27' North, 

 the extremes of the land N 24 W. & S 60° E. the latter 

 about 10 leagues off. In the afternoon we continud our 

 course to the Northward with a more favorable breeze, 

 edging a little in with the Coast to have a better view of 

 it. We were met by several flights of Birds seemingly 

 Puffins going to the Southward probably to their breeding 

 haunts, they flew close to the surface of the water — fre- 

 quently following one another in a line. When at 4 in the 

 afternoon we got within 7 or 8 miles of the shore we steerd 

 to the Northwestward along the Coast till the evening when 

 we again stood off & on for the night. 



This part of the Coast appeard to rise steep from the 

 water side to form a firm & compact ridge of Mountains 

 which were mostly coverd with wood of a dusky hue to their 

 very summits though some naked cliffs & patches were seen 

 & here & there reddish streaks or chasms seemingly the beds 

 of torrents falling down the sides of these Mountains, which 

 appeard to gain considerably in elevation as they extended 

 to the Northwestward. 



In the morning of the 19th the wind was bafiling & the 

 weather dark & hazy so that no part of the land was dis- 

 tinctly seen except a bluff point which was our northern 

 extreme on the preceeding noon, we therefore steerd off to 

 the Southward till it cleard up which it did towards noon, 

 & the wind at the same time springing up favorable we again 



1792. 

 April 17th. 



April 18th. 



Off Mendocino 

 Co., Cal. 



April 19th. 



