Menzics' Journal. 



Burke Channel. 



lOl 



wet & uncomfortable particularly the Men who had no other 

 shelter but what they formed by the Boat Sails which were 

 found very inadequate to screen them from the inclemency 

 of such boisterous weather & such deluge of rain. 



On the i6th it continued Rain & fog till after breakfast 

 time when the forenoon cleard up into fair & sunshiny 

 weather with which wc proceeded up the North East Arm 

 assisted by a favorable breeze between two high ridges of 

 dreary rocky mountains whose steep sides were thinly coverd 

 with stinted woods while their summits were capt with per- 

 petual Snow & many places were seen of considerable extent 

 towards the upper regions of the Mountains exposing only 

 a naked surface of rugged rocks without the least apparent 

 vestage of vegetation. 



As we advancd on we found small black Birch ]\Iaples 

 & Medlers with some Vacciniums to form the principal 

 woody covering to these Mountains & Pines were only thinly 

 scatterd here & there in Valleys near the Waterside making / 

 as it were a slow progress. 



At noon we observd for our Latitude which we found to 

 be 52° 22' North & soon after passed an opening going off 

 to the North West ward & in a Bay nearly opposite to it we 

 observd some Smoak near the Beach which indued us to 

 land in expectation of seeing some of the Indians, but we 

 found only an old deserted Hut that had been so lately 

 occupied that the remains of the Fire was still burning by it, 

 & behind it we found a large Canoe of 42 feet long hauld up 

 into the Woods to be repaird. — The Water was now brakish 

 & pale colourd which made it pretty evident that the termi- 

 nation of the Arm was not very far off, we therefore pro- 

 ceeded anxiously on to reach the head of it, to save the 

 necessity of sending other Boats to so great a distance to 

 finish it. — In the afternoon the foggy & rainy Weather again 

 returnd, but as the breeze continued favorable we kept going 

 on under these disadvantages & in the evening the Arm again 

 divided into two branches, one took a South Easterly direc- 

 tion which we foUowd till the dusk of the evening & then 

 stopped near a large stream of fresh water for the night at 

 the entrance of the Arm, the Western point of which after- 

 wards obtaind the name of Point Mensies. — The Water of 

 the Arm was here almost fresh & very pale, but no other 



1792. 

 Aug. 15th. 



Aug. 16tb. 



See Appendix. 



Laboachere 

 CbaoQel. 



South Bentinck 

 Arm. 



Dividing S. 

 Bentinck Arm 

 from Burke 

 Channel. 



