560 NORTHMOST AUSTRALIA 



the knee the day we passed Sefton Creek, we busied ourselves in 

 making ourselves as comfortable as we could in WET-SEASON QUARTERS. 

 Crosbie's party put up a bark shed to keep their fire in. We put 

 up an old fly for the fire, and a fly with a table and seats for meals 

 and drawing. 



Hume and Hamil, prospecting in beaches on the creek, could 

 get no gold. 



Crosbie and I crossed the creek by a teatree, which we were 

 fortunate enough to find bridging it, and made for a hill on its 

 left bank about 2 miles down, whence we hoped to get a view to 

 the north-east. We were disappointed, for we had barely reached 

 the foot of the hill when rain and fog suddenly obscured everything, 

 and we had to return to the camp. The country on the left bank 

 of CANOE CREEK was composed of sandstone and conglomerate 

 cement, affording fairly sound travelling, but covered with HEATH 

 and brushwood SCRUB, through which horses could only be driven 

 with much difficulty. 



Rain all night. 



February 3. Heavy rain in the morning. The rest of the day 

 dull and showery. Drizzling all night. 



I went out towards the hill we attempted to visit yesterday, but 

 found the teatree bridging the creek at least 4 feet under water. 



February 4. There was not much rain to-day. In the after- 

 noon, Crosbie, Hume and I went to the hill on the left bank, the 

 teatree bridge being again practicable. We saw CANOE CREEK 

 going north for 5 or 6 miles from the hill. A SANDSTONE TABLE- 

 LAND lay to the west and north-west, and there was an outlier 

 of sandstone on the right side of the valley. High granite mountains 

 QANET RANGE) to the east. The valley was a barren heathy flat, 

 and apparently had its outlet to the north-east. 



February 5. Macdonald and I crossed CANOE CREEK, where we 

 had crossed with the horses on 3ist January, and found the water 

 only about 6 inches higher than on that occasion. My intention 

 was to penetrate to the west for some distance, and see what had 

 become of the river we had left on the 3oth [the PASCOE RIVER]. 

 We had hardly got half a mile from Canoe Creek when a perfect 

 deluge of rain began. After waiting for some time we had to return 

 to the camp, as there was no sign of improvement ; the ground 

 was becoming boggy and the ford would soon be impassable. 

 The rain continued all day, and got very heavy again at nightfall. 

 In the afternoon the creek was as high as it had been since we camped 

 here. The ground was now so soft that it would take three or 

 four dry days before it could be fit for horses. 



February 6. A fine day, occasionally cloudy. The sun very 

 warm. 



I went over the hill-tops east of the camp (fine-grained granite) 

 and made out that the river between Camps 33 and 34 [the PASCOE. 



