CHAPTEE X. 

 THE CAPE GRAY PROMONTORY. 



DESCRIPTION OF LOCALITIES.* 



The promontory terminating northward at Cape Gray is situated between 

 Commonwealth Bay on the west and Watt Bay on the east. Its seaward edge is a 

 continuous line of vertical ice cliffs whose monotony is rarely interrupted by rock 

 exposures. The cliffs often rest on a rocky base and, whenever examined, they consist 

 of consolidated snow showing distinct lines of stratification. 



The promontory is thickly fringed with a large number of rocky islets which form 

 the Way Archipelago. Some of these islands have a very striking shape. Some are 

 steeply conical (Plate XXV., fig. 3) and rise out of the water with precipitous faces. 

 One has its eastern face terminating in an absolutely vertical cliff, while another forms 

 a sharp, angular wedge (Plate XXV., fig. 1) with its sides rising out of the water at an 

 angle of 60. 



Rock exposures were reached from the mainland in three places, viz., Cape Gray, 

 Garnet Point, and the Cape Pigeon Rocks, and the descent to them was made possible 

 by the presence of a steep ramp of ice or snow (Plate XXV., fig. 4). In each case 

 garnetiferous gneisses are found penetrated by altered basic dykes. As at Cape Denison 

 the basic rock has been more readily eroded and occupies the gullies and depressions. 

 It was noted that the islands appear to have the same general character as the rocks 

 examined, and the subsequent visit to Stillwell Island in the motor launch substantiates 

 this. Two islands seemed to be composed entirely of the black basic rock, while two 

 others at the head of Watt Bay are light grey, almost white, in colour, and may consist 

 of another phase of gneiss. 



Compared with Cape Denison there is a noticeable absence of morainic material, 

 but a few scattered erratics of granite and gneiss are found. Polished surfaces of rock 

 are frequently noticed on the margin of the exposure, but only one instance of glacial 

 striae, trending about N.E., is recorded on the Cape Pigeon Rocks. 



Cape Gray. 



The rock exposure referred to as Cape Gray will, doubtlessly, be an island with 

 further recession of the ice sheet. It is at present connected with the mainland by a 

 narrow snow ramp, and a general view is shown on Plate XXIV., fig. 3. The outcrop 

 is about 250yds. long and 100yds. broad, and it is elongated in an east and west direction. 

 It is divided in the middle by a transverse gullyway which is occupied by a large basic 



* This description embraces the geological field report written conjointly by Laseron and Stillwell. 



