THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 29 



The trees are principally very large white-gums, Lilypilli, 

 Elaocarpus, with its blue berries, Drymis, Panax sa77ibucifolius, 

 waratahs and blackwood, with Vitis hypoglauca, and long festoons 

 of Smilax and Clematis. The tree ferns are very fine indeed, and 

 the ground thick with Lomarias and Gleichenias. When the Lily- 

 pilli and waratah are in bloom these gullies and hillsides, with 

 their dense luxuriant jungle growth, must present a wonderful 

 blaze of colour. As it is, the white flowers of Stackhousia, Pimelia, 

 Lomatia, and Bursaria, the pink Comesperma and red Dipodium, 

 the blue of large clusters of Dianella berries and Lobelia and 

 Scsevola flowers, and the violet of the fringed lilies serve to relieve 

 the monotony of dull green. The track winds about somewhat, 

 and skirts first the north and then the south side of the ridge, giving 

 us alternately views of Mt. EUery, backed by the coast ranges, 

 and of the M'Culloch and lower ranges to the south. 



The highest point we touch is 1,500 feet, and a steep descent 

 brings us once more down to the river Brodribb, where it runs in 

 a sharp bend round the western end of the ridge we have been 

 traversing all day. We camp on a small flat 450 feet above the 

 sea level, the hills rising directly from the stream in the form of 

 an amphitheatre on the opposite (western) side (14). 



It may be noted that in the ordinance map the Sardine Creek 

 is wrongly marked as joining the Brodribb just at this point. In 

 reality it enters half-a-mile higher up, and not just where the 

 main stream takes this sharp bend to flow round the end of the 

 hill ridge of silurian rocks running east and west. 



Saturday, 19TH January. — We cross the Brodribb, which is 

 here a good-sized stream some 40 ft. wide, and join the track 

 which passes south from Bonang to Orbost, and which we had 

 quitted when we struck east from Goonegerah to Mt. Ellery. 

 The track keeps to the hills, and lies for the most part along 

 silurian strata, save where in two places — one soon after leaving the 

 Brodribb, and another on Mt. Watt — a strip of granite runs across 

 from the east. We soon reach the height of 1,300 ft, and have 

 very fine views, giving us a good idea of the general lay of the 

 country, for we can see the whole district from Mt. Raymond in 

 the south to the coast ranges in the north. The track then passes 

 over Mt. Watt, where we halt for lunch, and then, rising to 

 1,700 ft, crosses the very top of Mt. Buck. The great idea of 

 the original cutters of the track would seem to have been that of 

 scaling every possible hill, and avoiding every opportunity of 

 gentle gradients, and they have succeeded admirably. However, 

 from Mt. Buck we get a fine view south, with Orbost and the 

 Snowy flats and Lake Curlip on the Brodribb, and away in the 

 distance the sandhills and breakers on the beach at Marlow. 

 The hills have lately been fired, and look desolate in the extreme. 

 In parts not a blade of grass is to be seen. From the foot of Mt. 



