112 
CRUISE OF H.M.S. CHALLENGER. 
for Australia — Trawling — The weather — The last iceberg— Pass- 
age to Australia — Land in sight — Arrive and anchor in Hobson’s 
Bay, Victoria. 
There can scarcely be a landscape more gloomy and 
desolate than the sterile rocky mountain and white 
sandy plains which inclose Simon’s Bay. Coming 
from the coast of Brazil, and the beautiful garden 
scenery of St. Michael’s, with its luxuriant verdure, 
the contrast becomes doubly unpleasing and cheerless. 
The town consists of about a couple of hundred 
of square white-washed houses, which are scattered 
along the beach, with scarcely a single tree in the 
neighbourhood for shelter, backed up with lofty, 
steep, bare hills of sandstone. The Naval Yard 
occupies a prominent position, and is of great service 
to the vessels employed on this station ; here repairs 
are efficiently performed, and stores of all descrip- 
tions are to be obtained. 
The Naval Hospital is a capital airy and well-venti- 
lated establishment ; this, together with the residence 
of the Commodore, and two or three churches and 
chapels, constitutes all the buildings with any preten- 
sions to size. 
Shortly after our arrival, parties were made up for 
visiting Cape Town, and having secured seats in the 
car which runs daily to Wynberg, we started one 
fine morning from Simon’s Town. The road ran 
along the seashore for some distance, which, before 
reaching, appeared to consist of nothing but sand 
