At Noon On The 29th Of January 1541, I Took
The Altitude Of The Sun, Which At Its Great Height Rose 62-3/4 Degrees
Above The Horizon, The Declination Of This Day Being 15 Degrees, Whence
The Latitude Of The Promontory Possidium And Mouth Of The Straits Is
12 Deg.
15' N. The pilot took the same altitude with me, and being taken on
the land, it cannot but be accurate.
[Footnote 274: From this expression it is probable that Don Juan had
described the channel between the island of Pria and the shore of
Arabia, or rather the pilot island. - E.]
SECTION III.
Continuation of the Voyage, from the Straits of Bab-el-Man-dub, to
Massua.
On the same night, two hours after midnight, we set sail from the mouth
of the straits, and by day-light on the 30th we saw the land of both the
Arabian and African coasts, being nearer to the latter. The wind blew
hard at E.S.E. till noon, and we sailed to the N.W. and by W. making our
way by a channel between the first islands and the coast of Abyssinia,
till that day unknown to the Portuguese, being about 4 leagues distant
from that coast. An hour after sunrise, we saw a range of islands along
the coast, most of them low, stretching from S.E. to N.W. and which
extended about 60 leagues. Continuing our course in this channel with a
fair wind, we saw many little islands on either side, at whatsoever part
we cast our eyes. In this channel of the Abyssins, as it is called,
it is not proper to sail by night, nor unless the wind is in the poop,
as if the wind should change there is not room to turn to windward,
neither can we come to anchor till so far forward as the first of the
first islands, when we shall observe to seawards nine little islands,
and from thence forwards the sea remains free and open to seaward, but
towards the land there still are many islands. Some of these islands are
about two leagues distant from the coast, but the greatest part of them
are close to the land. The length of this channel, between the three
first islands and the coast of Abyssinia is about 8 leagues, and the
safest navigation is nearer the continent than the islands: But in my
opinion no one ought to venture upon this passage without a pilot of the
country.
On the 31st day of January we came to a shoal with six fathoms water,
and to seawards of which, over against certain islands called the Seven
Sisters, there is a very dangerous rock as I was told by the Moorish
pilots; so that the safe navigations in this part is to go between the
shoal and the land, and in no case to pass to seawards of the shoal. At
night we came to anchor in a haven named Sarbo, or Sorbo, in 9-1/2
fathoms water; having all this day seen many little islands close to the
coast.
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