This Plain Is Basaltic, But, In The Valley Of
The Creek, Sandstone Crops Out Below It.
The slopes from the plain to the
creek are steep, and torn by deep gullies, which made travelling very
fatiguing.
As the creek again turned to the west and north-west, the
water-holes increased both in size and number, although the flats within
the valley were limited and intersected by watercourses. I sent Charley
back when we were about seven miles N.W. by N. from our camp, and
proceeded with Brown down the creek, which, at about four miles farther,
to my inexpressible delight, joined a river coming from the west and
north-west, and flowing to the east and north-east. It was not, however,
running, but formed a chain of small lakes, from two to three and even
eight miles in length, and frequently from fifty to one hundred yards
broad, offering to our view the finest succession of large sheets of
water we had seen since leaving the Brisbane. Its course continued
through a very deep and winding valley, bounded by high but generally
level land. The gullies going down to the river were generally covered
with a belt of thick scrub, as was also the high land nearest to it; but,
farther off, the country appeared to be more open, plains alternating
with open forest land, but yet, in places, much occupied by tracts of
almost impervious scrub of various extent. We met frequent traces of the
natives, who had recently gone down the river, having previously burned
the grass, leaving very little for our horses and cattle.
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