Our Horses Have Recruited Themselves Exceedingly Within The Last Ten
Days, And Being Lightly Laden, I Have Great Hopes Of
Being enabled to
reach Bathurst before our provisions are altogether expended; we have
now left but four pounds and a
Half of flour, and the same quantity of
pork per man; our chief dependence must be on the success of our dogs
for any additional supplies, and in such a country as the present, we
have no fear of being in want of food.
We had scarcely laden our horses and began to proceed up the river, when
the rain recommenced, and continuing without intermission, obliged us to
halt after we had gone about six miles; which we did upon a reach of the
river, that for magnitude and extent equals if not surpasses any in the
Hawkesbury, and exceeds that much admired one on the Nepean River,
winding round Emu Plains. The country on both sides was of the greatest
possible fertility, and beautifully diversified by hills and open
valleys. Timber is good, and in two places where the hills on this side
nearly closed on the river, immense quantities of fine limestone were
again found, the rocks being entirely composed of it. The rapids were
few and unimportant, and occasioned as usual by the river dividing into
two channels forming small islets. They did not appear to me to impede
in any manner the navigation of the river; the open reaches had
apparently depth to float the largest vessels, and there was certainly
breadth sufficient for that purpose. Nothing in fact can be imagined
grander or more beautiful than we have hitherto found the river, and
that too so near Bathurst that no reasonable expectation could have been
formed of finding it such as we did. Many good specimens of agate
forming on granite were found on the hills, chiefly where the limestone
appeared in the largest and most continued stratum. We indulged
ourselves in the probable speculation, that where limestone was found in
such abundance as in this country, quarries of marble would also be
discovered not far beneath the surface, as is usual in other countries
most abounding in this useful stone. Fish and emus were procured in
great quantities in the course of the afternoon.
August 23 - The last allowance of our provisions was now distributed, and
at half past eight o'clock we proceeded up the river, which this day
might be said to come through a mountainous country. Rocky points of
hills frequently terminated on the river and occasionally opened into
fine valleys and flats: in every valley a watercourse conveyed the
waters from the back country to the river. I think the north bank was
most frequently the lower: several small runs of water also fell in on
that side. The hills, uniformly stony and rocky as they were, were
covered with good grass to their summits. The scenery on the river was
beautifully picturesque, and more magnificent reaches cannot be found in
any river; these were interrupted in their uniform course by rapids,
which having a much greater fall than any we had seen lower down, would
materially impede the navigation of the river by boats farther than this
station, up to which point I conceive it navigable.
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