20 October 1769

James Cook's Journal: Daily Entries

Table of Contents On this day ... 20 October 1769 Endeavour Voyage Maps James Cook's Journal Ms 1, National Library of Australia Joseph Banks's Journal Sydney Parkinson's Journal The authorised published account of Cook's Voyage by John Hawkesworth 1769 References Index Search Contact us Search for Nautical Term in Falconer's Dictionary of the Marine...

20 October 1769 Friday, 20th P.M. a fresh breeze at SSW, in the night Variable light breezes with rain   AM, a fresh breeze at SW. At 3 PM pass'd by a remarkable head Land which I call'd Gable-end Foreland on account of the very great reseblence the white clift at the very point hath to the Gable end of a house    it is made still more remarkable by a spire'd rock standing a little distance from the point it. t This head land land lies ^from Cape Table Ea N 24° East distant 12 Leagues   between them the Shore forms a Bay wherein lies Poverty Bay, 4 Leagues from the former and 8 Leagues from the Latter. From Gable end Forland — the land trends NBE as far as we could see: the land betwe from Poverty Bay to this place is of a moderate but very unequal height distinguished by hills and Vallies that are cover'd with woods: we saw as we run along shore several Villages cultivated lands and some of the Natives, in the evening some Canoes came off to the Ship and one man came on board to whom we gave a few triffles and then sent him away. Stood off and on untill day light then made sail in shore in order to look into two Bays that appear'd to our View about 2 Leagues to the northward of the Foreland    the southermost we could not fetch, but in the other we anchor'd about 11 oClock in 7 fathom water a black sandy bottom; the North point bore NE1/2N distant 2 Miles and the So point SEBE distt 1 Mile and about 3/4 of a Mile from the Shore. This Bay is not so much shilterd from the sea as I at first thought it was. but as the Natives ma^ny of whom have came about us in their canoes, appear'd to be of a friendly disposission I am was willing to try if we can could not get a little water on board, and to see a little into the nature of the Country before we proceed'd farther to the northward — Voyaging Accounts © Transcription by Paul Turnbull of National Library of Australia, Manuscript 1 page 128, 2004 Published by kind permission of the Library To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/cook/17691020.html