3 May 1770

James Cook's Journal: Daily Entries

Table of Contents On this day ... 3 May 1770 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 1770 Index Search Contact us Search for Nautical Term in Falconer's Dictionary of the Marine...

3 May 1770 Thursday 3rd Winds at SE a gentle breeze and fair weather. In the PM I made a little excursion along the Sea Coast to the southward accompaned by Mr Banks and Dr Solander. At our first entering the woods we saw 3 of the natives who made off as soon as they saw us - more of them were seen by others of our people but who likewise made off as soon as they found they were discover'd. In the AM I went in the Pinnace to the head of the Bay accompan'd by Drs Soland [sic] and Munkhouse in order to examine the Country and to try to form some Connections with the natives: in our way thither we met with 10 or 12 of them fishing each in a Small Canoe who retired in to shoald water upon our approach, others again we saw at the first place we landed at who took to their Canoes and fled before we came near them: after this we took water and went almost to the head of the inlet where we landed and travel'd some distance inland. We found the ^face of the Country much the same as I have before described but the soil land much richer being for instead of sand I found in many places a deep black Soil which we thought was capable of produceing any kind of grain at present it produceth besides timber as fine meadow as ever was seen    However we found it not all like this     some few places were very rocky but this I beleive to be uncommon. the stone is sandy and very proper for building &Ca After we had sufficiently examined this part we return'd to the boat and seeing some smook and Canoes at a nother part we went theither in hopes of meeting with the people but they made off as we approached - there were Six Canoes and Six small fires near the shore and Muscles roasting upon ^thim and a few Oysters laying near, from this we conjecturd that there had been just Six people who had been out each in his Canoe picking up Muscles & oysters the Shell fish and come a shore to eat them where each had made his fire to dress them by - we taisted of their cheer and left them in return Strings of beeds &Ca ^near to this place at the foot of a tree was a small well or Spring of [check MS] w[ate]r The day being now far spent we set out on our return to the Ship — Voyaging Accounts © Transcription by Paul Turnbull of National Library of Australia, Manuscript 1 page 230, 2004 Published by kind permission of the Library To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/cook/17700503.html