On this day ...
21 August 1770
Endeavour Voyage Maps
James Cook's Journal Ms 1, National Library of Australia
Transcript of Cook's Journal
Joseph Banks's Journal
Sydney Parkinson's Journal
Endeavour River to the Northern Extremity of the Country
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Early in the morning, we made sail again, and steered N.N.W. by compass, for the northermost land in sight; and at this time, we observed the variation of the needle to be 3° 6’ E. At eight o’clock, we discovered shoals ahead, and on our larboard bow, and saw that the northermost land, which we had taken for the main, was detached from it, and that we might pass between them, by running to leeward of the shoals on our larboard bow, which were now near us: we therefore wore and brought to, sending away the pinnace and yawl to direct us, and then steered N.W. along the S.W. or inside of the shoals, keeping a good lookout from the mast-head, and having another shoal on our larboard side: we found however a good channel of a mile broad between them, in which we had from ten to fourteen fathom. At eleven o’clock, we were nearly the length of the land detached from the main, and there appeared to be no obstruction in the passage between them, yet having the long-boat astern, and rigged, we sent her away to keep in shore upon our larboard bow, and at the same time dispatched the pinnace a-starboard; precautions which I thought necessary, as we had a strong flood that carried us an end very fast, and it was near high water: as soon as the boats were ahead, we stood after them, and by noon, got through the passage. Our latitude, by observation, was then 10° 36’, and the nearest part of the main, which we soon after found to be the northermost, bore W. 2 S. distant between three or four miles: we found the land which was detached from the main, to be a single island, extending from N. to N. 75 E. distant between two and three miles; at the same time we saw other islands at a considerable distance, extending from N. by W. to W.N.W. and behind them another chain of high land, which we judged also to be islands: there were still other islands, extending as far as N. 71 W. which at this time we took for the main.
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© Derived from Vols. II-III of the London 1773 edition: National Library of Australia call no. FERG 7243, pages 612 - 613, 2004
Published by kind permission of the Library
To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/hv23/612.html