or bar in ten feet water, which was not sufficient to float her; for she struck the ground violently every time that the swell passed by.  Upon the main boom being got over, and the vessel’s heel touching the ground at the same instant, her head flew up in the wind, and she was very nearly thrown back upon the bank.  This was, however, fortunately prevented:  in a few seconds she reached deeper water and we providentially escaped a danger which had so nearly proved fatal to the vessel and our lives; for had the cutter remained a-ground on the bank during the night the sea was so heavy that there would not have been the least vestige of her the following morning.  To commemorate this occurrence, I have distinguished the opening with the name of Escape River.

Having reached an offing we bore up for Turtle Island, intending to pass within it and anchor under its lee; but the appearance of the inner channel being suspicious, the plan was altered and we passed outside.  As soon as we were to the northward of it we hauled in, but were prevented from anchoring under its lee by a reef that extended for a considerable distance off its north side.  We were now rather critically placed for the evening was closing in with every appearance of bad weather, and we were obliged to anchor in a very exposed situation without any protection either from the wind or sea.  During the night the former blew hard from the South-East with thick rainy weather; and, with tide, raised a short deep swell, that caused the cutter to ride very uneasily at her anchor.

July 25.

At four o’clock in the morning the ring of the anchor broke and we drifted a cable’s length to leeward before another could be dropped.  At daylight the wind blew so hard as to prevent our picking up the broken anchor and we proceeded towards Mount Adolphus, passing half a mile to the eastward of Albany Islands that lie off the south-east end of Cape York.

As the soundings between Mount Adolphus and the Investigator’s track to the north of Wednesday and Hammond’s Islands had not been previously laid down by Captain Flinders, I determined on passing out that way; and after clearing the channel between Mount Adolphus and Cape York, steered for the North-East end of Wednesday Island, leaving the rock, a, a quarter of a mile to the eastward of our course.  Off the extremity of Cape York is an island of conical shape separated from it by a very narrow rocky channel.  The land to the westward of this projection trends slightly in and forms a sandy bay fronted by a reef and some rocky islets.  The hills at the back of Cape York are moderately high and rugged, and only covered with a slight vegetation.

Mount Adolphus is high and flat topped and there was some appearance of a good anchorage in a bight under its north-west side, where also the side of the hill appeared to be thickly wooded, and worth a visit, but the lateness of the hour did not permit the delay.