Thursday, July 17.

Camp 36.  Ice again this morning, very cold during the night.  Started at 8 a.m.; four and a half miles on bearing of south by east along and over basalt country, crossed rocky oak creek at three and a half miles from west by south, swampy; continued this bearing for six and three-quarter to seven miles and changed course to 60 degrees east of south; one and three-quarter miles an immense swamp and lagoons, basalt ridges; close round crossed over these ridges; bore a little more to the east; and at five and three-quarters crossed a splendid stream from south by west with a number of anabranches.  Basalt on the flats as well as the ridges; changed course to about east by south, horses tiring; halted at same, strong-running stream at four and three-quarter miles; as it passes it flows over falls in an east-south-east course along the foot of basalt ridges and comes, as far as visible, from west and north.  East of this, apparently opposite side of the Burdekin River, are bald-topped ridges about eight miles distant; basalt ridge on this side a considerable distance in that direction.  Distance twenty-two miles today.  I have taken the liberty of naming the stream (to all intents and purposes an important river, though narrow compared with some streams, but down which quite as great a supply of pure water is now running as in the Burdekin) the River Browne after W.J.  Browne, Esquire, of Booboorowie, South Australia.  Large masses of granite are here in the bed of this river and on its banks, although the ridges close by are composed of very cellular basalt and close-grained sandstone.  No mountains visible at all close in any direction.  From the top of the heights, close to our camp, lots of tracks of sheep and cattle.  No appearance of a station; fancy they have taken to the creeks.

Friday, July 18.

Very cold during the night, but beautiful morning.  This river runs parallel to the Burdekin for some distance and at only a very short distance between.  Started at 8.20 a.m. over the basalt ridges for the sake of better travelling than we are likely to have in the Burdekin, for some distance at least.  South for one mile, then east-south-east through open forest with basalt blocks occasionally, and rather swampy-inclined land for two and three-quarter miles.  Crossed a small sandy creek, vast numbers of young palms, from south, then the land of granite formation and stony; drainage to north and east.  At three and one quarter miles crossed large sandy creek with water and a number of large palms and gums, from south-west, immediately after crossing, undulations of quite sandy country but commencing with but little scrub; but at about three miles from the creek obliged to turn out of it in a north-north-east course or all our packs would have been torn off; the scrub was full of game.  On the last course we went about one and a half miles till we got to the edge of the scrub, then about east by north for about one and a half miles on to the