The shores of the lake, as usual, were covered with samphire, having something the appearance of heather.  At this season the plant is soft and juicy, and, though salt, makes capital feed for camels.  In the summer it withers up to dry sticks and has no moisture.  Once out of sight of the lake we were disgusted at coming into a belt of flat spinifex country, and were afraid that already we had reached the confines of the desert, more especially since in 1894 I had placed its edge in that longitude.  However, we were agreeably disappointed, for after a few miles the spinifex ceased, and on penetrating a dense thicket we debouched on a fine grassy flat.  In the centre ran a line of large white gums (Creek gums, eucalyptus ROSTRATA), the sure sign of a creek.  We were not mistaken, for down the avenue a watercourse wound its way.  The gravelly bed was quite dry.  Climbing a tree, from which to follow with my glasses the course of the creek, I could see some hills to the northward; in them the creek evidently rose.  Whilst I was climbing, Breaden amused himself by breaking off pieces of the small roots of the gums which the creek had washed here.  By breaking these quite an appreciable amount of moisture could be got, enough to save a man’s life.  But I fancy that these roots only hold water after rain, and that when they are water-bearing, pools also are to be found in the creeks.  Numerous emu and turkey tracks led up the watercourse, but, though seeing several emu, we were unable to get a shot.  Following the creek upwards, for near the head one is likely to find rocky pools, we soon came on a nice waterhole and made camp.  I traced the creek to its source in the evening and found the hills to be granite, and discovered one deep pool in the solid rock under a steep step in the creek bed.  Along the banks herbage and green stuff were growing in profusion.  Our beasts were content to feed amicably together, and with the exception of a sly bite no longer showed signs of ill-feeling.  We were thankful indeed to see them “off season.”  Here we gave them a good drink and filled our casks and neckbags, carrying in all sixty-two gallons.  We had been so well off for water up to this point, that we had hopes that the rain had penetrated inland.

Leaving the creek on July 29th we again entered the scrub, finding it lower and more open, the ground covered with occasional patches of grass and a little squashy plant straggling along the ground—­“Pigweed” is the local name; it belongs, I believe, to the “portulacaceae.”  It is eaten by the blacks, and would make excellent feed for stock were it higher from the ground.

This day we saw the last auriferous country we were to meet with until Kimberley was reached.  These hills, of diorite, with occasional blows of ironstone, I take to be a continuation the Neckersgat Range (Wells, 1892).  Many traces of prospectors were visible here—­the last to be seen for many a day—­shallow dry-blowing holes and little heaps of sieved dirt, and the tracks of camels and horses.  This was a piece of country worth trying, had we not had other objects in view.