Narrative of the surveying voyages of his majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle (vol.1): between the years 1826 and 1836 : describing their examination of the southern shores of South America, and the Beagles's circumnavigation of the globe

Dec. 1829. LANDFALL ISLAND CAPK GLOUCESTER. 363 generally clouded over. Our only chance appeared to be, going from harbovir to harbour and keeping close in-shore. " Behind Landfall Island the coast forms a deep bay, appa- rently full of islands, and it is said there is in that part a communication with the Strait of Magalhaens. Looking from seaward there seems to be an opening. " From the southern point of this bay the coast presents a high and regular line for a few miles, and then there is a succession of islets, rocks, and broken land. We stood in close to the breakers, but too late in the evening to find an anchorage. I observed kelp on the surface of the water, growing up from the bottom, while the lead gave a depth of forty-five fathoms. This was in a wild-looking, open bight, full of rocks and breakers, and much exposed. " We stood off, close to the wind, hoping to make northing and westing during the night ; but at midnight it fell calm, and at day-break on the 6th, to our astonishment, we found ourselves to the southward of Cape Gloucester, a high, remai'k- able promontory, standing out from the land as if it were an island, with a peaked top, which, from the southward, appears notched. The day proved very fine, and as a breeze sprung up from the S.E. and gradually increased, I had hopes of seeing more of the coast, along which we had been hustled so fast, and so much against our inclination. "In running along shore, I noticed several inlets that seemed likely to afford good harbours. This coast has not, by any means, such a rugged and harsh appearance as I expected ; but the number of islets and breakers is quite enough to give it a most dangerous character. The land is not very high near the sea, and seems to be wooded wherever the prevailing winds will allow trees to grow. Soundings were taken at various dis- tances within four miles of the shore, and the depth generally was between twenty and one hundred fathoms. A good idea may be formed of the current which had taken us to the S.E., when I say that, even with a fresh and fair wind, it occupied us the whole of the 6th to regain the place we had left the pre- vious evening.