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

374 CAPE GLOUCESTEU — EUSTON BAY. Jan. 1830. mile. The land at the bottom of the bay appeared to be dis- tant, and much broken. Indeed, from the Week Islands to Cape Gloucesterj(/) there is an almost innumerable succession of islands and rocks, without any continued tract of land, so that channels might be found in all directions ; valuable, no doubt, to Fuegians in their canoes, but not often to seamen in ships, nor even to sealers; for where the natives go with their canoes, seals are never found in any numbers. " In crossing Breaker Bay, even with a moderate wind, there was a very cross and awkward sea, owing, doubtless, to the ocean swell rolling into this deep bight. Such a swell would add much to the difficulty which vessels might find in getting out of this bay : I should therefore recommend them to avoid it particularly. Cape Gloucester is a most remarkable promon- tory, which can never be mistaken, after seeing even an indif- ferent sketch of it. At a distance it makes like a mountain rising out of the sea, but, on approaching nearer to it, a narrow neck of land appears. " We found from twenty to thirty fathoms water, at the distance of a mile from the cape ; and saw several outlying breakers about half a mile off shore. From the steep and rocky nature of these coasts one would not expect to find sound- ings until close to the land : but on every outer part of this coast, that we have visited, the bottom may be reached with the sounding line. Some natives were seen under the cape, who made a large fire. We stood into two bights, looking for anchorage, but, finding only rocks and breakers, steered along shore, rounded Ipswich Island, and hauled into a spacious bay, at the northern side of which there appeared to be several openings like harbours. In working across, we were agreeably surprised to find it a continued roadstead, open only towards the S.E., and having regular soundings, from twenty to four- teen fathoms. We anchored about a mile from the entrance of what seemed to be a harbour, at the N.W. corner, having worked up against a fresh N.W. wind. Our anchor was dropped in sixteen fathoms, and held well. I went directly to Cf) And thence to the Strait of Le Maire. — R. F.