24th September 1768

Tenerife

A fresh Breeze and Clear weather the most part of these 24 Hours. I take this to be the North-East Trade we have now got into. At 6 p.m. the North-East end of the Island of Teneriff West by North, distance 3 or 4 Leagues. Off this North-East point lies some Rocks high above the water. The highest is near the point, and very remarkable. By our run from Yesterday at Noon this end of the Island must lie in the latitude of 28 degrees 27 minutes and South 7 degrees 45 minutes East, distance 83 leagues from Funchal, and South 18 degrees West, 98 miles from the Salvages. At 1 a.m. the Peak of Teneriff bore West-North-West. Found the Variation to be this morning 16 degrees 14 minutes West. The Peak of Teneriff (from which I now take my departure) is a very high Mountain upon the Island of the same name--one of the Canary Islands. Its perpendicular higth from Actual Measurement is said to be 15,396 feet. It lies in the Latitude of 28 degrees 13 minutes North, and Longitude 16 degrees 32 minutes from Greenwich. Its situation in this respect is allowed to be pretty well determined. Wind North-East by East; latitude 27 degrees 10 minutes North; at noon Peak of Teneriff North 18 degrees 45 minutes, 74 miles.

Joseph Banks Journal

This Morn the Pike appeard very plain and immensely above the clouds, as may well be imagin'd by its hight which Dr Heberden of Madeira who has been himself upon it communicated to us, 15,396 feet. The Dr also says that tho there is no eruption of visible fire from it, yet heat issues from the chinks near the top so strongly that a person who putts his hand upon these is scalded; from him we receivd among many other favours some salt which he supposes to be the true natron or nitrum of the ancients, and some native sulphur exceedingly pure, both which he collected himself on the top of the mountain, where large quantities, especialy of the salt, are found on the surface of the Earth.

Sydney Parkinson’s Journal

We sailed between that peak and the grand Canary islands. In our passage we saw some land birds, and caught two of them, which were very much like our water wag-tail.