31st May 1770

[At Anchor, Thirsty Sound]
Winds Southerly and South-East; Dark, Hazey weather, with rain. In the P.M., finding no one inducement to stay longer in this place, we at 6 a.m. Weighed and put to Sea, and stood to the North-West, having the Advantage of a fresh breeze at South-South-East. We keept without the Group of Islands which lay in Shore, and to the North-West of Thirsty Sound, as there appear'd to be no safe passage between them and the Main; at the same time we had a number of Islands without us extending out to Sea as far as we could see; as we run in this direction our depth of Water was 10, 8 and 9 fathoms.* (* The ship passed between the Duke Islands and the maze of reefs and islands lying North-West of Thirsty Sound.) At Noon the North-West point of Thirsty Sound, which I have named Pier head, bore South 36 degrees East, distant 5 Leagues; the East point of the other inlet, which Communicates with the former, as I have before mentioned, bore South by West, distance 2 1/2 Leagues, the Group of Islands above mentioned laying between us and the point. The farthest part of the Main in sight, on the other side of the inlet, bore North-West; our Latitude by Observation was 21 degrees 53 minutes South.

Joseph Banks Journal
Went out this morn, the weather misty and rainy and fresh breeze. As we had found by experience that many sands and shoals lay off the coast a boat was sent ahead; at noon she made a signal for shoal water on which we came to an anchor; the boats sounded and found a Passage on which we proceeded and at night came to an anchor under the shelter of an Island in the midst of Innumerable Islands, rocks and shoals.

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