Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt, logbook of a journey from Port Stephens to Peak Range, 1 October 1846-3 November 1847 - Page 51

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47
our latit. by Betelguese is 26º16', 4 miles South of Dried beef creek, which I am going to visit today. The country along scrub creek is in part very fine and open in part covered with Cypresspine. There are few muskitoes here. The night breeze was strong, the moonlight night most beautiful.
10th Jan. I rode yesterday with Wominar up Dried Beef Creek and came on a camp of Hodgson with a tree marked H. We had seen horsetracks all along. About 4 miles from the junction we found our old camp, at which we had killed the first steer. My botanical recollections were the most lively and I recognized the place by a patch of sedges, which I had frequently examined. The remains of huts and forked sticks for drying our meat were still visible: bones of the steer and an old shoe of Caleb were also still extant. When we returned we had very strong puffs of wind from the Westward and SWest, but during the night the NEast breeze is more or less strong, though generally in puffs of various duration. The heat is very great during the day. Mr Bunce found several interesting little plants, particularly a species of Drosera with long linear leaves on the stem a small campanulaceous plant. A Dodonaea with compound and simple leaves, a [indecipherable] little shrub. Casuarina villeoa mich. grows here, though I observed it first on the Robinson Ranges. Boronia new spec. - Two spec. of Hylecteus one with spathulate the other with linear leaf adorns the forest. Amongst the grasses I observed a spec. of Paspalum frequently. A Eulospirnum (small shrub) grows along the water, a Calistemon was observed near Dogwood creek, Porantharm (a little [indecipherable] shrub) was in fruit. The rusty gum in blossom. It is remarkable, how copiously this tree sheds a brown gum, when act. -
Today we travelled to Dried Beef camp and went on for a mile farther to Northw., if possible the stage to the Dawson. I shall stop here and wait for my companions. Thunderclouds have threatened several times, but have not come up.

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