>792- fathoms. The land breeze was fucceeded by one from the N.w.: at
October. /
» — _* noon the obferved latitude was 47° 14', longitude 2350 59, very nearly
correfponding with the pofition of this coaft as laid down by us in the
fpring. In this fituation the northernmoft land in fight by compafs
bore n . 28 w . ; the perforated rock noticed off point Grenville in the
morning of the 28th c f april, N. 15 w.. ; mount Olympus N..14 e . ; the
neareft fhore, being a fmall detached rock, s.. 8© e . three or four miles,
diftant; two low points of land which we confidered to form the points
o f Gray’s harbour, s. 40 e . ; and s. 36 e . ; and the fouthernmoft land in
fight s. 32 e . In the courfe of the morning'we had feen a remarkably
high round mountain, which now bore by compafs n . 79 e . and rofe con-
ip it: u on liy from a plain of low, or rather moderately elevated land, and
was covered with fnow as far down as the intervening hills permitted us
to fee. We entertained little doubt o f its being mount Rainier, which
was foon afterwards confirmed; its diftance from us being an hundred,
geographical miles.
The weather and every other circumftance concurring to promote the
defign I had formed of re-examining this coaft, I directed that Mr.
Whidbey, taking one of the Difco very's boats, fhould proceed in the
Daedalus to examine Gray’s harbour, faid to be fituated in latitude 46“
53', whilft the Chatham and Difcovery explored the river Mr. Gray
had difeovered in the latitude of 46“ 10’. In the event of our not meeting
with the Daedalus before we reached Monterrey, that port was appointed
as a rendezvous. We proceeded to the fouthward at the diftance
of 3 or 4 miles from the fhore, having regular foundings at a.
depth from 13 to ig fathoms.
Towards midnight the light n .w . wind, which had prevailed during
moll part of the day, was fucceeded by a calm, on which we anchored in
16 fathoms water, and at day-light the next morning difeovered our
fituation to be off the bay we had endeavoured to enter the 27th of laft
april, and about 2 miles from the outermoft of the breakers, which bore
by compafs N. 73 e . ; the fouthernmoft part of the coaft in fight s. s. E. ;
mount Rainier n . 66 e . ; the s. e . point of Gray’s harbour, which is low
projefting land, covered with trees, n. 2 w.; and mount Olympus, our
northern-
419
northernmoft land in view, north. This by various obfervations, I found
to be fituated in latitude 47° 50', longitude 236° 4- Here the Bay be- i_— .—
fore us did not appear to fall fo far back as I had been led to fuppofe, Fllday 9
but the low' land projected further into the ocean than it had appeared
to do on our former view of i t ; and inllcad of the breakers being in-
tirely connefted, two fmall openings were difeovered, which, however,
from the colour of the water, and the riling of the fwell acrofs them(
muft be very fhallow. Broken water was alfo feen in every direction
between the outer reefs and the fhore, the latter of which was not discernible
until eleven o’clock, when a breeze fet in from the n .w . which
difperfed the haze, and fhewed the boundary o f the coaft to be one uninterrupted
beach, lined with breakers at irregular diftances from it.
With this breeze we weighed anchor. The latitude obferved at noon
was 46° 42', but obfervations for the chronometer were not procured.
With a pleafant gale and fine weather we coafted along this delightful
and apparently fertile part o f New Georgia, at the diftance of about a league
from the fhoals, having foundings from 10 to 16 fathoips, until four in
the afternoon, when having nearly reached cape Difappointment, which
forms the north point of entrance into Columbia river, fo named by
Mr. Gray, I directed the Chatham to lead into it, and on her arrival
at the bar fhould no more than 4-fathoms water be found, the fignal for
danger was to be made ; but if the channel appeared to be further navigable,
then to proceed.
As we followed the Chatham the depth of water decreafed to 4 fathoms,
in which we failed fome little time without being able to diftin-
guilh the entrance into the river, the Tea breaking in a greater or lefs
degree from fhore to fhore ; but as the Chatham continued to purfue her
courfe, I concluded fhe was in a fair channel. We however foon arrived
in 3 fathoms, and as the water was becoming lefs deep, and breaking
in all direftioms around us, I hauled to, the weftward in order to
efcape the threatened danger. In doing this we were aflifted by a very
ftrong ebb tide that fat out of the river, and which oppofing a very
heavy fwell that rolled from the weftward direflly on the fhore, caufed
an irregular and dangerous fea. By feven, our depth of water had in-
3 H 2 creafed