A New Discovery?
Just ten weeks after Murray’s brief exploration, Flinders entered the bay during his circumnavigation of the continent. He presumed that he had made a new discovery and, not surprisingly, given the fracas with the crew of the Lady Nelson, Flinders saw nothing of the Aborigines.
26 April—In the morning we kept close to an east-south-east wind, steering for the land to the north-eastward; and at nine o’clock Captain Grant’s Cape Schanck, the extreme of the preceding evening, was five leagues distant to the N88°E, and a rocky point towards the head of the bight, bore N12°E. On coming within five miles of the shore at eleven o’clock, we found it to be low, and mostly sandy; and that the bluff head which had been taken for the north-end of an island, was part of a ridge of hills rising at Cape Schanck…
On the west side of the rocky point there was a small opening, with breaking water across it; however, on advancing a little more westward the opening assumed a more interesting aspect, and I bore away to have a nearer view. A large extent of water presently became visible within side; and although the entrance seemed to be very narrow, and there were in it strong ripplings like breakers, I was induced to steer in at half past one; the ship being close upon a wind and every man ready for tacking at a moment’s warning…
The extensive harbour we had thus unexpectedly found I supposed must be Western Port, although the narrowness of the entrance did by no means correspond with the width given to it by Mr Bass. It was the information of Captain Baudin, who had coasted along from thence with fine weather, and had found no inlet of any kind, which induced this supposition; and the very great extent of the place, agreeing with that of Western Port, was in confirmation of it. This, however, was not Western Port, as we found next morning; and I congratulated myself on having made a new and useful discovery; but here again I was in error. This place, as I afterwards learned at Port Jackson, had been discovered ten weeks before by Lieutenant John Murray, who had succeeded Captain Grant in the command of the Lady Nelson. He had given it the name of Port Phillip, and to the rocky point on the east side of the entrance, that of Point Nepean.
27 April—Our situation was found in the morning to be near two miles from the south shore, and the extreme towards Point Nepean bore N83°W, two leagues. About three miles to the north-by-west were some dry rocks, with bushes on them, surrounded with mud flats; and they appeared to form a part of the same shoal from which we had three times tacked in 21/2 and 3 fathoms. The mud bank where the ship had grounded is distinct from the middle shoal; but I am not certain that it is so from the south shore, from which it is one mile distant. The bluff mount (named Arthur’s Seat by Mr Murray, from a supposed resemblance to the hill of that name near Edinburgh), bore S76°E; but from thence the shore trended northward so far that the land at the head of the port could not be seen, even from aloft. Before proceeding any higher with the ship, I wished to gain some knowledge of the form and extent of this great piece of water; and Arthur’s Seat being more than a thousand feet high and near the water side, presented a favourable station for that purpose.
After breakfast I went away in a boat, accompanied by Mr Brown and some other gentlemen, for the Seat. It was seven or eight miles from the ship; and in steering nearly a straight course for it, we passed over the northern skirt of the shoal where the ship had touched; but afterwards had from 7 to 5 fathoms nearly to the shore. Having observed the latitude there from an artificial horizon, I ascended the hill; and to my surprise found the port so extensive that even at this elevation its boundary to the northward could not be distinguished. The western shore extended from the entrance ten or eleven miles in a northern direction to the extremity of what, from its appearance, I called Indented Head; beyond it was a wide branch of the port leading to the westward, and I suspected might have a communication with the sea; for it was almost incredible that such a vast piece of water should not have a larger outlet than that through which we had come.
I took an extensive set of bearings from the clearest place to be found on the north-western bluff part of the hill; and we afterwards walked a little way back upon the ridge. From thence another considerable piece of water was seen, at the distance of three or four leagues; it seemed to be mostly shallow; but as it appeared to have a communication with the sea to the south, I had no doubt of its being Mr Bass’ Western Port.
Arthur’s Seat and the hills and valleys in its neighbourhood, were generally well covered with wood; and the soil was superior to any upon the borders of the salt water, which I have had an opportunity of examining in Terra Australis. There were many marks of natives, such as deserted fire places and heaps of oyster shells; and upon the peninsula which forms the south side of the port, a smoke was rising, but we did not see any of the people. Quantities of fine oysters were lying upon the beaches, between high and low water marks, and appeared to have been washed up by the surf; a circumstance which I do not recollect to have observed in any other part of this country.