It is little remarkable that the day on which we anchored should be the
anniversary of the discovery of the bay; for Captain Cook anchored here
on the eve of Trinity Sunday, fifty-one years before, and named the bay
between Capes Grafton and Tribulation, in reverence of the following day.
In passing between Cape Grafton and Fitzroy Island, eight or ten natives
were observed seated on the rocks at the south end of the beach: one of
them waved his spear to us as we passed, but the distance was too great
to take any notice of him.

In the afternoon we landed upon the small island in the bay, and found it
to be separated from the mainland by a very shoal channel, through which
our boat had some difficulty in passing; the island is small, and formed
of loose fragments of granite, over which the decomposed vegetable matter
had formed a soil, which, although shallow, was sufficient to nourish
some luxuriant grass (panicum) and a robust species of eucalyptus: among
these large flights of cockatoos and parroquets were hovering, but they
were very shy, and did not allow us to approach them: a small dove,
common to other parts of the coast, was killed. A native was seen walking
along a sandy beach behind the island, but proceeded without noticing our
boat, which was at that time passing.

June 18.

The following day the weather was so clear that, in the early part of the
morning, we distinctly saw the summit of the land at the back of Cape
Tribulation, bearing North 43 degrees West (magnetic); it must have been
fifty-five or sixty miles off; the fall of the land towards the extremity
of the cape was also seen, bearing North 35 degrees 50 minutes West
fifty-six miles.