We dug a well under a sandhill, but only obtained brine.
This obstruction was apparently six or seven miles across, but whether what we took for its opposite shores were islands or the main, I could not determine.

We saw several sandhill islands, some very high and deeply red, to which the mirage gave the effect of their floating in an ocean of water.

Farther along the shore eastwards were several high red sandhills; to these we went and dug another well and got more brine.

We could see the lake stretching away east or east-south-east as far as the glasses could carry the vision.

Here we made another attempt to cross, but the horses were all floundering about in the bottomless bed of this infernal lake before we could look round.