Very far to the northward on the sea horizon we saw a sandbank, surrounded with heavy breakers; and more to the westward was an island, which was at first supposed to be one of the Champagny Isles of Captain Baudin, but which I afterwards satisfied myself was Captain Heywood's Red Island: it is rocky and of small extent and apparently quite barren.

We were soon afterwards abreast of a strait leading between some rocky islands to the southward; which, as it appeared to be free from danger, we purposed to steer through.

The brig entered it at noon, when it was high-water, and as she advanced and reached the narrow part, the ebb-tide was setting so strong against us that, although we were sailing five knots by the log, we were losing ground; we continued however to persevere for three hours and a half, and had run nearly twenty miles by the log without gaining an inch; the breeze then died away, and not being able to stem the tide, we steered back for anchorage, but it was dark and late before a favourable bottom was found so that we lost all the progress that we had gained since noon.
August 15.
The next morning, after taking angles from the sun's rising amplitude, we got underweigh and stood towards the strait to make another attempt to pass through it.

The view that was obtained yesterday evening from the masthead before we put about to look for anchorage, induced us to suppose that many reefs existed in the neighbourhood of its south entrance, for one of very extensive size was observed dry, lying off the south-west end of the island that bounds the west side of the strait.

The north end of that island also appeared to be fronted by many shoals, which either embrace Red Island and extend to the northward, or else the channels are narrow and deep.