13 miles from Idracowra on Finke River, Northern Territory
Notes
Friday, May 25th.— Camp No. 18, Finke river; bar. 29*04in.,
ther. 42°. No fish were found in the large net set overnight.
Early this morning F. Warman led us across a cane grass flat to
his camp. Here both salt and fresh waterholes exist, near which
about a dozen aboriginals were encamped. We obtained a new-
kind of lizard and various articles of native workmanship for the
collection. 1 also engaged another black boy, Tommy, who pro-
fessed to know all the ranges we contemplate visiting. Tommy was
perfectly nude, and soon prepared himself for his journey by merely
fixing a leather strap round his waist. 1 mounted him on the
Charlotte Waters camel, and then continued the journey up the
Finke, crossing it six times in twenty miles. The flats on both
sides of the river vary in width, but never exceed half a mile.
They are generally well grassed, with an abundant growth of cotton-
hush and saltbush. Beyond the flats high red sandridges covered
with porcupine grass and low bushes extend for some distance. At
7 p.m., having travelled twenty-one and a half miles in a geneial
W.N.W. direction, we camped on the Finke river, near a water-
hole designated Ampire (from C. Winnecke's Journal of the Horn scientific exploring expedition, 1894).