29th May 1834

S. Cruz to Port Famine
We anchored in Gregory Bay & took in six days water; our old friends the Indians were not there. The weather has lately been very bad, & is now very cold. The Thermometer has been all day below the freezing point & much snow has fallen: This is rather miserable work in a ship, where you have no roaring fire; & where the upper deck, covered with thawing snow is as it were, the hall in your house.

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Syms Covington Journal:
Anchored Gregory Bay. Patagonian Indian chiefs came on board in the Captain's gig; some of whom bartered their mantles for tobacco etc. The men in general were exceedingly tall and robust, but not giants as has been fabled by different voyagers. They are a very friendly people, and have behaved well to different sailors who have been wrecked on the coast. They live by the chase, are fine horsemen, of which they have plenty, are very expert with the lazo, balls etc., by which means they secure their prey. They live in small huts made of skins, etc. They leave the Straits the beginning of Winter for the interior and, I believe, return again in Summer. At this time it was very cold, the ground being covered with snow, with a very sharp cutting wind. Sailed the afternoon of the same day.

28th May 2009

Nothing in Darwin's Diary until tomorrow, but in the meantime a 'first-day cover' some nice soul sent me at the time of the Darwin celebrations in February. Nice surprise...

23rd May 1834

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:

On the 23d, at day-light, we saw the Adventure coming from the Falklands. After communicating with us, she went on to survey the portion of coast extending from Sweepstakes Foreland to Cape Monmouth; and we remained to complete our own task of sounding the banks about the First Narrow, and examining the south shore of St. Philip Bay.

22nd May 1834

S. Cruz to Port Famine
Before daylight the Adventure was seen on her passage from the Falklands. Shortly after we left Berkeley Sound, a man of war came in; she has taken away all the prisoners, & now the island is quite quiet. We received our letters; mine were dated October & November. We shall now in a few days make the best of our way to Port Famine; the days are of course very short for surveying; the weather however, ‘gracias a dios’, is pretty fine for these Southern latitudes. It is a very curious fact; that it now being only one month from the shortest day & in such a latitude, that the temperature is scarcely perceptibly colder, than during the summer; we all wear the same clothes as during last years visit.

21st May 1834

S. Cruz to Port Famine
During these days we have been beating about the entrance of the Straits, obtaining soundings & searching for some banks (a dangerous one was found); at night we came to an anchor.

19th May 1834

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:
… I landed on the Cape, taking Mr. Darwin and Mr. Stokes with me, and remained till after the noon observation, when, returning on board, the Beagle weighed and sailed to another station. From this time (till the 25th) we were busily employed in sounding in the neighbourhood of Cape Virgins, Point Catherine, Lomas Bay, and Possession Bay.

18th May 1834

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:
On the 18th anchored off Cape Virgins.

Syms Covington Journal:
The 18th pm Anchored off Cape Virgins, Straits of Magellan. Here we were obliged to work with a tide, THE tide runs four or five knots an hour.

16th May 1834

S. Cruz to Port Famine
The weather has been bad, cold, & boisterous (& I proportionally sick & miserable). It never ceases to be in my eyes most marvellous that on the coast of Patagonia there is constant dry weather & a clear sky, & at 120 miles to the South, there should be as constant clouds rain, hail, snow & wind.

14th May 1834

Whilst the Beagle sails from the mouth of the Santa Cruz towards Port Famine, a parting drawing of the mouth of the river by on board artist Conrad Martens.

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Conrad Martens' Sketchbooks:

The riverbank strip of land expands from near nothing into the left midground to a more substantial indication of a roughly level ridge topped with vegetation in the centre, but fades again towards the right. Behind this strip in the right centre and right a hill rises steeply, dotted with occasional vegetation; behind this more distant similar rocky hills are visible, terminating in the centre left of the folio with a conical hill. The sky is blank. The sun seems to be shining from the left, i.e. approximately from the east/north east, which would imply the sketch was made early in the morning. The annotation in the base right centre reads: "Second cliffs very white".

12th May 1834

S. Cruz to Port Famine
We put to sea; & steered in search of an alleged rock (the L'aigle) between the Falklands & mouth of Straits of Magellan; after an unsuccessful hunt, we anchored on the 16th off C. Virgins.

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:

We were detained for a day or two by an overcast sky, which prevented my obtaining equal altitudes; but on the 12th the Beagle left the Santa Cruz, and stood towards the alleged place of the shoal, or rock, called 'Aigle,' not far from the westernmost of the Falkland Islands. No such danger, nor any sign of shallow water being found, but, on the contrary, no bottom with one hundred fathoms of line, we steered towards Magalhaens Strait.

9th, 10th & 11th May 1834

R. Santa Cruz
I took some long walks; collecting for the last time on the sterile plains of this Eastern side of S. America. The Sportsman have altogether been very lucky; Ten guanaco have been killed & eaten; several Condors & a large wild Cat have been killed, & Mr Stuart shot a very large Puma.

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:

The boats, and shooting party, arrived with water and two guanacoes. As the sportsmen were returning with their burthens on the preceding evening, darkness overtook them while yet distant from their tent; and they were soon made uncomfortably conscious that an enemy was at hand, for the strong and peculiar smell of a lion warned them that one was near. They trudged on with their cargoes, talking to one another; but the scent was still strong until they approached the fire, which had been kept up by their companion, when it ceased entirely. Such a weight as a lion's, added suddenly to that of a guanaco, would have been rather distressing.

8th May 1834

R. Santa Cruz
We arrived on board a little after noon; found the Beagle with her masts up, fresh painted & as gay as a frigate.

Almost every one is discontented with this expedition; much hard work, & much time lost & scarcely any thing seen or gained. We have however to thank our good fortune, in enjoying constant fine dry weather & blue skies. To me the cruise has been most satisfactory, from affording so excellent a section of the great modern formation of Patagonia.

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:
Leaving a very small party near Weddell Bluff to look for guanacoes, I hastened on board with the boats; and with the ebb tide reached the Beagle before noon. The ship being ready for sea, excepting a ton or two of fresh water, the yawl and cutter were dispatched to get it and bring on board the shooting party. During my absence satisfactory observations on the tides had been made, which showed that the neap tides rise about eighteen feet, and the springs from thirty-eight to forty-two feet. One day when walking through a woody ravine, not far from the anchorage, Mr. Stewart saw a puma lying under a bush, glaring at him: taking a steady aim, he fired, and laid the animal dead. It was a very large one [the skin is now in the British Museum]. The moment of thus looking a lion in the face, while taking aim, at only a few yards distance, must be somewhat trying to the nerves, I should imagine. A beautiful wild cat was also added to our collections, besides condors and foxes.

7th May 1834

R. Santa Cruz
Slept at the place where the water nearly ceases to be fresh. A tent & party was left to try to shoot some Guanaco.

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:
We reached the salt water. Although we made such quick progress in returning, our halts for observations were similar to those made in going. While descending the rapid stream, so quickly and quietly, we saw many more guanacoes and ostriches than we had seen before; but our flying shots only frightened them, and time was too precious to admit of any delay. Only one fish was got, and that was a dead one, which had been left on the bank: it was similar to a trout. Not more than half a dozen live fish were seen, and none could be caught either with hooks or nets.

6th May 1834

R. Santa Cruz
We again equalled five & half days tracking: the climate is certainly very different near to the mountains; it is there much colder, more windy & cloudy.

Captain Fitzroy’s Journal:
We made good about eighty-two miles.