We don't do traffic!

Canberra on a Bank Holiday weekend is wonderful- very little traffic, but Sydney- that's another matter entirely. After visiting the museums in the capital we felt we should see the spot where James Cook stepped ashore in 1770, Botany Bay. Getting there was another matter, as the closer we got the more traffic we came across. Having got used to clear roads in our travels- on some roads we could go for an hour without seeing another vehicle- it came as a shock to the system.

Thoroughly shell shocked by the time we arrived, it was a real pleasure to step out of the car into the calm of the park and the visitor centre. Sitting down to watch a film, the only couple in a theatre built for 100, we relaxed.
The Endeavour was a small collier from Whitby, overcrowded with some 65 seamen, and 15 scientists on board. Sent out to witness an eclipse from Tahiti, his secret orders were to go on to investigate the East coast of 'New Holland', as Australia was known at the time.

Lieutenant Cook, as he was then, was not the first Englishman to step ashore, it was his nephew, Midshipman White, who held the cutter's bow for Cook to step ashore safely. They were met by natives, who were not entirely happy to see their territory invaded, Cook had to fire off pistols to keep them at bay. Their attempts to make friends were completely in vain, the trinkets they left for the locals went completely unheeded.

Over the next few days they collected wood and fresh water to replenish their stock, while the scientists marvelled at the variety of plants and animals that they had not seen before.The name Botany Bay came about because the botanist, Joseph Banks, collected many samples of flora and fauna that were completely unknown to European science. They stayed for eight days, during which time one of their scientists, Sullivan, died, and, having decided that the soil was not really suitable for crops, moved north to Port Jackson, now Sydney Harbour.

An interesting day, however we still had to travel to our accommodation at Penrith- the gateway to the Blue Mountains- a journey we shall draw a veil over.......