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than at home. At 1:30 P.M. start for Sydney. Arrive about 4:00 P.M., and thus ended a charming trip of about 350 miles. Distance to caves from Sydney 156 miles. January 7th Went to agent for tickets to Auckland - Mr. Kling, Mr. Sheils, Mr. Riddle and self - then set out on short trip about the famous Sydney harbor. It looks somewhat like a glacial fiord, but the stratified sandstones and slates serve badly as monuments of glacial action. The shores everywhere are clad in trees and shrubs except where occupied with buildings. The favorite tree for planting here is the Araucaria, mostly excelsa and they do well. At Manby, a sort of Coney Island for Sydney, it is almost the only tree planted along the streets and shores of the bathing places. Find sandy beaches. From Manby over to a ferry 3 or 4 miles. The road runs through a fine shaggy wild common. Most of the big Melaleucas and Eucalyptus have been slaughtered, but there is a fine hopeful second growth and a lot of interesting bushes and small trees, Banksia and Hakea, etc. where one could wander happy for years. January 8th Went to Botanic Gardens to see Mr. Maiden, the Director. He was attending an inquiry into origin of fire in some of the Garden buildings, and could spare me but little time. Directed me to the Queensland Araucarias, Bidwelli and Cunninghamii, and said there were no Eucalyptus in Australia much, if any, over 300 feet in height. That all the stories attributed to Baron Muller were false or gross exaggerations. Went back to the gardens in the afternoon. Am much interested in the fine collection of Agathis, Araucarias, etc., some of the latter 3 to 4 feet diameter. Many fine species from New Caledonia (See end of book).
Date Original
November 1903
Source
Original journal dimensions: 11 x 16.5 cm.
Resource Identifier
MuirReel29Journal12P62-63.tif
Publisher
Holt-Atherton Special Collections, University of the Pacific Library
Rights Management
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Keywords
John Muir, journals, drawings, writings, travel, journaling, naturalist
