L.21. P.I. Thursday, July 2. Had to stop last letter very abruptly - the plane was leaving. Dry for back to Dana about 5.15. The new lot of natives came to visit us today. Dry for a bit to the north of the Block R. and were slightly different ornaments from those in which the local people dress. Tomorrow morning we pull out. The plane delivered yet another 1500 lbs of provisions to the new camp west of Mt. Malion. Heard the planes radio as far as the Aramca Reirs. We got a Poyomys (2 small embryos; mammary formula 1-2=6), a terrestrial Didelomys from our traps and a Ceromys from the locals. Friday, July 3. We woke up to find heavy rain falling and the river once more high. Both Dana and Port Moresby report bad weather. There'll be no getting away today. Slight improvement in the afternoon but the river has not yet commenced to go down yet. Wind S.W. 5 o'clock weather clearing quickly. Probably get away tomorrow. Saturday, July 4th. Quite the date to be starting out on a journey! Had last talk with Dana. Now packed up radio. We got away at 9.15; passed the big gravel bar below the Palmer-Blockley island at 10.30, the junction of the main branch of the Palmer with the Block at noon, and reached the place for crossing the Block at 12.30. The rafting was quite easy but a bit slow, however we were all on the other side by 2 o'clock, and a steep slippery climb brought us to a camp (an old site of the N.W Patrol). My aneroid read 100 meters at the river and 150 meters on the hill-top. The climb felt like that too. The trail as far as the crossing follows the river closely - the South side of the Block is very up & down, the "up" being the emergence of our last camp, the "downs" muddy swamps overlaying limestone or simply deep ravines. It has been a gloriously fine day - propitious for the