Wed. Aug. 25: These are notes and memories written up on the 30th. The 24th - the planned day of our return to Coen - was a day of preparation of specimens, and of suspense. I dried out plants brought back from the Rocky. The mammal men had two brown cus-cus and some flying foxes which they had jacked the night they came down from Campoven Pocket. Half a day, or a day, matters nothing to people living in this timeless part of Australia. But when no truck arrived by lunch time, I began to think something had gone wrong. Took the boys along the road with shovels and axes to improve the crossings of gullies. And, expecting to hear the sound of an approaching motor every minute, we went back along the road three miles to the crossing of Falls Ck., repairing gully crossings, cutting out stumps, and filling holes dug by pigs since our passage out two weeks ago. Pigs had dug deep holes around the stubs of small living trees we had cut on the sandridges. My only guess at the reason for the pig rootings is that the cut stubs leaked sap and the pigs followed the wet soil in their diggings. I sent the horses back to Coen on the 24th, so we were cut off from the outside. Decided to walk in to the airdrome where there is a telephone, and Geoff volunteered to go with me. Joe gave us breakfast before daylight on the 25th and as day dawned we set out. An overcast, drizzling morning, which helped in our long walk. Kept a rough time and compass record of our hike, and drew a map of sorts as we went along. At Fitz's Ck., about 16 miles from camp, we met Cecil Wilson with Thompson's truck, and Constable Maurice Radford and a couple of black- boys on board. Wilson sought to justify the delay by saying he had to take Lee Wassall down to Fort Stewart to meet the fisheries explo- ration boat the day before yesterday. Wassall, son-in-law of Herb Thompson, and collector for the Biology Dept. of Queensland University, is attached to the fisheries expedition led by Marshall. He left the boat to come to Coen for the races, to cast off his shoes and help in the bar. Geoff and I continued our walk, while the truck went on to the Peach to lift the rest of the party. We struck the north-south road about 11:45, rested a while, then walked three miles north to the airdrome. Geoff's feet gave out and the last part of the walk was down. We walked in all 19 measured miles from the Peach Camp to the airdrome. At the drome, Groundsman Ernie Armbrust and his wife made us very welcome, and we drank numerous cups of tea and ate much in the line of dainty cakes before Wilson called with the truck and the rest of the party about 4 o'clock. Before dusk we were back at The Band, two miles out of Coen, and established for the night. Thursday, Aug. 26: Much of the day spent in Coen, settling business and talking to people about the country. Feeling miserable from the after effects of flu, and I suppose some fatigue from yesterday's long walk.