Carte generale du Detroit de Bass

Important French chart of Bass Strait showing the tracks of Le Geographe, Le Naturaliste and Le Casuraina in 1802 under the command of Captain Nicolas Baudin (1754-1803).

With two small inset charts after M. Flinders.
Insets: Plan du Port Dalrymple d’apres le Capne. Flinders en 1798 et assujetti aux onservations faites a bord des corvettes Francaises en 1802 — Plan de la partie sud des Iles Furneaux d’apres le Capne. Flinders en 1798 et assujetti aux observations faites a bord des corvettes Francaises en 1802.

Charting Tasmania;
Baudin reached Tasmania on 13 January 1802 and began chartingd the whole length of Tasmania’s east coast.

27 February 1802 The ships leave Maria Island and head north to continue the survey of the east coast of Tasmania
6 March 1802       The Geographe loses contact with a dinghy containing the geographer Boullanger, midshipman Maurouard and six sailors, sent to conduct a closer survey of the coast.
8 March 1802       Baudin confined to bed with colic pains; the two ships become separated during the evening
9 March 1802       Boullanger’s boat party picked up by an English brig, the Harrington; the Naturaliste encounters an English schooner, the Endeavour, which is heading for Maria Island
10 March 1802      The Geographe encounters the Endeavour; the Naturaliste encounters the Harrington at the entrance to Banks Strait and recovers Boullanger and his boat party; Hamelin begins survey of Bass Strait while waiting for the Geographe at Banks Strait (not at the agreed rendezvous point of Waterhouse Island)
11 March 1802      The Geographe breaks off its search for the lost dinghy and heads north
18 March 1802      The Naturaliste leaves Banks Strait to search for the Geographe to the south (along the east coast of Tasmania)
19 March 1802      The Géographe sights Waterhouse Island, the rendezvous point in Banks Strait, but the Naturaliste has just departed: the two ships have passed one another in the mists
24 March 1802     After several days of stormy weather and rough seas, the Geographe heads towards Wilson’s Promontory to begin its survey of the “unknown” south coast of New Holland

Charting of the Victorian coast;
The Geographe under Nicolas Baudin (1754-1803), sailing from Van Diemen’s Land, sighted the coast line of New Holland on 27 March 1802. After checking his position near Wilson’s Promontory on the chart he carried, one Flinders had made from the sketch map drawn by Bass after the whale-boat survey of 1798, Baudin proceeded along the coast (no more than a league from it) towards Western Port on the 28th March. The first bay they came to, they named Baie Paterson [Waratah Bay] ‘in honour of the worthy English scholar and traveller of that name, one of Mr. Bass’s most intimate friends’. The next day the Géographe coasted a second bay, which was named Baie de la Vénus ‘after a vessel commanded by Mr Bass’.  When Baudin came to what the chart named Western Port on 29 March he did not recognise the entrance, and sailed on. Returning the next morning to where he had ceased charting the previous day, he saw an opening that he now recognised as Western Port. Passing Cape Schanck he entered the bight where Port Phillip lies, but did not approach closely enough to see the entrance to Port Phillip.

Proceeding along the coast in a general south-westerly direction, Baudin named Cap de Représentations [probably Cape Patton], on account of various protests his staff had made to him at the time. By nightfall on 30 March the Géographe had reached Pointe de la Plate-forme [probably Cape Marengo].

The day’s run on 31 March, about four miles offshore, took the Géographe past Cap du Maréchal [probably Cape (Albany) Otway, [named by Grant]- so-named because at the top of an eminence on the shore one could see two cavities in exactly the shape of a horseshoe, and Cap des Falaises (cliffs) [probably Cape Volney], being the first point met after doubling Cap du Maréchal. At the end of the day the ship stood offshore for the night opposite a dominant hill near present-day Warrnambool that Freycinet later named Piton de Reconnoissance (Reconnaissance Peak). Next day, 1 April, Baudin examined Portland Bay: he named Lady Julia Percy Island Île aux Alouettes (larks)100 because they caught a skylark that had rested on the ship while they were level with the island, and Lawrence Rock he named Île du Dragon101 on account of its perfect resemblance, from both east and west, to the fabulous beast of that name. The Géographe reached what is now the Victorian/South Australian border on 2 April 1802. source anzmaps

27 February 1802 The ships leave Maria Island and head north to continue the survey of the east coast of Tasmania 6 March 1802 The Géographe loses contact with a dinghy containing the geographer Boullanger, midshipman Maurouard and six sailors, sent to conduct a closer survey of the coast 8 March 1802 Baudin confined to bed with colic pains; the two ships become separated during the evening 9 March 1802 Boullanger’s boat party picked up by an English brig, the Harrington; the Naturaliste encounters an English schooner, the Endeavour, which is heading for Maria Island 10 March 1802 The Géographe encounters the Endeavour; the Naturaliste encounters the Harrington at the entrance to Banks Strait and recovers Boullanger and his boat party; Hamelin begins survey of Bass Strait while waiting for the Géographe at Banks Strait (not at the agreed rendezvous point of Waterhouse Island) 11 March 1802 The Géographe breaks off its search for the lost dinghy and heads north 18 March 1802 The Naturaliste leaves Banks Strait to search for the Géographe to the south (along the east coast of Tasmania) 19 March 1802 The Géographe sights Waterhouse Island, the rendezvous point in Banks Strait, but the Naturaliste has just departed: the two ships have passed one another in the mists 24 March 1802 After several days of stormy weather and rough seas, the Géographe heads towards Wilson’s Promontory to begin its survey of the “unknown” south coast of New Holland 27 March 1802

The Géographe sights Wilson’s Promontory 29 March 1802 The Géographe leaves Wilson’s Promontory and follows the coast in a westerly direction 3 April 1802 The Naturaliste regains Waterhouse Island after its unsuccessful search for the Géographe around Maria Island; Hamelin undertakes further survey work (Port Dalrymple) 7 April 1802 Hamelin leaves Tasmania and heads for the northern side of Bass Strait; a boat party is sent to fix the position of Wilson’s Promontory and chart the coast from there to Western Port; other boat parties are sent to examine Western Port itself 8 April 1802 The Géographe meets the Investigator, commanded by Matthew Flinders, in Encounter Bay (named by Flinders to commemorate this meeting) 9 April 1802 Flinders visits the Géographe for a second meeting with Baudin, before the ships part ways, Flinders following the coast in an easterly direction, Baudin entering Backstairs Passage to begin his survey of the north coast of Kangaroo Island and of the two gulfs north of it 18 April 1802 Hamelin leaves Bass Strait and heads for Port Jackson.

From Peron, Voyage de decouvertes aux terres australes … : partie navigation et geographie. Paris 1811