An excerpt from Captain Cook's journal written, whilst the Endeavour was beached, and being repaired... I climbed one of the highest hills that overlooked the harbour which afforded by no means a comfortable prospect. The low land near the river is wholly over-run with mangroves, among which salt water flows every tide, and the highland appeared every-where stony and barren. In the meantime, Mr Banks had also taken a walk up country and met with the frame of several old indian houses and places where they had dressed shell fish. 30 June 1770. And went myself upon a hill which lies over the south point to take a view of the sea. At this time it was low water, and I saw with great concern unnumerable sand banks and shoals lying all along the coast in every direction. The inner-most lay about three or four miles from the shore, the outermost extended as far as I could see with my glass, and many of them did but just rise above water. There was some appearance of a passage to the northward and had no hope of getting clear except in that direction for as the wind blows constantly from the S.E. it would be difficult, if not impossible to return to the southward. Extract from Lt James Cook's journal 1770

Statue of the young James Cook, later to become Captain James Cook, explorer. This statue is on the village green, in the village of Great Ayton, North Yorkshire, where he lived from 1736 to 1745.