The Sixth of February, Year 3003 of the Third Age
I am Edrastel of Linhir, and I am a huntsman. My family taught me much in the arts of bringing down great beasts and prey in the fields of my home in Gondor, by the joining of the Rivers Gilrain and Serni. I have brought my trappings, my tools, my bedroll, and some small rations that I will use to ease my hunger when I cannot hunt game for my meals.
I must elaborate some on the purpose of the journals I will document my travels in. I do not write with the intent on instructing whatever readers I may have in the art of hunting and outdoor survival. Rather, I write to document the sights and impressions of the lands I will see as I take my journey south. I know little of the world beyond Gondor, and I have been told little from my kin and peers in my hometown. For this purpose, I wish to discover for myself what the world south of the Free Lands has to offer. No beast or lesser man will hinder my task! I depart tomorrow morning. May the Valar grant me their blessing in my task.
The Fifteenth of February, Year 3003 of the Third Age
For well over a week I have followed the road east and have come now to Pelargir upon the Great River Anduin. Never before have I seen such splendour, not in the architecture nor in the grandness of the ships! Indeed, the city is a testament to the might of Gondor, even then still a shadow of the incomprehensible grandeur of Númenor of old. I have sold some of the wares left from my game to those in the market. I wish to stay in the city for a night at least before I continue my journey. Such an opportunity to bask in such power cannot be passed by.
The rights upon the road to the city were sparse, with some old monuments and little villages dotting the landscape. The only truly captivating aspect of the journey before arriving in the havens was the sight of the White Mountains standing strong to the northern horizons. I hope to see such sights again in new lands.
The Seventeenth of February, Year 3003 of the Third Age
After spending an afternoon and a day in Pelargir, I payed for passage across the Anduin from the city and set out along the Harad Road this morning. I have purchased a small amount of additional supplies, as well as a new bow for the hunt. It is much more sturdy than my previous weapon, and it can send my arrows much farther.
Here on the eastern side of the Anduin, this territory is much less occupied than the eastward road. The landscape has not changed much, save for a lessened density of trees in my sight. To the south I know there lies the havens of Umbar. I do not wish to stay long in such a place, with the rumors of the Black Númenóreans inhabiting the city. My hometown has spoken of the burning of the ships over twenty years ago, and how greatly the power of the city was reduced due to the attack, but still I must be wary.
The Twenty-Seventh of February, Year 3003 of the Third Age
Much to my gladness, I was wrong to worry of the danger that Umbar could cause my journey. The Harad Road does not pass into Umbar as I had expected, but instead continues southward and a little east, away from the Havens. However I can see now the foolishness of my worries, for despite avoiding the fell folk of Umbar I will not fare better in the land of the Southron savages. In the southlands I must fend for myself.
The trees grow more and more sparse as I make my way south along the road. The grass of the field has become more varied, sometimes green and thick and elsewhere yellow and tall. Creatures of the field that I once knew in Gondor no longer can be found, instead replaced by stranger variations. The deer in this land have long, striped, sharp horns rather than plain white antlers. Perhaps I can learn more of the species of this realm upon my return to Gondor. I shall elaborate more on my findings in this strange land in a later journal.
