Lady Nelson left Portsmouth on 18 March 1800 and arrived at Sydney on 16 December 1800 after having been the first vessel to reach the east coast of Australia via Bass Strait.

[11] Philip Gidley King departed for New South Wales in Speedy on 26 Nov 1799 with a despatch recalling the incumbent Governor, John Hunter, who returned to England.

The beginning of the voyage to Australia was recorded by Grant: On 13 January 1800, the Lady Nelson hauled out of Deadman's Dock into the River, having her complement of men, stores, and provisions on board.

[k] Many people who saw Lady Nelson did not consider her suitable to undertake such a long voyage and this caused Grant some difficulty in keeping his crew together and finding replacements for those that deserted.

Brunswick therefore took Lady Nelson in tow, but Grant became concerned that the vessel might be strained too much in the heavy seas and therefore, after a couple of days, ordered the hawser to be cast off, preferring to continue the voyage alone.

Grant's orders were 'to remain at the Cape till the summer season commenced' so as not to risk his small vessel in the Roaring Forties during the southern hemisphere winter.

[p] During the succeeding days, as Lady Nelson approached Bass Strait, Grant made numerous observations and named several geographic features along the southern coast of the continent.

[r] On 8 December Lady Nelson sailed across a large bay, which was found to extend from Cape Otway in the west to Wilsons Promontory in the east, a distance of 120 nautical miles.

[23] The naval complement of the vessel was therefore:[32] Lady Nelson was provisioned for a six-month voyage and Grant received orders to return to Bass Strait with detailed instructions to carry out a survey of those parts not examined during the passage from the Cape of Good Hope.

The expedition was joined by George Caley, a botanist sent by Sir Joseph Banks to collect plants, John Lewin, naturalist and artist, and an Aboriginal man named Euranabie and his wife Worogan.

[v] Lady Nelson continued south alone and, after spending two days in Jervis Bay, passed Cape Howe on the 15th, Wilsons Promontory on the 20th, and sighted Western Port on 21 March.

From the Kent Group Lady Nelson headed north-west, passing Wilson's Promontory and Cape Liptrap and anchoring in Western Port on 7 December.

The next day: at 3 p.m. we saw a headland bearing west-north-west, distant about 12 miles and an opening in the land that had the appearance of a harbour north-west 10 or 12 miles.Lady Nelson sailed to within 11⁄2 miles of the entrance and from the masthead Murray observed: a sheet of smooth water .... and is apparently a fine harbour of large extent.On the 17th of February, with the Lady Nelson anchored on the eastern shore of Port Phillip, Murray records in his journal his first encounter with local Aboriginal peoples.

Not being able to enter, the as yet unnamed Port Phillip, Murray continued west towards Cape Otway but was unable to make any further progress westwards due to a south-westerly gale and headed for calmer waters to the eastern side of King Island.

Lady Nelson was unable to leave Western Port to examine the new harbour for several days due to light winds, Murray noting in his log on 13 February 1802:it fell calm and our hopes of getting to sea this day vanished, it is almost needless to observe that this kind of weather is as destructive to the intent of this cruise as gales at sea.A favourable wind enabled Lady Nelson to leave Western Port at 5 a.m. on 14 February.

On 17 October Murray noted: I have now had several opportunities of seeing that from the want of our main and after keels we are so leewardly that the Investigator in 6 hours will get with ease 4 miles to windward of the brig.On the same day Flinders decided to send Lady Nelson back to Port Jackson.

[48] Murray received orders from Flinders 'to proceed to Port Jackson with the Lady Nelson as fast as circumstances would allow', and a letter to deliver to Governor King.

The desire to settle that part of Australia arose from King's concern that Baudin, leader of the French expedition in La Naturaliste, intended to establish a settlement on the east side of Van Diemen's Land.

An initial expedition to establish British sovereignty over Van Diemen's Land was made by Acting-Lieutenant Charles Robbins, who left Port Jackson in HMS Cumberland on 23 November 1802.

[ae] Lady Nelson made good progress until 15 June when she encountered a strong southerly wind and Curtoys decided to head for shelter in Twofold Bay.

A raft was constructed from her spars to get ashore to replenish their supply of fresh water and the Lady Nelson's carpenter was sent to cut timber with which to build a punt to replace the lost boat.

[ag] Rough weather was experienced on arriving in Bass Strait, and after beating a fortnight against a south-westerly wind, Lady Nelson took refuge in the Kent Group.

During the next few months Lady Nelson was employed on various transport duties which included taking people to a new settlement to be established at Kingstown, soon after renamed Newcastle, on the Hunter.

[al] On 22 October Lady Nelson encountered 'strong gales with a heavy sea from south-west' that caused considerable damage including the boat, binnacle and two compasses being washed overboard; and the main sheet carrying away and breaking the tiller.

She encountered the sloop George, which was bound for the Derwent from Port Jackson, shortly after leaving Twofold Bay and its master gave a boat's compass to Symons to replace those lost in the storm.

Lady Nelson was laid-up for a while at the time of the departure of Governor Bligh to England in March 1809, but soon returned to service and made four voyages to Hunter's River before the end of the year.

[86] Within a week, Lady Nelson departed again to procure more livestock and whilst at Koepang, Miller encountered the schooner Stedcombe, bound from England to the new settlement at Melville Island.

When Stedcombe arrived at Port Cockburn, her Master entered into an agreement with Barlow to land, at the settlement, a cargo of buffalo, averaging 250 pounds (113 kg) in weight each, for a price of 25 Spanish Dollars each, and binding him to return in five weeks.

[87] In a letter dated 19 May 1825, Barlow wrote 'his schooner [Stedcombe] left this port four days after Johns' departure [in Lady Nelson], in charge of his Chief Mate, neither have returned since.

From July 1990 to early 1996 the replica Lady Nelson went on several voyages during the cold Tasmanian winter, across Bass Strait to Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland.The vessel also followed the fleets of the Melbourne to Hobart yacht race in 1993 and 1994.