In 1824, Governor Sir Thomas Brisbane asked Hovell to go with Hamilton Hume to explore the south part of New South Wales and Victoria. He wanted to know more about any rivers that might run south. Hovell was not an explorer but he knew how to navigate (find out where he was). There were problems deciding who was going to pay for the expedition. The two explorers bought most of the equipment. The government provided saddles, clothes, blankets and guns. Hume and Hovell left Sydney on October 3 1824, with six men, five bullocks, three horses and two carts. The Murrumbidgee River was in flood so they had to make one of the carts into a kind of boat to get across. The men, horses, and bullocks swam over. A day or two later, in rough hilly country, they had great difficulty in finding a path for the carts. On October 27 they decided to leave them behind. They came to a large river on November 16, which Hovell called "Hume's River" "he being the first that saw it". This was the Murray River renamed by Charles Sturt a few years later. It was impossible to cross here (near the site of Albury), but after a few days they found a better place. They built the rough frame of a boat and managed to get across. By December 3, they had reached the Goulburn River. During the next ten days it was hard traveling through rough country, but they did get to more level and open land. 