For ten days "Washington" continued on through a series of violent squalls, culminating in a gale that Haswell described as "greatly sirpassing any thing before I had aney [sic Idea of." Once the storm cleared Gray was pleased to be separated and saw a chance to free himself from Kendrick's command. Kendrick had written orders for Gray in the event they were separated. They would rendezvous at Alejandro Selkirk Island (then known as Más Afuera), the westernmost island of the Juan Fernández Islands, west of the coast of Chile. Gray made his way there, arriving on April 22, 1788. He brought the "Washington" to within a few miles of the island, then waited over night. In the morning Gray scanned the horizon and saw no sign of the "Columbia", unsurprisingly since "Washington" was a faster vessel. Nevertheless, Gray figured he had fulfilled Kendrick's order and was now free to continue on alone.