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SHLWYN, C.M.IJ, LL.D., F.H.S., Diukcx r REPORT ON A I'oirriox OF 11 IK J)I8T1{ICT OF ATH.VBASCA I'OMI'IclstNi, TIIK (111 N-IHV lli:|WKK\ VVACi: \{\\VA{ AM) ATIIAIiAS(\A VAWAl XOR'I'II OF LKSSIOII SL.WIO I.AKI-: BV |{. ('.. .m<('()N.\i;li,. It. a. m OTTAWA IM{l\Ti:ii liS' S. K. II.WVSOX, I'lUNTKK To TIIK i/lKllNS MOST i:\ci;i,ij:ni' ma.ikstv, 1893 m !•• ^4 'Ml clia lias (Jiv To Alkrki) H. C;. Si.i.\vvn, C..M.(!., LL.D., F.H.S., kc, Dircctni- iuid ])e])iilv Hcjul. ( l<'i(l()i;ical Sni'xi'v of Ciiiiada, •Sir, — T lici,' U) suhinit Ihtcw itli a rc|i(irl mi tlir'iii'olniry and tliefjeneral cliai'actcrs nt' the I'lniiitiy in the \ icinity of the Tcat'C and Atlial)asca ri\('i's. An indfx map ot tlic ri'uion and two ijeologioal sections accompany tin- report. A map on a scale ot' i'i;;|it miles to the irieli lias lieeii vMiinjileted, Imt is not yet luihlislied. 1 lia\f the lionoiir to lie, sir, YoiP' obedient servant. tl H. (i. M (CON NELL. (ir.or.oiiu'Ai, SrnvKv Ofi-kk. OriAWA, iK'cemher, \X'J'2. H I jr. I ■'i ■J ]ll II i A 'III 5 a C X 3] < ■■J t/l •t (a a < a ■J! 3. o X u 3 be s ■< o a a o a u a d INTIKHiKTollV l'iii;\i(>i s IvxiM.di; A riii\>. ( ;i;m;i!.\i. I'im^k ai. I'"i;ai riii;s and Aiiiticiu- 1 I l; \l. ( AIMIIIMTIKS. :p X Tlic lii>iiiiy lit till' I'tMi'c :iii(l .Vt lial).iMa CMMiit r\ riiiiinu'Mcrs in 177'"^ « lien I'cifi T'liiil. -ul»sf(ni('iitlv a iiartiicr in tlif Nnrtli \v csi ( '^liiiiu' imit h w ot \\ ard in sranli ut' nru t'lndist firl^, icaclu'd t lie Al lia liasea \)\ \va\ nt' .Mdliy I'urtant' and llic ( 'Ifaiwatcr Ki\ cr, and dfsi'i'nd in.Li it. t''>iiM. tiii> |iii-.| was alpanilniicd and a rnw line l)iull iin 1 ill' siinl li -Ikuc' ut' I.aki' At lialia-ra. nn u liat i-- now i ••Mid |'"iiil I'ciiiit," Siill lalff. lin- site ua> also docrti-il and a lii'ttrr nnc ^rlrclt'il on \\\f nnllli sjiipir. near till' iillllct i)t' tlic lal\i'. A U'rnt'fal map ut' lIn' Nipilli \\r-~l \\a- indili^licd liy I'ctiT I'ond in 17>^"'. I'ctiT I'ond -^ Ncnluic |iiip\cd i'\lrcnicl\' i cnnini'iat i\ c. and lie was tipjlcpucd Ipv ipiIut Iia'li'i>- wlicp ;,Mailiiall\ ^|ii'i'ad I Iicmii^i'Iv i'^ n\ cr the liicn unknown cipnntiy in thr nipilli and uivsi, A iiini|p|i't(' siir\t'\ ut' till- Alliaiia-.ca aippi-ar^ lip Irixc licrn niadr 1p\- l>a\id 'I'liipnisun.* This \y.\\\A 'I'l ciiiT^i'l ir hut lil I Ir knipu n lia\i'lliT niadi' a track snr\fy in l7'.'Uipf l.csscr S|a\c l!i\iT. and ut' the Atlialpasca t'luni the niuutli ut' ihi' I'cni Ipina tu Clearwater l'"urks. In ISD.'i. he tilled in the yap hetween the I'uiks and l-Jike Athalpa-ca. and in l^ht ascended the liver and jiiirt iun ipf the Athaliasca Ipi-iwecn ilie ('learwater I'urks and the lake wa-~ examined and lirielly de^ciilpcd 1p\- h'raiiklin in INJ'.' and otlni l"^"-'-'!, and liy liichardsun in h"^!"^. and as ii turmi'd pai't ut' the prin cipal inland ruiitcluthe A id ic ( tciMii, il ua-aNu Iravflli'il hy I'laik, Simpsun ami ulhei Arctic e.xpluri'i-. In l^l.'l. Let'ripv descended i ho ('learwater ap|d the Alhahiisca l!i\i'i-. and in l>lt ascended I'eaco l!i\ er tu \> .i\ euan. and l iii'ii lea\ iiiu tin' ri\ er t I'a veiled east w aids to •Mricf iKiriMtiM' nf tin' jniu iic\> of I >:i\ ill 'I'liMin-iMi ill Nnrtli uc.-tiTii Aiiiericii, l.V.l. I'., 'rvilvll. M.A., I'leC. Cilll III-.. 1SS7-.><,s. M,l. \|.. |,. KC. Iipiiriicv. lApliirii- It I* „ I* -1 >i ■n 1! tj I) INTHoDrcTlo.V. m Aii'.'i of 01)1 try. ( Ji innil (li-.- ciipticiii. 'I'r. Kdiiiiiiiton ])\ l^icsscr Slave Lake. (..ctVoy nl).stM\cii tur l;itif udc uruJ l(iii<;itu(li' find cstdMislu'd the ina;,'iifiii' wniatinn at a iiiiiiilxTot' jmiiits idonji liis fdiitf. Ill I'^^T"). I>r. Sclwyii. IMrfctur of tlic (Jeulnj^ical Sur\«'y, iiia)i|i(Ml and r('|MM'lt'(l mi tlic u]>|«'r part of Pfjic-c I{ivcr, as far down as tlif iiioutli of Smoky l{ivt'i', and in the same year Professor MacoiiM, wlio act'oiii]ianii'd hiin iiroici'dcd down tlif river to Lake Atliatiasca, and returned east hytlie usual AtliahaseaC'learwater I'oute. while I )r. Selwyn n^ascended Peace Uivcr, and returned I iv Uritisli (Joluiiil)ia.-'= In IS"!), I)r. Dawson examined I'ine Kiver. Smoky Hiver and other liraiielie^ of I'rai-e ri\cr. in lSS;i, W. T. 'riioiiiiison, |).L.S., extended iIh' regular iiisi rumeiital surveys of the L)ominion Ivinds liraiu'li. I>e|iar!iiient of the Interior, into the Peaee Kiver country. In l>^S-_'. a trai'k surxeyand Ufolouical examination of the .Athaliasca. lielow the iiiouiiiof Lake La IJiclie l!i\('r, was made liy Dr. !!. Hell i". and tinaily. in |NNI, a micrometer survey of the lowr parts of Imth the Peai'c and Athabasca rivers, was made l)y Win. n^iKie. D.L.S. The country lietwcen the I'eaci' and .Vthaliasca rivers north of ijcsser Slave Lake, coni|irisin^ an area of alioui (1,(100 s(|uare miles, was not entered liy any of the travellers referred to and remained en- tirely unknown until the present exploration was midertaken. '{'he greater jiart of this district may he dex-rihed as a yeiitlv uii- dulatinif vvooded plain, div cr^ilicil with nuinerous shallow lakes, muskcLTs and marshes. Small jirairie patches, manifestly due to forest tires, occur iiortli of the west I'lid of Lesser Slave i.,ake. at several points ahiiif,' the Loon and W'aliiscaw livers, also on Peace Kiver around h'ort N'ermilioii and at ot her plmcs. Iiul their tola area is relativelv insi<;iii)i<'ant. The princii)al forest trees are the white and lilack spruces, /'/(•(■»( ((//"< and iiii/ni, the halsi.m lir, A/iii s /m/siniii ii, x\\{' iSank- siaii pine, /'imin Jiini/\'>)lf(iiii, the larch. I.n n.r A lurrirn mi, the asiien. /'n/iii- /i(K niiiu/di'/i's, {\i*' l)alsani-po|ilar. I'lijuihis /'w/.svo////''"". and the canoe hircli llitiilii ftiipiiriiciii. '{"he species of spruce occur alonif manv of the river Hats, and on the upla-ids they are fouiiil nearly every- ^^■llere excejit on the drii'i- hills. The white spruce attains, in favotir- iible localities, a diameter of two feet or more, hut it is usuallv much smaller. It is the most valuahle tree in the district. The l>aiiksian pine ^I'ows thickly on the sandy and -^'raveliy ridp's, -.vhile the aspen prefers a loamy soil and characteri/es the best a<,'ricultural parts of the country. The larch. l»alsam. bal>am-|ioplar and birch, although found in eve.y pait of the district, are more scattereil and .lo as ii'i 1' "(tcoliit^ical Survey cpf Ciiiiii(lii. I!i|i(iit cif Pin^rii'ss. 187.") 7^. l«81.'H-4. MCCONNEU, 1 FIIVSICM, KKAITHKS. / I» tlo not ffiriii coiititmnus t'on-sts like the spnu'c, lianksian pine and aspeti. *)ii tln' Inwcr part ot the Wahiscaw and \A»>n rivers a larye irrt'gulai' liranclicd, rnuifli harked (.•uttoiiwudd was nutict'd, which is* probahly I'iijhiIhs miuii/lf'i rir. 'I'lii^ rolliiii,' plains Ixtwi't-n I't-acr liivcr and tlic Athatiasia are Kl.v:itiy se'.cral liii^li i idi,'es nr plateaus, all of wliicli owe their orij^dn to a ditlerential denudation of the soft roi-ks on wliicji the plains are Kased. (»t' these Marten .Mountain is situated nortiic.ist of Lessor Slave l.,ake. aWovc vvhicii it rises to a heii;ht of alioiit 1 .l)(l() fi'ct. The ISulValii Head Hills eonurienee alirupllv almiit tiffy miles alioveihe mouth of the f^oiiti Ivivcr, with an elevation of aliout L'.odO feet aliove the sea. and iiinniiii; in a snuth-south-westerl y direction die away opposite the mouth of Itattli- liiver. while Hirch Mountain extends foi' nearly ninety miles aloML,' the lower part of the .Xthahasca, from which it is separated hy a plain tifteen to twenty miles wide, .\motn: the smaller elev.atioiis are Trout Mountain, whicii is situate(l nurthof the Wahiscaw liiver. and thi^ Thick vvood Hills, which lie south of I'lirdi .Mountain. The upl.inds i if the district, like the low lands, a re all w led, and are dotted every where with lakes and marches. The principal v\ateriourse nf thedistrii't is the Wahiscaw - I^cmhi IiJmis. liiver. This stream, viilh its numerous t riliutaries, drains rie.iily half the region. .Viiioii;,' t he other rivers are the I'elican, lied. Mnose and Tar river--, tlowin^c into the .\thal)asca: liirch liiver drainiui,' into Lake ("laire : and the lied. Wolverine and Cadot le's river^ are t riliu- taries of I'l'ace Kiver. The main rivers hianch in the interior of the district into a multitude of small winilin.i; streams, few of which have vallevs of any size, jmd they usually llovv in a shn.'i.dsh manni'r. often expandinu into lake^ in the llat districts, hut hreak over the steeper slopes of (he country in a series of stroni; rapids. With the exception of the lower put 'if Loon jtiver. none of theM" rivers are na^•ii^■ahle hy steameis. .\ noticeahle feature of the district reported on is the multitude of f^^i).;,.^. lakes which occur ev rrv w here, scattered over plains, plateaus and ridges. The lakes ranue in si/e from hroad sheets of water twelve to tifteen miles in length, to small ponds a few feet across. 'I'liey areusually shallow and wei'dy, and in many I'ase- are hein.i.' gi'iidually tilled up with .S/iIun/iiiuh. .Manv of the smaller lakes of foiiiier times have heen completely tilled up and are no.v represented hy miiskcLr^. I lie origin of most of tim lakes is due to the numerous shallow dejiressions in the houlder <-lay tloor of the district, becoming tilled with water: hut in souie instances thev appeal' to have heen caused hy the damming up of some of tlie smidler streams hv heavers. i- . I' '■■ M If m ■0 S (> DISTHKT OK ATIIAHASCA. i:''!^2!!i l^aki' Claiii'. I^akc .Maniiiiawci', ami a niiinlx'r nf nilii'f sinallff lalii's ill the ntii'tli-<'ast('i'ii part ut' tlic district, (lillrr in (irit:iii tiniii tiidsc just (IcscrilM'd, as tlit'V cicciipy Jiai't of tin' (•(iimiKin liclta )ilaiii nt' the Peace anil Athaitasea lixcis, w iiicli stretclies t'nim tlie we^t enii of Lal are cn eryu lieie \ery slialiiisv, I heir ordiiiai'y dept ii seldom e\c iiiii;' nine feel. e\eii in t iieir deepest parts. In seasons of I'vcejii ionally liiuli water, ilie low mar^iiy jilain scparat inu' tliein from I lie main lalt' llic I't'licail In tlir llloutll nf ihf liOiiii, is .iliinii l'()I) miles, iiii'iisincil in ii stivii^lil liiii', Imt tlic (li.stiiMct' ,ictu;ill\ I III \ t'lli'd, t'dllnw iiiL,' tin' \s iiidiiiLC ruurscs nt' till' v.iiiniis sircums, aiiiniiiit cd tu nearly 10') miles, and niin- jijed allciuet her alMillI 'liree \\eelft au'es, line ot' llliee miles I'l.rlai,''"'. and the olliec ut' Iwn linles, neenr iin the liPllle, and i:ieal care liad In lie exercised in descendinu tlie nnknilun \\ aiii^eaw Itiver with its numerous lajiids. Imt with I hese e\c,']it ions, no es]ieeial ditlieidties weie eneonnlered. The I'eliran |{i\ er em]it ies ini m t he A t iiahasea alioiil lOl' miles !„.. I'.lic-in l;i\. r. low Allialiasea iiandinu. 1 1 ■> lenulh. tVom its soiii'ee in I'eliran Lake to I he Allialiasea, is alioiil twenl\ seM^n miles, measured in a^lraiuhl line, hut t'lilly I \\ iee t hi-- (list a nil' t'olhivv iii;,^ I he miinerou-- w indiums i it' the stream. Il has a total t'a 1 1 ot "i I I t'ect, the greater part ut' tlii- ileseellt ocelirriliL,' ill the la--! li\e miles. s\ hrre it lil'eak-- thiiiiiijh the |ilaleaii down to the level ut the Athalia^ea. The luwer I'Ution ut I he st ream in win eh t his ra|iiii desreni t ;.kes jihn-e i- iinna\ i';alile, .and the traverse he^aii li\ makinua di--ai:reealili> |iorta^'eut three milrs out ot' the valley ot the .\tlialiasea w llieh is here ."i."il» t'l' •! ileep tliroiitih a.speii and -|iriiee t'orests ami aem-'S mu^ke^s ii> i jiuini un I'elican I! iv er aliu\ e t he ra|i:(ls. l'"lM||| the east end ut the liurlaue tu I'eliean Lake. I'elican liivel * . liiJiintailis a neneral w e--terl\ direct iun. it ha-- an a\('i a^e w icil h ut ht'l \ to sixty t'eet. it-- 1-iirrent. a-- a rule, i-- slLiuui--h. Inil lioulder liais t'onii inu --horl rapiiU oi-ciir tre<|Uentl\ tor the lii-^t ten miles, and occ.i>ioii ally all I he w ;i \ ii|i. It is e\ceediii;;l\ croiiked. and in one |il;ice a [lurtaui' uf' Ic-s than a mile. s;i\|.d a deluur re|iurted to he ten or IWcUe miles. The |irinci|ial t riliulai ic^ ut' I'elican Liver are; Muskc" Liver, which enters jt I'rum the nurth, and i-> t'nlly cijiial in --i/,. in the main stream; andC'ruuked Neck Liver ami Luui; Lake ('reck, which juin it t'ruiu the south. The cuiiniiv adjoinin- tin' I'elican Liver i-- luw and generally w uuded. chu'lK w it h sjinice and a--|ien. hut in [il; s i he river wimN ihi'uii^h wide marshv llal-. cuvered with vv ild hav. The llat coiini ry e\i, 'nils --uiit livv . I I'd lu I'clicin Muuntain. a wuudeil rid^c w'iiich can he seen t'luni ■cver.il |iuiiit - ,duiiu the river, and which i^ said tu extend westward tu .Marten .Muuntain, at I he east I'lid ot Lesser Slav e Lake. Till' clianni'l ot I'elican Liver ahove ihe |iurlaue i^ uiilv a ti'W teet dee|i, and atlurds ||u ceoluuicd sectiun>, seldulii even eiilliiiL; diiwn tu the huiildcr claw The >iiiall aiiiuiint ut eiu-iun r^ 'r. n n *!■■ * I .V. lU i> DISTHKT OK ATHAHASCA. It .V iSr- ptrfdnncfl Ijy this stream e\ iclcneesitii nriuiii siil)si'(|iiciit to the (Jlaciul |u'i'i()(l. I'.li.an L,il<,.. IVliraii Lake, tlic lira.l of Pclirari llivcr, is a small lako about f..ui- inil.-s in l(Mi,i,'tli and one to two miles in width, it is very shallow, and Its water has the usual l„,,\vnish culour ot' water issuiiiu tVnm mus- keg's. Its shmvs are low, and it is surrounded hy shelvin,!,' sandv and liraxelly l)eaeh(>s. l'<'li<"in Lake, like the majority..)' lakes in this distriet. oeeupies a shallow depression in the liouldei- elay and assoeiated drift deposits, and has no conn.'elion in any way with the pre-;rlaeial features of the eountrv. After crossin-' Pelican Lake, the traverse led u|. I'.eaver ( "reek, a small stream, in places, scarcely lar.i^v enough to turn the .'a-noe. Hi;i\ir f'rcil;. ■ > / < i ■ n i . I>e;i\.'r t reek was tollowed in a westerly direction foi' two miles, and as the stream then turned to the south, we left it. ami made a portai,'e of twc.uules across t he watershed, hetween the Athaliasca SmilIn Lake. ,,||,| IV,.,,. c I'ivers. to S.tndy Lake. w f.u'ins a typical prairii'. .\i the I (evil's Papids. Saiiily LakeCrc.'k (lev elops a small valley. I.ut no ro.^ks are exposed. In the o-rcat,.,- part of its course its lied is only a f.'w feet l.elowthe ueiieral surface of the countrv. ■\l t lie head of the Waliiseaw Pivcr. are the t vv o \\';iliise,ivv lake... 'I'lie upper lake i.^ aliout six miles lonu, and from two to three ^^i'l''^ i>^ water is shallow and is tilled with small alua'. l^'oiialily helonuiny to the melius A /'/ni iii -jmniioH . Soiithof the lake, the Hat or sli,!;-htly rolliii.u plain, wooded with aspen and spruce, which char acteri/e the region, is terminated at a distanci'' of twelve to fifteen utiles liy a ran-e of low hills, connectiiii; Pelican and Marten inouii tains. In other direct icuis no hiyh land is visihle. W'nliisciivv lill.CS. ii DKSCKn'TION OF HOITKS. 11 i> The strciini eoniipotitii; tlic two Wiihisciiw lakes is iil)out three miles ill ieiij;tli ami winds sluggisihly through a marshy tlat covered witii wild hay. Tlie Inwer Wahiscaw liake is ahuut ci^ht miles loiii; with an averaite width of three miles. it is deepei' than the upiiei' lake, and its water is elearer. Ilimlder elay is exposed in two plaees I'.i.uMi rclMV alniii;- its eastern shores, liut no niiterops ot' the nlder roeks were""""''"' st>en. Xiiiiieriiiis l)oiiiders oeeiir ainiijf the lie.icli in places. Thest! consist |iriiici|)allv nt' Archa'an gneisses, Imt others of s.'uidstoiie and limestone are imt uiicuminun. The Wabiscaw lakes are drained liy the W'aliiscaw |{i\er, whirli, with its rciiit iimat icaw Lake, runs in a WaliiMiiw sout ii-easterly direct ion to I'ine Itiscr, a distance of .liiout forty sexcn miles, ill ;i straiylil line ; its width \aric> from 7o to I I'll yjnds ; for some miles from its head the current is shiuu'ish and ihecliannel of the stream is encumbered by numerous ifiicissic boulders, thiouirh which We had some dilliculty in tindiii;, a passage. Twelxc milr^ from the lake, iicar IJi\er joins the Wabiscaw from the we^i.aiid is almost eijuai to the latter in si/e, li heads in i'.ear Lake, but \y. con- tinued iindi'r the name of Whitelish l!i\er to \\liilfli-,|i Lake, and has only been parli;dly ex|ilorcd. .\i)o\e the junction of I'lcar ilivcr with the Wabiscaw. the latter is inlerru|ili'i| b\- a series of short rapids, but after passing.' these it is rasily naxi^.-ilile for many miles. .\t the rapids the river cuts throimii a siii.di rid!j:e, ami a \alley about lifty tVet deep is developcil, while .'diove anil below the banks dis,-ippear, and the brd of the river is onl\' a few feet below the general level. Thi' .idjaeeiit rouiiliy is aH • 'liiU'iictir cif well w led, cllleljy with aspen, interspersed Willi Uldvcs (it spruce. ||.y l''ive miles below I tea r itiver, Troiil Itiver comes ill from the same side. 'I'liis si re.'im is about si\ty feet wide and oriudiiales froiii the 'I'rout lakes. I'lelow 'I'roiit i{i\er the Wabiscaw is easily nav ii.',ible, the current a\eraniiiL;' aboiil two miles an hour, ami is uniform in appearance until near Wood liiillalo Itiver; at this point the slope of the stream increases and rajuds oiciir at the est remit ics of all the bends. ,if ■I- Nc^" ■^ L 12 T) DISTIiUT OK ATIIAMASrA. Oilll'i'Ilt iif riM-rs. (.'llMlllIll l''rc)iii W'dud liufTalo, tu Houso liisci' llir currout of tlic W'jibiscaw is ircMcrally rapid, and sticti'lies ut' roiij,di watcroui'Ui' fit'i|Ui'iitlv. Two miles ulidvc llniisii l\i\ff a rcci'iU clianyc in llic cuurst' nf tlie stream was notifi'il. Ilcrt'tl'f rixci', apparciitly witliin tlir last few years, lias br'okeii tlui)iiL,di tlie loiiLjiie of land sepaiat in^ t \mi of lIKllli'fd. Jill 1 1 -I 1 ■ 1 1 1 ■ 1 1 1 1 the lieiids, and rushes witli i^i'eat velocity lietween the inx" ooulder- elay banks (if the narrow L;a)i thus tunned. The did channel is now <|uit(' (h'v f(ir aliniit twdiniies. lielow IJdUse I! i\-er tile \\'abiseaw w inds fdr sdiiie miles t lii'duyh a llat, s\\ ani|i\- renidii ; furl her on it st raiuhtens out and lains with a swifier cuirent tiii'diiL,di a somewhat, higlier ro<;idn. Here a \ alley fnim jitly in sixty feet deep is i;radiia,lly (Ii'veldped. but disappears ai.;ain liefure rea<-liinu Pine itixcr. I'"nini I'iue lvi\ er I he Waliiscaw bends mure to I he w I'st and runs in a L;i'neral north-westei'ly direction towards llie llullalo Head Hills. lietween I'ine Hixcr and Two Lakes ( "reek, lanoe luu iii'atioii is comjiaratively NaNiu'.itinii. easy. altliouL,dia few small rapids occur about halfway down. The a\eraiie uidlli of the stream is .about lOti vards, and the current runs at a rail' of from two to four miles an hour. Two lar^e tributaries come in from the norlii. the names of which I ; ■ '^ could not learn. I )escendiiu;' the W'abiscaw. its \,illc\' L;radnallv llci|nll-. deepens and at the nioulli of Two Lakes Creek, it is ."i-'iO feet deeji. 'J'lie banks are generally \\ooded, chielly with aspen, mingled in places with spruce. TxM'hc miles below Two l.,akes Creek the W'aiiiscaw lower down. Loon |{i\er Joins it from tliewesi ,ind thence u'Incs iiN name lo the main slieam. Loon liixcr heads in Loon Lake, which i> o, 'scribed . as the \alley ae(|uires an increased (le])th and assumes for' some distance Niuiou valley till' appearance of a cafion. In this reach. stee|) hanUs often cx- cccdinLT IUI> feet in lieiirlit, cut out of the dark ('retaceous shales, narrowly inclose the rixei'. The current of the ri\'er is also swifter than Usual, and slioni:'. hi" easily-i'un ra]iids are numerous. 'J"he valley of the Loon l!i\ei- maintains its naiaow LCori^fe-like character for ahoul tifteen miles, hut liefoi'c reaching I'.al Itiver lheele\ation of the country through which il cuts is suddenly lowered, the valley liecouu's shallower- and wider-, and the naked scar-ps ar-c replaced to a lar-ge extent hy woody and grassy slojies, llelow l>at Itiver- the Loon liiver- lie(-onre^ very tor't umis and coritirrues so all the way to I'cacc Itiver-. Thi' r iver- Hats hei-orrre lar-ge and ar-e occasioirally pai-tiy open, in some ca^^es giving eviderrce of having heerr clear-ed hy ice. .\ few rrriles al)ov-o its iuiu'lion with i'eace Itiver- ihecur-r-ent of Loon Itiver- de I'linint cr-eases III I Wo niili-sarr hout-, the valley disappear-s. arrd the width of lire str-eam irrcr'eases lo ahmit L')!) yai'ds. Two rrriles aliove iis mouth il r-eceives JJeai' 1 1 iver-, a small rrrirddy sti-eam corrriirg fi-orn the dir-eciidri of lire liuflalo ifead Hills. Thi' Loorr-\\ a hiscaw Itiver- mighl |ios>ililv lie navigated, hv povver-- fu! sleairrers, as far- as lire (Ir-arrd lta|iids, dur-irri; the season of Iriyh watt'i'. and liy usirrgtlre lirre uccasionallv. hut with I he exceiiliorr of a few rrriles of still water' above its rrrorrtir, il can har'dly he corrsider'e: M it' i'eai-e Itivci- is forrncij hy lire junclioii of ihe l-'inlay an a lai-ge (hslr'iet west of lire Itoiky Mountairrs, arrd their coni inning ea■^twal■lls, inlci'sects the axis iif I hal range, arrd drains the coirnt ry lying along its easter'n slopes, ihroir^h forrr' deLjr-ees of latilude. 1 1 ^ Iciil;! h, from 1,, n^iih ,,i' lire c(irillueri(-e of ihe l'"inlay and I'aisrrip r-iver-s, to the pdiril at ''■■"''■ '>i^'-''- which il rrrrites with liri" water's tlowing fr'om Lake .\lhaliasca tn foini Slave Itiver- is ~'i~ ririles, hul rrreasiir-ing fr-oirr Suirruril Lake, the source of its prirriipal lirairch, il is appr-o\irrralely !<•'"■ rrriles. 11 I) DIHTHICT OK ATHAHASCA. \":ill.y,.f TniMiM' to Wiiliistavv' Hiwr. I iiifiinii lip |ii'Mi';iMri' (if liviT. Tl'ilVi IHC tn llutTalo !!•'; Hills. IVace HiviT forms tlic ciistcrii houiularv of the ro^'ion cinhriicpd in tliis rt'poi't. iiiul was cxaiiiiiH'd from the Smoky River Forks to the mouth of lied l?i\er, a distance of ."U I miles. Between Smoky Kixer I'^orks and tlie mouth of Battle River, a dis- tuMc(> of lOS miles, the genei'al eourse of Peace liiveris noi'therly. Its avera^fe width in this distance is ahout 400 yards, but it occasionally expands to nearly twic(! tins si/e. The current has a uniform rate of ahout four nules an iiour. 'l"he valley is deep, and in places presents a very picturesijue appeai'ance. It is ahout two miles wide, and at the moutii of Smoky l{i\er tlie water is not less than 700 feet below the le\cl of the plateau. < uiiny nortli ward the \alley bei'omes i,'radually shallower, and at Battle IJiverits bottom is oidy ()()0 feet itelow the jiiateau. The banks are often scarped, and whi're coniposeil of sand- stone are i)reci]iitous. A short traverse was made on foot from a point about three miles abo\e liattl.' I{i\er east ward to W'oKci'ini' Hi\er, and uji that stream for some distance. After cliiid)injf out of the valley of Peace l{i\ci', which is liere (100 feet dee]), we ])assed throuf{ii a .sjiruce, asjien, and iJanksian pine forest, about a mile wide, and then entei'ed a rolling; oil n try partially cleared bv forest tires. X'Vond this, all the wav to Woh ri(l''es, verine Hi\er, the trail crosses a succession of wide inuske''s, sandv coxered with i'.ank ■;pen W siai ,1 1 pine, and loamy ridi^es, covered with oherine liner, when' we reaclietl it. is a small slutjuish st ivam alio ik lit thirl \' feet wide lt^ s \allev is a liout liftv feet wide, but the liaiiks are not scaijied, and no exposures were seen. W'e followed t up for about ten mi les throimh small prairies, as]ieii woods an* iiiuske<;s, and then, liudiiiy that it allbrded no geological informaliftn, or |iic)spect of any, we returned. the N'ermilion ^^•llls and rapids, a distance of l!el( llatth iiNcr, ti I' iiearlv liOO miles, I eace Ki\i'r is rather monotonous and the current is I. i))id, ha\iiig a unitoriii rate ot ahout three miles an hour f ab h Th lev decreases ill depth to about lOO feet, and the sandstone clitls which l( lid \ iirict V to the ii jiper stretches of tl le rncr, disaippea d are replaced by grassy .ind wooded slop(>s, or by the sombre clay shales of the ( "retaceoiis. 'TadiialK' chaiiife fi b lids become more numerous, and the bars om gravel to saiul I'liiii l'" miles Ioiil.', and a I bout l> \1 ■■ I \ u ^J V. V, o u C > U u ►J h) «iitt';iin l^akc i> Imfdi'icd hy fxtciisisf nicadnw laiid^, (•)\cri'(l witli liixiii'iant ltimss. At'ttT Ifaxintr it. Vt<- passed tlirini<.'li an aspcM Wood, crosst'd two small streams llowiiii; into I'xai' Itiver, and then for some miles, tra\elled tlircniL;li a hell of ]iarlly wooded, parlly open conntiv, whicli lies at the foot of the liutValo Head Mills. The i_'i-ealel pail of the land Jllst descl'ihed. is well titled foi settle- ment. The liuH'alo llejid I i ills aic ahout lifty ndles loni,'. and from twenty |',,itt;ile ll<:i(| /Ive to tinrty ndles wide, with a ijci^ht of L*,r)()() feet aliove tiie sea. "'"^' The noilhein and northeastern escarpments are the Woldest, and rise to a height of i,(JUU feet al)o\e tlie plains n\ llii'ir liase. To the south- ward, the i-elati\c ele\ation i,'radiially deereases. and the hills .ippearto die away ojiposite I'.laeU Itivfi'. 'I'he summit, so far a> ohsersed, is a le\('l. slii.'ht ly-rolliny plain densely wooded with aspen and spriiee. Delow h'ort N'ermilion. I'eaee |{i\('r runs in an easterly direct ion for forty si. \ miles to the X'ermilion {""alls and Itajiids. N'ernnlion l-'alls, N'lrinilii.ii like the Cascade itajiids on the .\tlialiasca, are caused hy the ri\t'r falling; over a low limestone lediie. The height of tin- falls \aries accoidinLf to the volume of water. .\t low water they are from fifteen to twenty tVet hiyh. while at hiirh water, they tiecome irreatly rechiced. and on one oi-casion weie des- ceniled in safety hy a York lioat. I'eaee iiixci' at this point is nearly a nnle wide: the falls are not continuous all the wav aci'oss. hut are interru|)ted at sexeral points hy the hiuher jiorlionsof the limestone ledii'e. A mile ahove the falls a strong rapid occurs, a third of a mile in lenyth. and these two ohst ruct ions c(mst it ute the onlv serious hreak in the naviuation of Peace l!i\('r for htindieds of nnles. Peace i{i\i'r was not e.xannned helow N'l'runlion i'^alls. In its I'l m(i' Uivcr , 11- 1 •■••111 ImIiiu \i'r- lower stretches tlii' rixcr ascra^es neaiiy a mile in width, the current niilinii I'iill--. is gentle and uniform and the \alley almost disapjiears. .V small rajiid occurs al one point, hut does not ohstruct navigation except durini,' low water. h'r,f Rn;r. In the district reported on there are two lied ri\ers. one drainiiif; 'p^iil'iil into IVace Hiver ami the other into i he Athahasca. iioth lii'ad in !''^"'" 'i';.^'' lakes situated witiiin a few miles of each other on the I'.ircli .Moim- .Mdunt.iiiis. tains, and the Indians frecpienlly carry (heir canoes from one st ream to the other. The westward-llowiiiif I{ed Kiver empties into Peace Hiver five miles helow the N'ermilion l''alls. It is ahoiit 'IW miles lon^, iiiul averages aliout L'()0 to J-")0 feet in wiilth. Its name i.s tierived 1-. i<»T. : f- i('> 1) DlSIHh r OK \l 11AI!AS( A. I )csiriiitiiiii K.' < )u I l!i\c|- (( )l|(i -i]ii). ;l (listillirc of lifty llliirs, iiicjisiircd in a stfaijfjit line, IJi'd l!i\fi- fallows a LCciicial diicit ion a little \\e^,t nf smith. l''or some miles al)o\(' its nmntli it is coutined Kv low limestone rlills, anne I if the hends, and t he \\ ater. poininu' with ;^reat \ cloeity ( hi'oUi.di the new and nnieh shorleiie(l channel, strikes the oppusile liank with u'reat force: a part of it is < Ictlccicd nptheohl channel, and ]las-^inL;' c(im|iletel\' round the hend. a distance nf ahoul a mile, falls into the I ri\ei- a^rain alio\e the hreak'. The curious feature i-. here jn'csented of a I'ixer rex'ersinu' its coiu'se foi' a consi<|cralile distance. 'I'his. nf ciiurse. only happens when the river is lluuded. .Mmxe the rapids the current L;iailually diminishes, the valley disappears, and the river ciiiitinues to he easily naviuahle as far as ( »wl lti\-er; alioxc < >w 1 liivcr. a small stream, tifleeil to twenty feel wide. enlel> lied llivcrfrom tlu'left. .\\ ( »w 1 Itivei-. IJed iJivcr approaches to wit liin a few mil(^s(lf the Wahiscaw. and the Ihillalo Ilead Hills, which are sit iia led on the furl her side 1 if t he lat ter st ream, are plainly v isihle at an estimateli(i\vr(l ii laiii,'!' of liills in :\ diit'ctinii wliicli I tmik to he tllf I>il'rli Mniinlaili--. KriPii; the t'not lit' llir IniiL,' l'.i|iiil'-, wi! (lescen(lH(l tu I'cai-i' l!i\rr, easily in tniii- liays, allliniiu'li 'ln' a^n'iit liud cftst us ten iiiiij; ilays ot' lianl lalnnir. Hi'd l>i\cr is iml a iia\ iicalilc Ntri'am and ran i>\i\y he asrcndcd^ N.ivi^'iitimi .if 111 1 ■ I • i 1 !«• 1 1 ' '''■'' 'ii^i'i'- cM-n in caiiucs, diiiini,' liiu'li '>\ati'i'. It is, hiiwcvei", (Hiickly atu'ctiMl by rains, and tin' slmwi'iy wi'atlii'i wliirli \\r I'Spi'i-irnccd while mi it. kept it in a t'aifly liiuli stai^'r and rnaMi'd ii- tn juihi'I'iI. Like niii>t ut' tlic sti'Ciinis in tlie di^trii't its valley is in>i;cnilieant and atl'nrds little ;,'t'f (Ulrica 1 int'iiriiiatiiiii. 1,1 SSI r Sliirr l.itk' Losser Slave l^ake is a Imniand eiiniiiarativcly nari'nw sheet of water. |)esc:ri|iti i extendiiiiC in an east anil west diieitinn alunir the smitherii Imriler ut' \\^\^,. the rt'Lciiiii already desefiheil. It is >i\ty iine miles liiiiu', has an a\erai.fi' width nt' eii,dit miles, a inaximum width nt' iwel\e miles, and envers altip^ether an area nt' 1^1 si|uare miles. Loser Slave l^ake. nutwith- staiidini^' its si/e. is \ery shalluw. --eldiim exeeediniLr ten feet in de|)tll 'n low water, and nver a larL;e |iarl nf its are.i is nnieli less. The ileeji- cst llilft of the Like lies to the east i if the narrows, south- west of .M.iiten Mountain. The ninth shore of the lake is fairly ret'iilar in outline, with stonv and sandy lieaehes, while luw liliill's of lioiilder elav and Cretaceiiiis shales oci-iir ocea^ionally. The sonlhei'ii shore is neai'lv cNery where marshy, and alVorii> no e\[i(isuri's. .\ series of jilateans from SOU to l,()(J() feet hiuh, of Laramie sandstone and shale, runs ji.ir.dlel with the soutlu'rn shore at a distani f einlit to ten miles, lail deeieases in hei;;lit westward, and lei'iiiinates in a luw lid^je runnini; round the lias',whirli forms the western end uf the lake. .Vlonu the tinrthern side, the land slopes up from the shore to a liei^lit uf lod feet, hut after ]iassin!,' Marten Mountain i4oinu' east ward, it suddenly rises to a heiy;ht uf about 1,01)1) feet, furmiiiL,' the elevation know ii as .\L'irten .Muiiiitain. 'i'his raiiLfe K e\iilently a eoiit iiiuat ion iiortiivv aid of till' Laramie plateaus south <vith the same monotunuus spruce and a^pen forest which characterizes the whole northern reuion. The principal streams llowiii^' into Lesser Slave Lake, are. from the Fiiilns. west, Heart l!i\er : from the north. Salt Creek, the .Narrows IJivcr 'i v^ IS I) DISlliKT (IK Al ll.\ll\S(\. iiiiil .M.iitcii Hist-r ; and tVoin the smitli. Swan lii\cr and two sniiilli-r .sti'cams, tilt- nanirs ut' wliicli I did imt ascertain. 'I'lic mil let is fi'Dhi tlu' castfi-n end. l)y l^iittlc SiaNc Lai strt'iinis rniptyinj; iiitu Lrsscr Slave Lake are insi^niHcant in size and fan :iniy l)e na\ iyaled in lii;,di watei- witii small eany ascending; it.and portaiiini,' for t wo mile-, lo a chain of lakes, canoes can l)e taken to Whitetish Lake. Ti'iirrrsi f'raiii LrssirSlnrr LuLi la ll,, ll'dlnsrinr fiinr hij Wli itijish l,(ik<-. I'tKir LiiLi mill Trmit l.iiki\ i'i",i Ooiiiitiy lie The trail to Whitetish l^ake leaves Lesser Slave T..ake at the cross- tWI'lll IjCS-il .,.,1,11 ., ^1 1 ■ 1 .1 1 I Sluvf Liilii- "'.H' "^ ^'d' ^ r<'''k near its mouth, and runs in a n'ciieral north-easterly anil \\ liitcti>l] ilii-cct inn. 'i'he distance in a sliai'dit line is t w eiitv-eiuhl miles. After liiiki'. • leaving Lesser Slave I^ake the trail leads across .i liay-co\t'red flat, only sliuhtly raised aliove the lake, and then followint; up Salt C'reek mounts the plateau which is here about "JDO feet liiudi and jiasses for- some miles throii^li ;i rolling' well ixrasscd piairie, the oident product of forest lires. Ten miles from the lake, the limit of the open country is reached, and the trail ent(.'rs the forest, and then winds alonu the dry Wooded ridijes which separate the numerous muskegs and heaver meadows with which the country a hounds. li(U'se Creek, a small stream proliahly triliutary lo Heart itixfr, is liordered hy two miles of open enunti'V. after passini; which the trail leads thiouLch an asjit^n forest nearly all the way to Whitetish i.iake. Whitelish Laki' is from ti'u to t wehc miles loni,', and four to six miles wide. Its shores are low and featureless, and it is surrouiuled on all sides hy an aspen-t'os cred country, which, if cleared would afford excellent farming' land. It drains northwards hy Whitetish lii\er into Jiear Lake, and theni'c into the Wahiscaw. It is J.O'") feet ahove the Sea le\el. ,\t its wesiern end it is connected with a smaller lake hy a slugiiish stream two miles in length, on which is situated a small tradiiiLC jiost heloiiijinu' to the Hudson's liayCompany. A small clear- inu; lias heen niar scmr inili's tlirinii,'li an aspen t'lircst. wliiTc tin- tiavcllinii i> fairly '^mnl. and tlirn i-russcs a sucfcssinM nt' splia^nunitillcd liolliiws. altcrnatiiii,' wiili svfiudt'd ridiii-s to SwaniplxMry ('reck (WT-si-ki-ni-mi id Si-pi). Tins SH.iniplHiiy -stri'ani is aln(iit twenty t'eet wide and llnws thnniLth a \s ide \alley witli Nl()]iin;,' wnuded lianks. It atlnided ni>e.\pui'es. It was ei'ussed sliurtlv after reai'lnnu it and wt> fullcpwed down its left side tiii'i>iij,'li mnneroiis naiskeijs ami niai-.-ilies until it emptied into a lake of tlie same name. At Swani|)l)eii-y [..ake tiio writcf sepacated ffoni tlic pack tiviin. whicli Canoe tni- ,",, , 1 11 . I. I 1 verse ti) Hear was sent 111! to J font Lake, and made a eanoe tfavei'se to lieai' Lake. ]^,i^,. Swampiieii V I^aki' is a --liailow sheet of water alxmi four miles ionij and one mile wide, and is suiinunded by low marshy shores and spruee- c-overed tlats. Its outlet, a small weedy stream from fifteen to thirty feet wide, em|ities, after a sliort eotirse, into Whitetisli IJivcr, the out- let of Whitetisli Lake. This stream is aliont thirty feet wide. It has lou liank-. oveihiniL;' on holh sides liy willows, and llous at the rate of' two to three miles an hour. No rapids were found on it, l)iit it is oeeasionally liloeked with piles t»f drift wood makiiiu- portau'es neee>-«;iry. It is extreuiely eiooked, ami at one |M)int, a ureat hend, said to take nearly a ilay to u'o round, was a\oided hy making a short porta;,'e to a small lake. This was erossed, and it.s shalNiw and weedy outlet descended to \\'hitetish l\iver, the whole traverse occupying ahout an hour. I'lelow the portage, Whitetisli lii\er is from fifty to si.xty feet wide, and winds for a numherof nnles tlirouich wide mar>hy meadows, ill the midiUe of whicli it receives Shoal Kiver, a small stream ahout twentv feet wide. llelow Shoal Itivcr a rid;'e is cros.sed. tlie hanks heccime lii;,dier, and the tamarack and willow are re|ilaced by an aspen foi'est. A second wide marsh then ajipears, followed liv a ridi^e, through which the hank', are thirty feet high and show liouldi-r clay in one or two i)lace's, but nothing older was seen. Iievoml the ridge the liordering tlats again become marshy and continue so until Bear Lake is reached. I>ear Lake receives two other >mall streams, besides Whiteljvli Itivcr 1'"^" Liilie. ■which we descended. It empties into Hear liivcr which (lows into the \\'abiscaw twelve mile> below Lake Wabiscaw. It is four to five miles long and aboiit two miles wide. and. like ll tlier lakes of the (listrict, occupies a shallow ba^in in the drift. A low ridge skirts its eastern shores and a second ridges running soul lieasi ward terminate.s in a rounded \vooded hill near its outlet, and may atl'urd exposure.s where cut liy tlie river, but I was unable to visit it. ■2h i m •JO I) lllSTlilcr 0|- A1'IIAI!\S('.\. Mu.l|i.mt Lak.'. I''r'iin llic iiiniilliKt' Wliiti'tlsh Ki\»'r we crd'^scd tn tlic luiitlicin end ot' tlic bike, tlii'ii i-nrhi ikj till' i-iiiKic, set mil iiii t'liot t'lir Ti'mit I niil fi-nin |„iki'. 'I'll!' trail li'd aliiio-^t diir iiurtli, tliriMi;,'li an asprii t'urcst, \sitli l!i;ir liilUr t" . ... \ 'I'liiut I-iil<<-. (iccasiiiiial s\\aiii|is and iiiusk('i;>. Nine miles trmii tlif laki> wc ■ aiiic tn a small slrcaiii llowiiiLf cast wafd, and bluntly at'ti'iw ards to 'I'l-dui l!i\('r, wliicli \\c t'iill:]s\ I'd iijit'oi'twd miles, and I lien I'nissed. 'I'roiit i!i\ IT em])t ie> the waters iit' Tr 1 hioiiuh, t he ele\ at inn k imw ii as Trniii Mi unit a in. ! Is \ alley slinwed iin seel inns, and t he Innse I'neks in its lied were exchl- si\('ly .\ I'clia'an, ami ali'nnled nn inili<'al ions nt' ex|iiisiires in its '.iiiiier |ifii'l. .Vt'ler ei'ossini;- 'I'rniit IJiver. the trail led tn the sumniil nt' a ridye aliniit ;illO t'eel hiuli. t'nnnini;' part nt' 'rrmii .Mniinlain. and then ennliliued parallel willlTl-nlll l!i\el'. In Mudpnut I ,ake ( N i-ye Saj^'a hii-^iin). passinii thniui,di deep muskegs anil nver sandy ridges envend with IJanksian jiine the ifieater part nt' the distance. .Mud|inMl Lake is an expaiisinii nt' 'rniiii l!i\i'r, and is almiii three miles IniiL;- liy a mile wide. Il is enniH'clcd with 'I'lnul l.,ake 1)V a slinri stream, two miles Iiuil;'. nn which is sitiialeil a small Iradinu' pnsi nt' the lliidsniis I'.ay ('nmp.iny. I''rniii the lhid>nn Lia\' pn^i at Trniii Lake, an evplni'alniy nip was made iinrlhward In ihe Waliisiaw l!i\cr. in nnler in cnnnecl wiih llie t ras itnc dnw n thai sireaiii. .\ u'liidc and caiines were niiiaiiied at ilie t'nri, as the wav led thinii^li a chain nt' lakes cniincclcij with Tnuil Lake. 'I'lniii Lake is divided inin I w n pail s, hy iiari(p\\ s halt' a mile in leimlll. The Inwer lake is ti\e In si\ miles Inllu'. and t'nlir In tiM' miles wide al iis widest pari. The cnmpai'al i\ ely clear cnndi I inn nt' I he w aler. is due In I he l;it ler passiin.; t lifnin;li a chain nt' lakes, and nil ihe way. depnsilin^ ils sedimenl . and is illiislralcd hy the t'aci, I hat Irniil are nliiained iherc in aliiindaiice, .\ wnndcd ridtio t'nilnw s 1 he iinii h easi erii shnre nt' 'llniil Lake, and nil 1' ullide slated that Maiiiinii Lake lies liehind lliis rid^e. Sirain^e tales are ln|i| nt' this lakeliN the Indian-. hriinis liealen liy iiiNisihle hands havelieeii heard liy iheawesirnck Indians; tires ha\ e lieen seen al iiiulil dancinu' ii\er I he siirt'ace nt' I he w al er, and Indians lia\e m\ sicrimisiy disap pea red. 1 heir Cannes lieiin:' at'l erw arils t'niind riuhl side up and uninjured. The upper 'rrniii Lake is leii miles Inm;, and al its upper end w idcns illln a hay six In seven miles wide. Il is cnlinecled hv a small winding si ream will; (Innd l'"isli i,aki', a sm.dl Imdv n|' water alimil twn miles lnii'4. .\t'ler leaviiii;' (Innil l''isli Lake we crnssi'd lltlsli Ljike, and t'nilnwed a slmrl stream a mile and a halt' Iniiu into 'IVnut I,:iki'. Mallitell Luke. MCCONNEU ] l.l'.SSKK SI.AVK LAKK lO TIIK WAIilSCAW 1U\ K.li. Loni; r,;ikr. iiml tlifiici' into HouiulLaki'. tlic iicid ot' the sci'ics. Tlif strefini ruiint'ctiny: Luiisj; l^akc and 1{iiumi1 Lake is tun niiics in Icnj^th, and is int<'i riiiitcd hy a scries ot' rapids, nt'ci'ssitatin^ a [lortaLri' ot' halt' a milt'. From l{oiiri(l l^akc a jiortaiXf ot in'ai-ly a niilr is niailc to Kidney l/nkis.m Lake aci'oss the w ateisiicd scjiarat inu 'I'w o Lak<'> ('icrk tioni 'I'roiit Miinntiiin. I{i\fr. Kidni'v Lake is siiualcd on ncaily llic iiiiiiicst jioiut ot 'i'mnl Mountain, and lias an a|piiioxiniatr t'lc\ation al)o\i> the sea ot I'.-'iliO foct, or nraiiv tlic same as liiii'h .Mountain. Two miles troni Kidney Lake the I rail reaches the eili^-e ot I'rout Mountain, and a uTaduai descent ot .")■_'() teet is made. .\i the toot ot this escai-|iment is Two l^akes, tliesouri'c ot Two Lake-, ('icck. ('anijK'd on tiie shore ot this lake, T t'ounil a solitaiv lroi|Uois Indian t'le only i'<'|ii'esentati\'e ot his trilie in the wiiojc district. l'"i'oin Tun Lakes a u'ood trail led noilhuard through alternating' torc-t, and inuskoL;' to ihc Wahiscaw |{i\i'f, mectini;- the latter aliout a (|iuiiter ot a mile liclou Tuo Lakes Creek. Thi' valley ot the Waliiscaw at this jioinl is 'A'tU teet dee|i, and the total descent tioni the top ot Trout .Mountain to the rixer is S'^i^ teet. No .-ections ot any kind uerc seen alon;,^ the loute e.samincd. Atlei' returning;' to Trout Lake, I acconi|ianied the jiack train on the Ccmntiy ti'om the Postal Trout Lake t he country i^- ot the most uorthless descript i(pn. widi' niuske;fs alternal inn' uilh sandy i'idi:c> covered uiih Liinksian pine, and uilh occasiiuial aspen-"o\'ere(i riilu'es. I'"i\c miles tioni Trout Lake we crossed a t riliutary of 'I'roul l!i\eralionl ihiily teet u ide, wihdiiiu' lii'tueen marshy Mats in a \alley almul |iHt tci i deep, and seven miles turthcron came |o Shoal l!i\(r. l''romtliis poinl a side tri|i was made on toot to l.,oon l.S I) C'haiiKi' at (iruiid Kapiils. (J land Kajiids. These nipicls olistruct tlie navigation of tlio fivrr in low water, hut at niediuin or liij^li vvatei- they are easily ascended and descended l)y the steamer plying lietwecn Athaliasea Landing and the (Jraiul Hapids. The river valley iu this stretch is MOO to 400 feet deej), and the l)anks N'alUy consist of a succession of slides due to the plastic cliaracter of the clay shales through which it is cut. Tlie grade of the Athabasca Hiver i)etween the nxnith of Little Sla\e lliver and tiie head of tlie(jrand Rapids amounts to I'-Tli feet per mile, the total fall ln'ing 596 feet. At the (irand Rapids, the cliaiai'ter of the At haliasca Ri\er en- tirely changes, its grade l)i!ConK^s greatly increased, and for the next .se\enty-six miles, or as far as its juncti(»n with C-learwater River, there are swift and dangerous rapids every few miles. .\t the ^Jrand Rapids the river fails between tifty and sixty feet in aliuut half a mile. The rapids are caused by the river meeting and cutting through a soft .sandstones terrane of the- Cretaceous. This sandstone is tilled with hard spherical concreticnis whidi become giadually liberated as the matrix is slowly worn away. The concretions, some of whicii are six to eif^it feet oi' more in diameter, now pave the channel of the river, and the water in its swift descent, breaks ovei' them in a tumult of waves and foam. Tiie Oraiid l^apids are unnaxigabie by craft of any kind. There is a small ishuid about a (piartci' of a mile long ojiposite the worst part of the rapids: boats are brougiit down to tiie head of the island and their I'ontents portaged across by me;nis of a short tramway whicii has been built \t\ the Hudson's liay Company. l'"rom the foot of tlie island, the ri\i'r is aifain navigaiili', i)Ul it con- tinues rough for two or tlii'ce miles. After passing tlie (irand Rajiids, and the rough water below them, the .\tliabasca runs smoothly foroxer twenty miles, and then rushes down tiie Ihiiiit Rapids. In this stretcli the \aliey is deep iiiid gorge like. Tiie baniis are from "lOt) to (iOO fe(!t high and are often terraced by diU'erential denudation. .\t the i'urnt Rapids the river is shallow mid tilled witli boulders, iait the f.'iii is not so great iis at tiie (Iraiid Rapids, anil we had no ditlieuity in de-^celidillg tiielii. 'i'iie eaiioe rliaiiliei follows liie iefl li;iiil<. Tiie Ruriit Rapids are followed by sixteen miles cjf smooili water, iieiow which the livei' falls in ipiick succession o\-er the Roiier, .Middle and liong l{apids. all of which occur within a stretch of seven miles. Tliese tliree riijiids are similar in ciiaracler to the I'liiiiit Rapids, and owc! tiieir existence to a sleeper deelinalion tluin usual, combined with ;in ai'cumulat ion of boulders in the ciiaiiiiel of the river, 'i'iiey are all iia\igable at oi'dinary stages of liie wati'r, both with canoes and ^'ork boats, l'"ive miles belov.- Long Rapids the liver makes a slunp lieiid, at |)re|i valley. I!nnil Ii,i|>i( :1| ; I if < 4 ^iS ■' i 24 n DISTUK'T OF ATllAliASCA. H^ipi'l .111(1 Casciidcs, (JnidiMif iiv( AtliiiUiiscii lii\rr IiiIdu tlic Clrar wuter, tlie extif'itiity of wliicli is CfDnkcd liujiid, w licit' two ledges of liiiiestoiK; projwt into t lie .sti'cjiiii fi'oiiitlit' riLflitsidc, iiiit no trouliii' was experienced in running down close to the left l)!ink. Iiclow Crooked Itapid the ri\ei' falls over several limestone lodges, forming liock Uapids and the Little and l>ig Cascades. Small falls extending partly across the riv(M' occur at llii'se points, hut the ledges are liroken down in jdaces eiialiling hoats to get through. Ilelow the Cascades the river is unolistruclcd for eight or nine miles to Mountain Rapid, 'i'liis rajiid, like the Cascades, is foi'ined by the river (lowing o\er a low limestone ledge. A slioi't })ortage was made here, hut at cei'tain stages of the water, a channel na\igal»li' liy small hoats e.vists near the centre of the river where the ledge has lieen worn down. Mountain Uajiid is the last dangerous rapid on thevivi'r. Two miles ahov e the l''orks, Jfolierly liapid was passed, liul the fall there is slight. The fall of the .\thal)asca, l)etv\eeii the head of the (irand itapids and the Clearwatei' conlluence, a distance of seventy six miles, amounts to 'M'tO feet, an average of I " feet [ler Jiiile. l!c|ow the coiitluence of the (,"learwater Uiver the character of the .Athahasca entirely changes, the rapids disappear, and the liver, enlarged to a third of a mile in width, tiovvs smoothly Hi an average rate of three miles an hour, 'i'he valley increases in vvidili and the lianks gradually decrease from an elev at ion of ahout 100 feet at the Forks to the level of the delta. I n jiassing through the delta the chan- nel (lividt's in several liraiiches, and iievv channels are constantly being opened and old oiu's t'losed liy the sj)ring tloods. l'"i'om the h'orks to the head of the delta, a distance of I'M) miles, and iIkmicc to Athabasca Lake, a further distance of thirty-one miles, the .\thabasca oilers no obstruction to navigalioii. The steamer " ( iraliame, ' owned by the Hudson's May Coiii|iany, has been plying on this portion of the river for some vears. of ni an si: TlUd'i rsi /rdiii thf Atliiilnisrii tn Mutixi A^/r, llwi-li MmnititDUi, tlltil I'f III I'll lljl Mlliisr Jx'irrf, i! !1 Tniil tii.Mniisc The trail to ,Moo-,c Laki' leaves the .\tliaiiasca {{iver aiiout a mile below the mouth of iteil iiivei', and follows the viilley of the latter for about live miles. \\ this |ioiiit l!ed l!iver bends away to the south, and the trail continues a little north of west across a wide iniiskeg to .Moose l{iver, which it crosses. .\t lh(> crossing, Moose Hiver is a rapid stream 100 feet wide, in a valley about eiglit,y feet dec|), the bank-- of which are formed of tar s;uids capped with dark shales. •] ATIIAHA.SCA lilVKH. 25 1) Iiircli .M(imi- taiii. From M.oost; llivci- tlu^ (lii'('t'tii»n of the trail is a few dc^rcfs imrth of west to the foot of iVuch Mountain, a distance of ahout twelve miles. Tliis district is siii;litly undulatinjj;, with ji nunilicf of iniiske<^s and marshes in the dtjpressions, and is woodfd chielly witli small aspen, spruce and Banksian pine. The eastern escarpment of JJircii Mountain, wliei'e tlie .Moose Lake trail crosses it. is ahout ")()0 feet lii^'ii, the ascent is easy, and is made in al)out two miles. l''rom the brow of the escarpment tin; surface .slojH's j,'i'adua!ly upward towanls the centre of the plateau, where it is ahout l.',300 feet above the sea, or about l,oOO .above the level of the Athabasca. The surface of the liirch Mountain uplands is rolliny; and di'ift covered, and near the .Moose Lake trail, is indentcnl by a number of old valleys holdintf small streams and lakes, which aic e\idently pre irlaci.al in oriifin. The forest is sinnlar in character to thai co\ erini; I he plains beneath, but has been lar;;('ly destroyed by tires. ^lotj.se Lake, the objecti\e point of the tra\erse, is situated abo-.it Mmisc Luk, twenty miles from the <'dge of the mountain, and occupies a .vide depression about .'500 feet below the level of the plateau. it is ;i shallow lake, about two miles lonji;, and is se|iar;ited into t vo parts by narrows, on the riijht side of which are two small huts, used at times Ijy the Hudson's l>ay Comjiany as a tradin.Lf post. It receives from the soutli, iiy a shoi't stream, the waters of i'.ufl'alo LU the other was left at i>ig iJapid. which is situated only a few miles from t!ie trail crossing, aiul we returned to the Athabasca on foot over the same trail ust^l in beginning the ti'a\erse. I'lCtwcen th(^ trail crossing and the Atliai)as(a. Moose liiver is said to be full of rapids and to be unnavigalile. }fnski'ii h'ln'r. Muskeg River enters the Athaba.sca from the east about thirty-one miles below the Forks. It wa ascended for a distance of tliirty miles. liikf most of the other streams in the district, its lower part is unna\igable,an(l it is reached bymakiiiga jiortage from the Atliai)asca to a point on it, about three miles alxive its mouth. The portage track begins nearly opposite the mouth of Hed River and is about a mile long. The general (lirecti(tn of the stream is north-easterly. l'V)r some miles above the head of the portage occasional exposures of limestone, cajiped in places with tar sands, occ\ir in I lie banks, luii further uji, the \alley disa|)[)ears and the river winds through a low, marshy and worthless region. The stream here is alxiut fifty feet wide and is i)locked every few hundred yards with piles of drift wood and be.ncr ilams. I'.eforc rctiii iiing, a low wooded ridge running in a iiortii and south direction lictweeii Muskeg Riser and the .Vtiiabasi'u was \isited, but no exposures were found. /.isf III' Hlirtttnnis. The tollowing elevations were obtained by comparing the readings of two aneroids with the readings of the Standard meri'urial bar- ometers at i'idniontoii and Lake .\thabasca. Heights obtained in this manner are necessarily only apjiroximate : Ki'it. Atiiabiisca River (at " Lamling ") 1, (!.■")() " " (head of (Irand Rapids) I, -JOG " " (alClearwaterForks) S40 " " (at mouth) Oi)0 MccoNNEU.] fjsT OK KLKV.VTIONH. 27 D Fcut. Peace Kiver (mouth of .Smoky River) 1,22/J (moutli of IJattle Uiver) 1,090 " (Fort Vennilioii) 9")0 " (moutli of Red Rivei ) f<70 Atiiabasca Lake GOO Lesser Slave Lake 1 ,S90 W'hitetisli Lake 2,07") Trout Lake 2, 1 :!0 Loon Lake 1,680 Lake Claire 700 Lonj,' Lake 2,2<;!) Kidney Lake 2,:i20 Pelioan Lake 1,910 lUiffalo LakedSiieli .Mountains) 2,000 W'abiseaw Lake ( L'pper) 1,720 " (Lower) l,70r» Wahiscaw Ri\er (mouth of Trout River) 1,')-|;5 '• '• (mouth of Two Lakes Creek). . . 1.4S4 " " (at Junetion with Peaee Rivei'). !t20 Birch Mountains 2,:{00 I'.uilalo Head Hills 2.500 Marten Mountain 2,^i90 Ti'out Mountain 2,.'i.")0 Plateau south of east e:id of Lesser Slave Lake. . 3,090 Tiie general ele\ation of tiie I'e^ion tlci-reases i,'oing northward.'^ Di'i'iiasc in from 2,201) feet, the liei,i,dit of tlie plains sf;;i'ei,'atcs scattered throujuh the shales, and to its decomposition is doubtless in a lar;:e measure dm- the s;dts in the numerous minend and chalybeate str<'am- lets which t rickle dow n (he faces of many of I he escarpments and often I IE I • -1 ii il •;. ••_r'' I \ h\ %-^l 28 D DISTKKT OF .VTIIAHASCA. w <; 1 ]jiirnt sli.'ilis. K.\|ii'sMrcs iif lilt Itjclll' whales. .f IhhIs Flissil: form small red pools iit tlu-ir Ikiscs. At out' point, about twenty-four inil(>s Ix'low the mouth of Lake la lliclie I^iver, the La Ric-he shales hav(! be(>n baked and reddened foi' about 100 yards along theii' strike by the comliustion of the carbonaceous inatter which they con- tain, but the tires are now extinct. Lxpiisurcs (if the La iiiclie shales ai'e infreipient in the valley //yc.s7ff(.') were found in a numlier of places, and at Stony Kapids, a few miles iielow the mouth of the Pelican Kiver, I was fortunate enough to Hnd some large well- presei'ved specimens of Ai'diitliori'i'itri Wonh/d ri, .Mantell, and a large />(',v//((»'//v(,s' since liescribed by Mr. \\'hilea\'es as I). At/dilidsri-tisi',* The two latter fossils occur at tlu^ i)ase of the shales, and with O.strrn runyistd, which is usually regarded as a characteristic fossil of till' Niobrara, seems to show that the lower jiarl of the La lliche shales are older' than I'ierre. .\t the mouth of Pelican Ki\cr the shales are uiulerlaid by a band of sandstone which fortliesake of distinction may be called the Pelican sandstone. The Pelican sandstone hasa slight dip to the south, of a few feet to the mile, and this added to tin- fall of tin; I'is'er, causes it to rise gradually in the banks of the valley. It is forty feet thick, and is usually conspicuously white, but is also tinged yellowish and brownish in jilaces, by iron o.xide. The lower' beds as a r'ule are soft and crumbly, l)ut towards the top, the granular constituents are cenrented by ir'on, into a hai'd hemitiferoirs sandstone passing in *'rr'niiM. I{iiv. See. iif Can., vol. X., hcc. iv. Ak<' iif liiwi'i' pint .if \m 'J r.i.'lle sliales. I'i'lic'iiii sand- xtcmc. ^1 - SJ*J Ill a X V. V. V. o W z; o a « < :: t> » on i a ui Cu n V X Hi aearaiice a short distance helow the mouth of the Pelican I{i\-ei', and is a coiisjiiciioiis feature in the valley of the Atliahasca for many miles. The I'eiiian shide \ aries in ihickncss from nitiety to 100 feet, and is \('i y uniform in composition throuj;hout. It is slij;htly darker and luirder than the Piei're shales, and weathers down into a ti(/iis of small llaky fiartides. Xo fossils wei-e obtained from it. The Pelican shale is underlaid, aiiout halfway hctween I't>lican ( irund l^ipiil- l^iver and House Uiver, by a second sandstone foi'mation, f(tr which J "" ^ propose the name of the (iraiul Kapids sandstone, as it is well develojK'd at that point. The (5rand Hajilds sandstone is chai'acteristically yel- lowish, but is also occasionally whitish, and is coarser-strained than the Pelican saiulstone. It is remarkalile for the larice number of spherical siliceous concretions which it contains, and which ran^'t> in (-<,,„(^^,.,.,j,,„. size up to ten feet or more in diariicter. it weathers into stee|) slopes and clill's, the faci's of which arc often studded with the concretionaiy masses. jjiitnite seams, \aryinir from a few inches to tive feet in thickness occur at intervals tlirou,u;h this formation. The followin<; section was nu>asuretonc. L' I '.I •.')•)■ Twcniv feet of (Iraiid Hapids sandstone exposed at this point Sictiun ut has been niooNed lioiizonially by river ice. .\l the mouth of House Huusi' Kiv.t. Hi\'er l-"i() feet of the fliand Hapids sandstone is I'xposed, about half its total thickness, abii\e which comes the Pelican shall' ami sandstone, and about l.'iUfeet of the La liiclie shales. At the head of the (Irand liapids, about -(H) feet of the (Irand Hapids sand- stone is e.vposed. The lower portion near here consists of about lifty feet of a s;pft yellowish almost lionio;,'eneous sandstone, packed thickly with noduli's. and wcatheriiii,' into almost vertical cliti's. Hestinj: on this is about 100 feet of alternatini,' sandstone and shales, then m ■i.'. nil it %"& Ill :; , ill 30 [) DlSTIiKT OK ATIIAHASCA. CliMrWiitir slml... Rocks at Pti' Bruleti. fifty f.H't of <,'pcyisli and yt-Ilowisli siiralstuiic overlaid l)y a seam of lignite four to five feet thiil", ;d)ovc whii-h .•onies the tial Gr^ndRapifU .^flntisfone Clearwaler *ih?>le Secrion at pte Brulee ^c«le 300 Ft z\ inch. m MCCONNEll.. i(!s saiidstDiio rist-s hy (.-litis ■•mil teri'fict's to ii fiii'thcr licis^lit ut" ;<<)!• tV'ct. 'I'lu' luwi-r piirt ot" tlif t'oi'iiiiitinii is yellnwi.sli and Hllcd witli iiudidai' eoticn'tioiis, while furtlier up "grayish colours prt-vail and sniiif ot' the ImhIs hecoiiif coiniloincritic. Hestiiii,' on the (!rand l{a]>i(ls sandstone is tit'teen t'eet of llaky shales representint^ the lower part ot' the Pelican shale. This formation is appai-ently concealed Wy surface deposits near this point, Jis it was not seen to crop out further down tiie ri\cr. At the liurnt Uai.ids the ( 'iearwatersiiaie. alxiut fort v feet al)o\e the [J'-'loji' surface of the (i\er, holds a ImmI of Lcreenish ylauconitic sandstone aliout two feet thick, whicii is highly fo.ssilit'erous. The specimens ai'e in a H'ood state i)f preservation, hut most of the spt'cies are new and on this account their value in the detei inination of the horizon in which they were found is greatly les.sened. The fjiuna has, however, a general IJenton aspect. Mr. NN'hiteaves furnished me with the following list of fo.ssils collected at this point as the result of a preliminai'v examination : KossDm at a Ciiiiiji/iiiiic/i's, a Miiiliolii allied to .1/. frini'iKcnl ptn, W'hileaves ; a YitliUii. like )'. Ermis'i, Meek and llavden ; a .Viini/n, a I'l'dtiiniriliinii, ( 'ii//i.i/ii ti'iniis. \ lall and Meek : a Mart ra, a ( 'i im/ia, /).k i BouUler Cla^ ■■^■■;;wT^ •:::^^^i;';' -iiij^ivi-: ' \ Or<^nct Rapict» SAncUTone 300 J J ClearwaTev Shale 160 -t- Set-Tvon (hree miles btlow Burnt Rap'ids, AthabaSLS K. HiKksat Middle i{a|>i>l. T(Mi miles liclow Iiiiriit '^ii})ifls sonic fossils weiv collected from «, saiulstoni' hed in the ( "loarwiitt'i' shale, amoiiji wliioli avf CdHistn fcnuift, Hall and Mcpk, a Jfartnt, a Vn/diii, a Xiirn/ti, and a Cuik/ui. At the head of Boiloi' Rapid, fot'ty miles below tlie (irand l{aj)ids, and I'.K! miles hclow Athabasca Landine;, the base of t he < 'leafwater shale rises above the sui'faee of the valley and uiu-ovei's the Tar sands, the lowest local division of the Cretaceous. The Tai' sands must have Ori'dn cif Tar eiinsisled oriifiiially of almost unconscilidated sands and soft sandstone, "'""'"■ runyinif in text ure fi'dui a tine silt to a coarse yrit, but have been cemented into a colieiont tarry mass, 20U feet thic'lc, iiy the heavy con. stituents of the oils svlui-h have welled u|) ilui'ini,' past ai^es, in almost inconceivable iiuantities from the underlyioLT l>e\onian limestones. At I'loiler liajiid, fifteen feet of the 'I'ar sands are e.\]iosed, oxcrlaid by L'7o fei't of ihe Clearwater shale, which is its ordinary thickness, above which conies the nodular sandstone and the yellowish and<;rayish sandstone of the (Ji'and l{a|iids division. 'I'lie Clearwater shale at this point yielde(l />' .>,'//((<('('/7rv ((/////r, \\'|iitea\('s, a (tiniliiiiii/K. ;\\t(l ii Thrarhi or 'J'c//i III'. At Middle Kapid, three miles below Jloiler Ka|iid. forty feet of the Tar sands are exposed. The sand.s are heavily saturated with tar at this point. They are overlaid by the Clearwater shale and tlie(irand Tliickii(><>* nt l{apids sandstone. Two miles below Loin;- |{a])id lO'M'eei of thi'Tar Tar sands. sands are exposed, and at the head of Crooked liapid this is increased to I It) feet, the full thickness of the formation at this point. The Tar Sands at Crookel Kapid are massivi' and show false beddiny below, but are stratiliccl in more re;;ular iieds iiboxc The saturation is less than usual, and to this fad is due the brownish colour of the beds. Two miles above Crooked ib.pid the bas(> of the Tar sands rises above the surface of the v\aler, and discloses a few feel of grayish crumbly eveiilv St rat itie(l |)cviinian limestones. 'Ihe contact i)etween the two formations is apparently conformalile and alVoids liitle e\ ideiict" of the vast interval of time which separates them. Aiiiicluial at ('rooked l!a|>id marks the summit of a low anticlinal. .\boM' this ,,''"'l'V' point I he iieiU dill in a --oui liw est erl.' direct ion at from live lo ten feet Ka|)i;l. I ' to the mile, while iielow. tile general dip is to the north, but is very sliylit, as it averau'es less than two feet to the mile, and is just about e<|ual to the fall of the ri\er. IvsiKisaic nl iSelwecn Crooki'd liapid and the l''ol'ks. the lowest beds exposed '""'"■'"'"• consist of a few feet of i;rayisli evenly-st rat ilied hevonian limesliuic. Lcdyes of this rock cross the river at several points and form siiiall falls and casi'ades. The limestone is atVected liy a number of small folds and in iwn or three places sinks below the surface of the valley. bv -] .ATIIAHASCA HIVER. :?.1 D 1 ' It is tci'ininated upwards, foi- some distance below he Crooked Rapid, by a tliiii bed of conglomerate, consisting principally of sub-angular Conglomerat* limestone pebl)les ranging fi'oni half an inch to an inch in diameter. Siliceous grains till uj) the interstices bet-i-een the pebbles, and the whole is hardened into a compact rock by a calcareous, and in places ferruginous cement. A second variety of this rock consists largely of small ironstone conci'etions. Resting on the limestone aiul well exposed in high clitl's on both sides of the river, is the black plastic mass of the Tar sands. At the Cascade Rapid, this formation is 150 feet thick and is so sat- urated that pure tar oozes out of the bank in several places and 'I'm- streiitns. streams down the slope. The Tai" sands increase in thickness, descending the I'iver, from 141) feet at Crooked Rajiid to I'OO feet at tlie Forks. The peculiai' cleavage, Clcavugf. mentioned by Bell*, which they affect in many places, has no general direction, but is usually nearly parallel to the face of the adjoining clitl'. Flat plates, an inch or more in thickness, peel off easily and regularly fnim tlie ends of many of the beds, but the tendency to cleave does not appear to penetrate fai' frvim the surface. The (ii'and Rapids sandstone was not observed below the Crooked Raj)id. hetweenthat point and the I'oi'ks, the upper pai'tof the valley section consists of about '2')0 fet^t of tlie dark and lead gray shales, clays and sands of tlie Cleaiwater shale. The beds of t his formation are not bituminous. Helow the i^'orks, or tliecontluence of the Athabasca and Clearwater, the valley of the former loses its narrow, gorge-like charai'ter and l)e- t'omes wider and shallower, but still continues to aflbrd good sec- tions of the rocks. I'iVenly-bedded limestones of |)t>vonian age, I^''viiiiiiiii rising from (ifteen to twenty fet^t abo\c the surface of tlii^ ri\er, are almost continuously exposed foi- a long distance on tlu^ right tiank. They are hori/ontal. or nearly so, for some miles below the [•'orks, but further down, undulate in gentle folds, but seldom slio\s more than the upper fifty feet of the terrane. 'i'lie limestone is grayish, but often weathers to a light yellow, and is usually more or less argillaceous, in places passing into a calcareous shale. JAissils are numerous, among others, a large Stroniatoporoid of \iiriable ,sha|ie is especially notice- alile, from its abundance and size, in most of the sections, 'i'he follow- in;: list of fossils collected between the Forks and Red River is fur- nished by Mr. W'hiteaves ; — Choiu'lis Liirf Clcu water sliivlc J'rod'if/i'l/n ilifs. " rf'tlrii/(irlx, L. " ri'flcii/((rin, var. (tsju'rn, Sfhlotliciiii. Ac/iii()/)/i'rlii /toi/dll, Conrad. /'fi/c/i(ijifi'ri(( (i(/i(in>/rls, Wliitcavos. Li'jititdfstiKi Dfiinin, Hall. " JuKdii, Hall. ('lui/dfirid S(dltiriisit<, ^^'ilitl'a\ cs. A iKwrlnlrs ml/is, Jones. Tlicsc fos.sils indicate a Imrizon in the Upper Dexonian i)rolial)ly nearly eipiixalent to the C'ulioides zone. The Devonian limestones are overlaid t'oi' some niih's lielow the lM)rks hy hea\ y sections of the Tar sands, liiit on account of the de crease in the height of the valley, the Clearwater shale almost dis- apjiears. Ho. 3 Aihahaiia River. .'^•■" rizzzTi CleavvMafer Shale Cretaceous Tav Sancti Limr.sronr } Devonian Sef.rion six MiLti fitlow ForKs btale 3ooFr ; I mch Ui'sciipliiiii (if The Tar sand'- hold in pia<'es Iciilicidar hcds of limestone, lignite Tiir HiMul.-*. , .1 ,' . . I • 1 It' . i' I' •! 1 'iM. .. seams two or tliiee feet thick and frayments of tossil wdoil. 1 he\ \ar\' in colour aci'or'dinn to the (juantity of tar they contain, from a ^vtiy to a dark lirowii, and jet lilacU. Where heasily saturated stre.'ims of tar issui' from the hanks durinu the heat of suunner. and form jiools at the liases of die e^cai'|)ments. This appears to he the oi'iji'in as sii,i;i;estcd hy jiclj-'- of the " tar -.prints " which occur in the riiiht hank opposite 'I'ar Island, two miles helow the miaitli of lied Ui\t'i', and in numerons other places, Mli'iildjricul SuiMV. I{.|inil nf rnit,qv».s, l,SS2-s;tS|. \,. •_"_> C'. (!. J V. i' ■^■ X ". X < J ■J ' I ^ < »*. - 3 « M 1 1 « \ ii-.r 1 m:'; M h tu., ' ' ■■■■■■I '•'jl -1 ATHABASCA lUVKK. 35 I) At Ln Saliiif, twenty-eight miles below the Forks, several mineral Mimial springs neeur about half a niilo east of the river on the edge of the valley there sixty feet deep. The deposits from the springs, consisting principally of calcareous tufa, cover the face of the escarj)ment anil have also built up a cone on the top of the bank ten to fifteen feet high and about 200 feet wid". An analysis of the water which is strongly saline, is given in another place. Sulphuretted hydi'ogeii gas escaj)es from the bank in several places and taints the air for .some />/ii///inii rl/l/itirnni and Vijrtiiiii HiHinijKi are the same as those enumerated in the list H 1' I ■ I ■;; y la I' ■ ' r t '■M ^'M ji/'iJ I' i m ■HlllilM wv 36 D DISTKICT OF ATHABASCA. Tar sttuils (listipiK'iir. Saliiu spiiiip. Sniici'Hciiil b,'(is. Mddsc Kivi (ililV >'ll»U'S. given above. A short distance Ijelow tlie limestone outcrop, some sandstone beds dipping in the opposite direction occur, the exact rela- tions of which are obscure. These beils hold vegetable remains and while soft and tar-soaked in some places, in othei-s they pass into a quartzite. They are unfossiliferous. A quarter of a mile below the last limestone exposure the Tar sands, ■-.-^t^uns of which, ranging in thickness from a few feet to 200 feet, are 'dinost continuously exposed l)elow the F(jrks, also disappear, and from this point on to the mouth of the I'ivei- only the bcmlder clays and associated beds were seen. These Tar sands are well saturated, and are twenty-tive feet thick on the ' ist side of the river, and fifteen feet on the west side, where they i)v IV. ■ -lUuU bed of lignite. They are overlaid by forty feet of soft J .i''"' •-•.' ids, belf)nging to the period of the .Saskatchewan graveL, .. V)ve I'lich jomes a few feet of boulder clay. Twelve <.:■■]■ Uelov, the last exposure of the Tar sands, and about two :. .;':;.; ,.)iove \ .oi'th of Red Earth Creek, a copious saline spring f)ul)bl s iiji i!>'>' I '.'0 f- :t from the west bank of the rivei- and feeds a consideralile :t|. iiin. Large (juantities of sulphuretted hydrogen gas escape at the same place and taint the air foi- half a mile around. An analysis of the water is given in another place. The superficial beds through which the valley of the Athabasca cuts in its lower part are described under the heading of CHacial Gleokigy. They consist of an upper and lower sandy deposit, separated by red 1111(1 dark boulder clays. The U])per sands and gravels are soaked in places near the surfac(> with tar, and contain betls of sandy nodules cemented by the same niatei-ial. HtJCtioHH iin J/iiosf h'in i\ Miiski'(j Ji'irfr, L<\-r atl'ords the best geological section of any nt' tiie tribu- taries examined. .V description of this stream is gi\eii in a previous chapter. Tt forms the outlet of .Moose Lake situated near the centre of the Hirch Hills, and after a cour.se of about 100 miles, during which it describes a great bend to the south, it falls into the Athabasca forty-six miles lielow the Forks. Two miles l)elow .Moose Lake at the first i-apids encountered, an exposurt! of grayish shales holding ircuistone nodules was observed. No fossils were collected, but from their st ratigi'apliical position there is little doubt that the shales belong to the La iiiclie series. I'Mve miles lower down a section of boulder clay seventy-five feet thick was observed, and two miles further on an exposure showed several beds of MocoNNEii.] SECTION ON MOOSK KIVKR. 37 D boulder clays, separated by layers of sand and <(rave!, the whole over- lying the grayish La Biche shales. The following section in descend- ing ordei- was measured at this point : Feet. Sand and gravel 8 Boulder clay 4 Stratified sands 2 Boulder clay .'^ Stratified gravels holding lai'ge boulders Il Boulder clay .'{ Gray shales with large limestone concretions 40 63 l''our miles below thc^ last exposure, ^luose Kiver leaves the Birch KxiHismcs , it Mountains, and winds for some miles through the plains at their l)ase. >i"ni',[tiiiii"^ ' Boulder clays are exposed along this stretch in a nunibpr of places, and dark evenly-beddeil sliales come to the surface at two points. Ten miles from the foot of the liirch Mountain escarpment, Moose River cuts through a ridge 120 feet high, and foi' some miles the valley affords gooi.l sections. The rocks here exposed consist of forty feet of whitish sands undei'laid l)y twenty feet of dai'k plastic clays or shale. The.se beds represent the Pelican sandstone, and shale of the Athabasca section. They are underlaid by a few feet of sandy shales and sand- stone, belonging t(j the (Jrand l{a})ids sandstone. A lignite seam two feet thick was obser\ed in two places near the top of the (ii-and llapids sandstone. The Cretaceous roeks are overlaid by a boulder i-lay band fifty feet thick. In the next few miles the sandstones of the (iraiid Hapids division are fre<[uently exiiosed, and often hold numerous nodules similar to those characterizing the same foi'ination on the Athal)asca. After cutting thi'ough the ridgt' mentioneil above. Moose Hi\-er HmUs mi bends at right angles to its former course and follows a genei'al north- • I'"""" '^i^'-*'' easti'riy direction to the Athal)asca. Two miles below the bend the ri\('r cuts through the Grand Hapids sandstone riuI exposes the uppcM' jiart of the Clearwater sliale. lielow this point the banks ai'c low for some miles and exposures are infrequent, l»ut further down, the valley inci'eases in depth and almost continuous sections of (he Clearwater shale ar'e exposed. The rocks of this division consist here of plastic clays and shales, alternating with sandy shales and occasional beds of sandstone and ironstone. Some fossils wei'e collectetl, among which are the same species of M'lti-nfa, Yvldia and C'iuiij)fonrctt\s founil in ;^! } I ■V, ■,!.-," 4 ',} m 38 D DISTRICT OF athahasca. the Clearwater shale on the Athabasca. The beds luue an easterly dip, and at the Big Rapids they ate overlaid by the nodular sand- stone of the Grand Rajjids division. The following section was nieasuref.l at the latter point : — Kent. IJoid Jpr clays 10 Sandv shales !•"> ) /. i i> • i i ,. X- 1 -1 1 , ,rv t Grand Itapids sandstone. Modular sandstone 20 \ ^ Sandy shales 15 ) ,-,, ^ , , ,„ ■' 111 ,„> Llt'arwater shale. Clays and shales 40 J no ^^oose T{iverwas not followed for some miles below the liig Rapids, and at the crossing of the ]Moose Lake trail, the next jioint examined, the Cleai'water shale cf)mes to the sui'face and is underlaid by sixty feet of Tar sands. Coini>ari«<>i) of The Moi»se Kiver section in its gener.d character resembles that on an'('lAtliiil)asca '^'"' Athatasca, but differs in soni<' of the details. The Pelican shale KiviTscctions. l,,^J^ decreased fi'oni ninety to twenty feet in thickness, and the Pembina siiale a|)pcars to have become dift'erentiated into an upper part consisting of sandy shal((s and sandstones, and a lower and more jiurely argillaceous division. Kid KivfT. |{ed i{i\(M', whicli empties into the Athabasca twelve ntih.-s above the mouth of Moose River, shows, for some miles above its nunith, thick sections of the Tar sands, overlying the Devoiuan limestones. Miiskt'g Rivtr ^Fuskeg Hiver was examined t'oi' tiiirty miles from its mouth. This stream joins the Athabasca from the east al)out two miles above lied River. It is reached fr si-en. A mile above the head of the portage the Tar sands, here only twenty feet thick, are overlaid by a bed of hard sandstone or ([uart/.ite, which has bt^come developed in them, probably by siliceous infiltration. A mile above the last exposure a crevice in the l)e\(inian limestone was noticed, which had liecome tilled up with well-saturated Tai' sands, derived fi-om the o^erlying formation. The section on ^^uskeg River shows that the 'j'ar sands extend at least eight miles east of thi' Athabasca Hi\('r.* They ai'c much •Siiii'c wiitiuK' tli;' ftlloV" •^'''' I*-. I'. l>owlinK '"*■< found ii siuall I'xiHjHiire of Tar nftiulH on Fiii'lia^r Kiver, i-iKhteeii iiiiieg t'ant of tiic .Vtlialiasca |{i\i r. m •nccONNEU.] .SKCIIONS ON TlIK PKMBINA A\t) PKLK'AN RIVKHS. ;]9 r) thinner than usiiiil, but this is probably due to the upper part having been removed by denudation. Steep Diink Ri\er, which enters the Athabasca twenty-one miles Stoop Bank below the Forks, was ascended for id)Out ten miles on foot. Tar sands, overlaid by the lower part of the Clearwater shale, were exposetl all the distance. A trip was made fnjin the Forks up the Clearwater River to the mouth of Pembina River, atid thence up the latter stream for some miles, until tlie water became too shallow to continue the traverse. The Cleaiwatiit<' '^"•am. lignite, four feet thick, occurs in an exposure of the Tar .sands, and a short distance further on a lenticular bed of (|uart/ite, six feet thick and 100 yards long, was obserxfd, somewhat similar to that found on ^Muskeg River. Five miles further up the Tar sands are overlaid i)y tlu! Clearwater shale holding .some fossilifei'ous iieds, in which were found ?(aes of ('i/iiriiHi, Xiwnht^ and a Vii/iliit like )'. nrl/n/n. Two miles -pet abov(^ the last section i\w Tar sands, overlaid l>y the Clearwater shales, are again well exposed. In the vaih-v opposite this expctsure several .Sulincsi springs of saline water, aci-onipanied as usual by suljihuretted hydrogen gas, l)ubble up close to tlit^ left e.xamined aboV(^ this point. nil^r-'. I win k of tlie river. Th was not The F elicaii K iver was asceni i.'d t< Its source exposui'es abt)V(^ the head of the imi'tajj d. out It atiorde to overcome no |> tiie rapuls at its mouth. \M ow the piirtagc, sections of the La Richie simles are pn>sent, but do not ditler from those on the Athabasca. Lesser Slave River atVords a couple of small sections of La Riche I„.ss.r Slave shales, in one of which a specimen of liiK'idili'x rompri'xKdK was fiuind, ^'^'■''• but in its upper part it does not cut through tlie drift dejiosits. ;J Wk '"M mmim 40 i> DISTHICT OK ATHABASCA. Lessur Slave Lake. I M m LcssHi- 81avi- Lesser Slave Lake rests on the Lji Biche shales l)ut owes its exist- ence to an eiuhanknient of drift deposits at its eastern end. Its shoi'es are low and often marshy, and exposures of the older rocks seldom occur. Grayish calcareous shales, lujlding ironstone, were noticed east ExiKisures. '^^ the Narrows River, and sections of dark shales, holding liacvJilfg coinjiri's/ius, occur near the eastern end of the lake, opposite Marten Mountain. A high plateau skirts the southern shores of the lake at a distance of eight oi' ten miles, and a small nameless stream was examined, which flows from it into the south-east corner of the lake. Sections showing beds of hard yellowish sandstone, alternating with sandy clays and sands, occur on the lower part of this sti'eam. Home Fcwsilifeiou-* of the beds are fossiliferous, and the following species, with, others beds. ,, , were collected : — I'rotocanlia burealis, Whiteaves. Pteria Nehrascana, Meek and Hayden. Anrliiira Anifricann, Meek and Hayden. These beds rest on the La Hiche shales, and evidently represent the Foxhill saiul- Foxhill .sandstone. They were found as high as IGO feet above the stones. I'll! 1 i7 1 1 ^, lake, and are overlaid by the sands, sandy clays and .sandstones or the Laramie, numerous sections of which occur all along the valley and in the scarped face oi the plateau. Lignite seams were observed at several Lignite seams, hoi'izons, the thickest of which measured three feet, and a conspicuous bed of soft yellowish homogeneous sandstone fifty feet thick occurs at the foot of the plateau. The Laramie beds have a thickness of about 1,'200 feet, but appear to be unfossiliferous throughout. Marten Mountain north of the lake, was examined, but no sections were found (in it, although fragments of lignite and sandst(Mie are abundant on its lower slopes. It is 1,000 feet high and nuist be com- posed largely of Laramie as the rocks in this region are pi'actically horizontal. A loose fragment of sandstone found at its !)ase attbrtled sju'cimens of l/uinid-a and other fresh water shells. Maiti'ii Moiiiitiiii Sf'clidti (III tlii> Wafiiscaif aiiif Lttini Hirers. Wabiscaw River. The Wal)iscaw Hi verformany miles below Lake Wabiscuw does not cut through the bimlder clay. The tii-st exposure of tiie older rocks noticed, occuis about nineteen miles l)elow Pine River, nearly in line wi;;h the continuation of the Rirch Mcjuntains, and consists of light grayish soft shales, holding ironstone and calcareous n.odules, similar to those over- lying the Pelican sandstone on the Athabasca, and capping the Birch iNIountain. Small sections of shale underlying the boulder clay again ■ I * •J SKCTION ('\ TIIK WAltl.sr.WV AM) LOON lUVEIlS. 41 I. iiceiir at the Grjind Rapids, eight miles above tiie iiKiuth ot' Paiiiiy River, after having been ccjncealed f(jr a long inteival. The next r'M«;'*"''i''' <>n exposure occurs twenty-six miles furtiicr down, or alxjut ten miles Ui\ti-. beltiw the junctions of the Loon and Athabasca rivers, and consists of fifteen feet of soft falsely-bedded sandstone, passing into a tine con- glomerate. The coloration varies from wliite ttched with gradually diminishing thick- ness from the Rocky .Mountains into the Cretaceous sea. Section i vdiiiiin 1 1 T^ • !• .• 1 1 T J • I • lilllCStlllll'. coloured Devonian hmestones to the surface, holding ^^>7//?rt retifii'lace, and the valley, for many miles above, is destitute of any exposures uliler than the drift. The shales appear again for a short distance near the mouth of Owl River. At this point lied River approaches within fifteen miles of the IJuft'alo Head Hills, Above Owl Hiver, the Hed River valley, so far as ascended, yielded no exposures of the nldei' rocks. I'latfifi'x of //r: Di- liank Creek, the shales still co\er the summit of the plateau, l)Ut they are underlaid l)y a band of yellowish and grayish sands and soft sandstone, eximsures of which also crop out at \arious points, round the northei'n end of the mountain. The.se l)eds are destitute of fossils, but on stratigrai)hical evidence, tliore is little doubt that they represent the continuation of the Pelican and (Irand Hapiils sandst((iu's, although the Pelican shale, which separates these two on the Athabasca, is absent here. The .sands contain small coaly .seams, and some of the beds an* blackened with bituminous matter. They have an cxfiosed thickness of "JOO feet, but the base is concealed. The Clearwater shale and the Tar sands which underlie theUrand Hapids .sandstone on the Athabasca, if present here, are also liidilen, as the next rocks seen in descending the river consi.sted of ei'uuil)ling Devonian limestones, but these occur some miles from the foot of the plateau. Hiic'ks (111 Stc'ii l!:ui Creek. PLATEAUS OF THK DISTRICT. 45 D Swift Current Creek, ji tributiuy of l>irch River, was examined up S^^'f' Current . Creek, to tlie foot of the Bircli Mountain j)lateau, l)Ut no exposui'es were found on it, althoui^h pebbles of tar-soaked sandy shales were found on a number of the bases, and point to an occui'renee of the Tar sands in the north-western part of the ridj^e. The V)lateau south of Lesser Slave Lake wfis examined only in I'lateau south , ,,■..., • , . , . . (ifLfSMTSliiv.' one place, and a (leseri]>tion or the sections obtained is <;i\-en on j)a,!j;c i.akc 40. It consists of Laramie sandstones and shales holdiii}; lij^nite seams, overlying L^)0 feet of Pierre and Foxhill beds. Marten ^lountain north of Lesser Slave Lake, is probably built of similar beds, l)ut the section, e.xcept at the base where Pierre shales are shown, is concealed. Sections an J'i'dce Jiirer. Peace Piver was examined from the mouth of Ped River. up to the I'lucc Kivir. Smoky TJiver l^irks. The ])ortion of the river below Red Piver was traversed by Professor Macoun in 1S7j. J{ock exposures in this stretch seldom occur, but gi-ayish limestones interbedded with white gypsum, and holding Sfrophodontd detnissti and other Devonian fos- sils are described as outcro|)iiing at Ra])id liouille or Little Rapid, and Hocksut Vfaci- extending down the river to Peace Ptiiiit, a distance of tiftiHMi miles. '"" " Peiow this point, no rock exjutsures were noticed by Macoun until <,|uatre Koiirches Hiver was reached, where Archican gneisses outci'op*. .\bovi' lied iiiver, Devonian limestones fire exposed in low I'liffs Kxikisiiics a along the shore to thr^ Vermilion Falls, and tor two miles bevond. ),''''"iil'"a ■■I' alls. The limestone is horizontal and occurs in thick e\-eiily-st rati tied light grayish or creiiin-coloiired beds alternating with softer and more argillaceous bands, 'i'lie latter are often stained reddish or greenish, and are easily eroded, and the origin of the fails is due to their gradual waste, and the conse(iueiit undermining and breaking down of the heavier iieds. The limestones in the xicinity of the falls, have an exposed thickness of sixty feet. They do not u|i]i('arto l)e bituminous, Some of the beds are very fossil iferous, the following species, among others, being collected here ; — Ci/(if/ifi/ilii//liiiii riis/ti/(isiiiii, ( loldfuss, /'/il//i/isiisfrii(i //rnnd/ii, Ijonsdale. }'i/i. , ,, ... „,, II. 1- I" 1 i» the way to I'oi't \ ermuion. J h<' ueneral iiori/ontality or the I'evonuin limestones in the reij;ion between the Peaci' and the Athabasca is shown by their disap])eai'in^ >. sandstones. Yellowish sands 20 j Yellowish striped sands and clays, with j ironstone and limestone concretions (fossil- | iferous) 00 J Opposite the mouth of Cadotti^'s Rivei', tlie Peace l{iver sandstones consist of lOU feet of sandy shales, holding irojistone and siliceous nodules, followed by forty feet of yellowish sands studded with large sandy concretions similai' to those in the (hand Rapids .sandstone on the Athabasca, above which, and underlying the Fort St. John shales, comes ninety feet of yellowish sands and shales, interbeddeil with numerous layers of ironstone. Hetween Cadotte's River and Tar IsL'ind. t\w Peace River sandstones are well e.Nposcd in dilfs, terraces and sloping lianks all along the \alley. Tic. 4. penceRwer ^W^ m-'^ I Fori- S'John Shalct Soft Sflnditonci and brits \ Shaly lanrtsrt>nc4 ) Snalei 6pSanHsron«s ] NodulJir Snndjron«4 > Peace River Snndsrones section near Tar KlantJ Stale 30oF^ = I inch MNELI. 1 SECTION 0\ PEACE ItlVER. 49 n l,"'' S '■ Above Cddotte's River tlie Peaco River sandstones becftnie more completely arcnaecoiis, and the lower part is tilled with fantastically shaped sandy nodules, some of which are fifteen feet or more in Niimeroim diameter. The general appearance of this formation as developed '""•"l''"' along this part of the ri\-er, is strikingly similar to that of the Grand liapids sandstone on the .Atiiahasca. It consists t)f three sandstone di\isions, which weiitlier into steep clin's, sejiarated liy shaly hantls, forming sloping terraces. The two lower sandstone divisions are of a yellow colour and cairy nodules, while the upper one often siiows grayish tints, and is occasionally conglomeritic. F'^issils are scarce Sciircity of along this jiart of the river, hut fragiiuMits of Annnonites and other "'"'''"• marine fossils occur in many of the nodides. A s.'dine spring, emitting nntural gas and carrying up small ipianti- Saliin' spiiii<' ties of tar. oci'urs on the boulder l)each at the upper end of 'i"ar Island, about thirty miles below the Smoky iJiver Forks, and a short distance further down, cracked nodides, with the fractures filled with inspissated bitumen, were noticed in the right bank. A second spring is reported to occur on an island op|iosile the moutli of White ^fud liivei', but this was not seen. ()])|)Osite Tar Isl.ind anil for some distance abo\-e, the Peace l\i\er llij,'li ilitf. sandstone^ are shown in high dill's on both sides of the ii\er, but they become intluenced near this point by a slight southward dip, and ascending the river they gradually decrease in ht>ight, and at length disappear just below Smoky iUver Forks. When last seen they iVa.-, |;i\,.|- consist of a few feet of soft i;'ravisli massi\'e saiidstuni'. marked in a ■•■ui'|^''"i''« dip iiilow peculiar niaiiner by t liiii curving lines of carbonaceous shale. Two ilir sinfai.'c. miles below the I'mkN the s.iiidstones here showing an esjiosed thick- ness of tw eiily feel, lia\e lieen grooved and lliited hori/ont idly bv ri\('r ice. .\l the Iwise of this clilV, are several small springs emitting ' i^iN -iniiius. sidphuretted hydrogen gas. .\l the i'"orks the whole xalley section, 7per ])arl of the river was explored by i)r. Selvvyn, in ImjiUs. is"-"). The shales of the h'oit St. John series are descrilied bv him. as ex tending up I 'eaic iiiver. above the l'"orks, for a distance of about I went v- ...,,.(*, ')() I) UlSTRKT OF .\T11AH.\S<'.\. I) I 'riiickiii^- nf l>l|IlVi(,'ilM Im'(1s. SiiiiiUy l!i\ir sl'Ctidll. live mill's, wlicrt' tlicy ai't' uvorlaiil l)y tlic siindstuiios iiixl slwilos of the Duiivefjaii f^roup. Tlic latlci- tlicn occupy the valley all tin- way to the caiioii ut' tlic ^loiiiitaiii of IJocks, except for some distance above and below i-'ort St. JoIhi, wiiei'(! they rise ai)ove the surface and the I'^jrt St. John shales a])jiear. Al)ove tlie canon of the Mountain of Itock.s, Peace KiNcr "iiteis a re,i,'ion of tilted lieds, and the se([uence of the for- mati(jns becomes oi)scuie. 'J'he l)unvegaM i)eds have a mininunn tliiclc- n(!.ss at Dunxeyan of tiUO feet, ))ut a])pear to thicken ra|)idly wi-stward, anil probably nx'lude tlw whole 2,000 feet or uKire of sandstones and sliales, show n in the escarpments of Table ]\rouiitiiin. The fossils cul- leeted by Dr. Selwyn from this formation, include fresh water, brackish watei' and marine species, and the ;;eMeral chai'acter of the fauna is similar to that of the Uclly liiver series of tht^ (Ireat Plains, and tlie Hear iiivei' beds of \\ yominii'. The Smoky River section above the I'orks. was examined liy Dr. G. M. Dawson, in 1S79. Here, as on Peace liiver, tlie \ alley is occupied for about twenty-tive nnhis by the Fort St. John sliales. These are succ led by [OOfeet nf sandstones, representiui;' the Duii\ t'^an L:rnu|), above which comes .'JiJO feet of shales, hnldiii^ numerous fossils, most of which belonvj to the tyjiical Piei-re and Foxhil! fauna, l)ut I'enton forms were also found. The shales are overlaid by sandstones and shales, iieltinuiiiL;', sn far as known, tn the Laiviiiiie, but it is priibai)le that here, as in the plateaus south ni j^esser Sla\(' Lake, some of the lowci' iieds mav l)e of i''oxliill a^e. Arcliii'ivii iiri'.'i. (ii;\i:i!.\i. (;i;()i.(>(;v. Am 111; \\. A small area of .Vreha'an j4;iu'isses occurs in the north-eastern ipiar- ter of the reiiion reporte(l on, but they were only hastily examined. They oir\ipy the iiortlicrii shore and neitrhlxiurinu; islands (if Lake A t habasea. and are also found in t he islands of L.ake M.immaw ee, and in the rounded knobs projecting; aboNc the delta deposits borderinLr<,)uatro {■"ourches liixer. The Ljneisses here have a typical liaureiitian ajipear- anee, They are usually reddish, but in jilaces are stron.ujly and evenly banded with alleriin t Iiil;- red anil dark tints. The texture varies from medium lo iine-jirained, and the foliation is usually distinct, the rock passinu in one or two |ilaces into a mica or chlorite schist. liotii hornbleiidic and micaceous varieties .are present, liut these minerals in m.iiiy instances are largely replaced by chlorite. I'ljiidote occurs in larye (plant it ies. 'j'he tjneisses dip at liii,'li an;,des, and the strike! varies from ten lo twenty de^'rees west of north. ♦Icr.ONNilll. 1 fU'.NKHAL (iKi)I,()(iV. CvMUIilAN. :-)! I. All t'xaiuinatioii of tlie soullicrii .slniro <)t' Lake Alliiilxisca was niadi- Soutli slidi-cof from tlic iiioutli of Atlial)asca HivfM- to iicai- Point William. Tliis i,jik|.. .shore, as a rule, is low, and is ijordcrcd for loii^j; distances i)y low hluil's, coinjioscd of reeont sands and clays. At Poinle dc lioclie and at anothor point sex en miles fufther on, theundei-lyinji rock.s ar(M'.\jiosed and con.si.st of a granular siliceous sandstone, wliicli, from it.s gener.d cliaractiT and position, |irol)ul)ly belongs to one of tlie di\ isions of I lie Camljrian. For- reference it may l)e called tlie '• Athaliasca .sand- Atlialiaso.i stone." No fossils were found in it, nor was its contact with the ' o\('rlying or underlying rocks observed. This sandstone is usually coarsely granular in texture, l)Ut [)asses occasionally into a line-grained conglomerate. Its colour varies from white to dull I'cd. Its bedding plancss ha\(' br'cii obliterate(l, but its giMieral iioii/.onta! attitude is betrayed by the textural dill'ereiices. It is cut by two systems of jointage jilanes, .and in weathering, breaks into huge lilocks, some of which contain se\eral hundred cubic feet of material. Xmnerous fragments, some of large size, of a mottled n'i\ and gicen fine-grained sandstone, somewhat .■~imilar in apjiearance to that found at Sault Stc. .Marie, were noticed strewn along the track, but were not found i II sifii. The Athabasca sandstone a])pareiitly extends all along the southern .shore of liake Athabasca, as s|ieciniens brought iiy Mr. ("ochrane, in 1^>S'J, from th(! cast end of the lake, t'annot lie disi inguished in ap pt'iirance from those collected at I'ointe de Koche and neighbouring localities. Its I'Xtension southwards, has not as yet been approxi- mately deteniiiiK^d. < )n the north its junction with the Ardiiean is <'oncealed iieneatli the waters of Lake .\tliaiiasca. Dkvom.w. hexDiiian liincstdncs rrup out fmni beneath ilie ( 'rctaccous, along |)|.vntiiivii the northern part of the district. On the Athaliasca they rise to the '"'"■■■"'"'"•■ surface at Crooked liapid, and occupy the bottom of tlie \alley down to a point about ten miles below ('alumel liivcr, except in ,-i few- places whei-e they are cirricd below I lie surface by syiu-linal folds. Jtelow this point they an- coM-retl by rc(-eiit deposits, and their IH^trilmtiim junction with the undorlying rocks i.s i-oncealed. l'"i-oni the .\thabasca, the |)e\(iniaii limestone extends in a broad liand round the southern end of Itircli Mountains, and aci-oss Lake Claire to Peace l!i\er, and up the latter stream to a point two miles al)ove \'ermilion l'"alls. 4 A of lillli'stolli', »•:'?' ' ^' 52 u DISTKK r OV ATHABASCA. I )i-V(iMiaii lilllcstollc, HitllMlilKlUs hfcis. Dip (if lime- Xlie Dcvoiii.in liiiiestoiifis on the Peace and Athabasca rivers liave a f^encral iioi'thfily ill]) i)t tlu'ec oi' tour tcct to tlu' niilo, arid are also afj'cctcd ill s((iiit> places Ijy a series of small subordinate folds, few of wliicli, however, succeed in brinj^inj,' into \ie\v more tliaii tin^ upper 100 Cliaiaitirsdf t'eet of tile formation. The limestone is very uniform in character tlirou.i,'hout the district. It is i^rayish or liirht yellowish in colour, and is evenly stratified, the beds ranging in thickness from two inches to several feet. It is usually more or less argillaceous, and in places p.isse.s into a calcareous shale. The purer iieds are often nodular and crum!;ly, liut resist denudation more successfully than the slialy varieties, and now freijucnrly form long horizontal lines of relief, running across the faces of the exposures. Some of the beds are bituminous, iiut seldom to an important degree, and the sources of the oils which ha\e saturated the overlying Cretaceous sands must occur lieneath the exposed part of the foriiiation. That the oils haxc risen from below, is shown by thi> cracks ami fissures lined with bituminous matter which occur in the limestone in various parts of the district, and through wliieh the liipiid has e\ideiitly escaped. The l)e\(inian limestoiK^ is a])parently succeeded conformably by the Cretaceiais, ai d with the possibl(^ exception of a thin bed of conglom- erate of limited extent, which occurs below Crooked Rapid on the .\lliabasca. the age of which is douiilfid, the vast inlerxal of time which separated the two formations, is, so far as observed, uiirei»re- sented, either by deposition or erosion. This can hardly be explained, I'xcept on the assumption that the formaliou during all this period, was burieil far from land in the depths of some abyssal ocean, ;is the only other alternatixc, \iz.,that its surface represents a former Ii.inc lev el of erosion, is. in \ iew of th(> remarkable piu'sistency of the upper beds, se.-ireely credible. I'"us.akota. but the lilhological succession of the v.irioi.s divisions, ditlers fr( m that which obliiins on I he (Ireat. I'lains. and also v.nries in ditl'erent [i.irls of tlu^ district. This feature of 1 he formal ion, together with the further fact that most of the fossils collected are new to science, and therefore use- less for the purpose of correlating the \)ri\s here wilh known liori/iuis elsew hei'e. makes it dillicult to classify ihedillerent lerranes in a satis- factory manner, and also I'cnders necessary the pi'ovisional use of some '"'■ WM ■] (iEXERAL CKOLOfiY. T).'} I) new nfinies. The fcjlluwiii}; illustratiou shows the succession of the vjirious divisions of tlie Cretaceous im the two rivers, and also their aj^es, so far as the stratigi'aj)hicai and palicontological evidence at hand admits : Af/iii/iiiscii /iiriw Srrtion. Laraniie. \Va}iiti IJiver sandstones. Monlana. I Foxhill sandstone. I Snioisv l»i\er shales. Dunveiran sandstone. j Fort St. .ToJm shales. Colorado. Peace Kixcr sandstones. [Loon l\i\er sliales. Laramie. Fo.Kliili sandstone. F^a l^.iclie shales (upper pait.) I Unrepresented. La Hiche shales (lower ]iart.) Pelican sandstone. Peliciin shale. Grand IJapids sandstone. I Clearwater shale. I Tar sands. Dakota. Cnrejjresented. Lnm liiir, -The Laranae occurs in the southern part of the district, I'Iniiosuii^ nf and is well exjiosed in the plateaus south of Ijcsser Slaxc Lake. The north-eastern boundary of this formation crosses the Saskatchewan in Ijonj^'. Ill' Mo' and runs in a nor'th-westerly direction, ei'ossinij the Athabasca neai' the mouth of tiie l'end)iiia, to the east enil of Lesser Sla\e Like. I'^rom tiiis point it l)ends tn tlm west, and extends in ii siiiuuus line along the foot of the plateaus south of the lake, and thence in a westerly direction to Smoky iliver, beyond which its course, as yet, is only a matter of conjecture. An outlier of i^aramie forms the uppei' part of ^larten Mountain nurthof theeiist end of Lesser Sla\(' l^'ike, and probably caps the highlands extending east- ward from this elevation towards Peli<'an Mountain. In the ))lateaus south of Lesser Slave i^ake, the Fiaraniie ha-; a mini- < 'li:uiictii- of 11, nuim thickness of 1, ()()() feet. It is |iractically horizontal and consists of yellowish and grayish tlaggy and massive sandstijiies, often lidlding large nodules, alternating with grayish and dark clays and shales. Thin ironstone betis uci'ur frei|uently throughout the section, and sevei'al scams of lignite were seen, the largest of which is three feet thick, but is of inferior (piality. P'ragments of fossil plants occur in x,, fi^^n^ scune of the sandstones, but no determinable fossils of any kind were "litnintd. obtained. Miiiilii iiii. This formation on till' At liaiiasi'a ami its t riliutaries is i'„.,is nf Mum- represented by about fifty feet of alternating sandstones and shales, ,',',' 'i'','^!;'.,.'' '''''' exposures of which occuralong t hi' lower slopes of the Laramie plateaus Slave l.nli.'. south of Lesser Slave Lake, and by the upper part (about TlHI feet) of the La liicheshales of jjcsser Slave Iviverand the .\t liai)aM'a. 'I'lieexact innetion between the .Montana and the Colorado was not detinitelv vr !bi ni I) IIISTUH r OK ATIIAIIASCA. Fossil.-!. Moiitaii.'i 1 1)11 I'i'iUl' Kivcr. Dunvi'gan beds. iisfcrtuiiicil owiiiy to tlic sc.ircity of fossils, and lo tlie f;u't tluit tlioLa Biehc shales pass downwards from the Montana into the Coloi'iido without any strnctural Incak or iitholnLtical (.•iiaiij^'f of any kind. Tlie fossils collt't'lcd from the .Montana (in the Athahasra and on Lt'sscr Slave Lake and llixcr inrliidc : I'turiu X' hrd.iranK, Meek and llaydcn. Tinirredid Atiii'rh'and •' ProtdciiriHii /iiiri'ti/is. \\ hitcaves. Jjiiiiiiliii fdiicitind. Hall and .Meek. Anchiird A iii'-ricdidi, Meek and llaydrn. Bid'dliti's (■(dd/d-i'ssdx. Say. if.,l^ In till' I'rai'c Hner section ihr Montana is ri'prrsi'nlcd liy the r|)|ii'r or Smoky iiiver shales, and jiossihly liy the lower part of the Wapiti Ilixer saiulstones. These oeeur .south of th(> district now re[)orte(l on, lait were examined and descrilied hy Dr. (i. M. I)awson ill 187!l.* The Smoky l!i\er shales are the e(|ui\aleiits of the lJpi)Pr or f'ierre portions of I lie La lliehe shales of the .\t hahasca sections. 'I'liey ;iie •_'()() feet thick, and are descrihed as dark grayish or l)lui.sh- lilack, thinliedded shales, holdiiii;' lieds i|f ironstone and in some jilaces larite ferro-calcareous nodules. The fossils ohtaiiied from the Smoky l>i\er shales lielonu' chielly to the typical I'ierre and I'ox- hill fauna, .muI iiiclud(>s such well-known fossils as I't' rid /iid/di/'nrniis, /'. .Vf/irdsi'Hidi, Kdciild Cd dCilldlii, LdiidstJid d ii'ldtd, itc., l)ut besides these, sjiecimens of Snip/i i/m rrd/ firaxux. a ty[iical l»eiltoil s[H't'ie.S were also found. I)ddr<'tjdd fi'ridiji. This name has lieeii applied to ,-i series of sand- stones and shales, which arc extensively de\eloped aloni; the Peace l!i\er \alley. from ahoiii lifteen miles al)o\e the Sniokv Hiver iMirks, up lo I he I'anon of t he Mountain of liocks. This ]iart of the river was not sisited during llic present exploration, hut was ex.iniined hy J)r. Selwyn in 1.^75, and a descrijilioii of the formation is j;i\-en in the Report of I'roijress. (Jeoloyical Survey of Canada, 1^70-71!. in 1S7!) the lower part of Smoky l!i\er was examined hv j >r, (1. M. hawsoii. and the Ihmvc^an heds weie found on it, uiidcrl viiu;' the Oh 1) hnU iirnctcr lit lllivcplll Siiiokv iiiser sliJiles (I'ierre). lull in u'l'catlv dimiiii sllci. »o luiue.f The character and ai,'e of the l»iin\fuaii hetis are fully discussed hy hr. I )awsoii in the re|)iirt just meiit ioiied, and hut little additional inforn.ation has since heeii olitaincd. They co vellowish llauii'S- and iiiassise sandstones, often false-hedi iisist of L;r;i\is a led 111(1 riiiple- Kclliivt of I'l'df^lrss, ( irnlii(;ii'ill if Cim.'lilil, IS7'.|.S(I, I'Mit 11, |iiip; 1-J2. \ l!i'|Hirt iif rr(i(,'rrss, ( icdlnijic'il .SiiiAf\ nf CaiiiidM. 1S7!l-,Sii, I'.-ui p,, pau-cs t1(>.pjL>. .9' ?i MCCONNEll. ] cKNKii.M- i;koi.(h;v. ;).» I) iiiai'kfd, altoriiJitiiiL,' witli urayisli iind ilai'k slialcs, usually innrc or less ai'PiiiK.'ei)iis, ami lioliiiuii snmll beds of ii'Diistdiic and thin seanis of lignite. The tliiekncss of tlu> foiniation I'apidly iru'i'Cascs ;;oing west- Increase in ward towards the mountains, from KK) feet on Smoky Kivei- to (iOO l;!'-',''?^^'^^.,, feet or more at I >un\ (■i.'an. and nearly 'J.ODO fret at TaWli' Mountain. The Duiivetfaii bed.s have not been detected east of Smoky Kivfc. and pi'ohahly die away soon aftei' erossing thai stfeam. and tiny aic not fe])reseirt('(l, so fai' as known, on thi^ Athahasea. Tlie fauna of liie 1 )unvfL;,in foiniation is remaikaiile for its \,ii'ied l'a\m:iof eharacter. , is it contains fresh water shells like I'iri/mni and Cor/iini/ii. , ""^'"•"' ' In '(Is. brackish water sheiks like ('nrliiihi and Ostrait. \u\i,\ sucii a strictly marine j;enus as liiofrnnnn.i. This assembia^c of fossils, together with the general character of the beds, e\ idences estuarine conditions and de[K)sition on an oscillatiiiL;' surface. The l)un\e<,'aii formation occujiies nearly the same jKisition strati- I'osition in graphically, as the lielly Hiver scries of .Vssiniboia and Alberta, .i„d '''■'■""^^'■"'|■'• may j)ossii)ly be a continuation of it, but it ditlers in containing marine fossils, the fauna of tiic latter so far as known, being conlincd to fresh and brackish water species. It is al.so closely allied by its fauna to the Uear Itivcr formation of Wyoming, lately described by AN'hite and Stanton*. Two of tiieinost characteristic species of the Iicar l!i\cr beds, ( 'iirlm/it /ii/rifnriiiis and Curlin-tiln Ihtrlxiil occur ill the Hunvegan formation, and most of the genera are alike. The jxisition of the two formations in tiie Cretaceous is, however, different, as the Uear liixer beds are placed by theabo\e writers be- low the Colorado, while till' I >un\ei.'aii series oxcrlics thai formation. (',il/i/iiri, were found liy i)r. Selwvn in IN?-). The I'eace l!i\er sandstones underlie the l'"orl St. John shales, and appear from heiieath the latter in descendini; the river, inirneiliately Im'Iow the Sniok'v i\i\er Korks, and ai'e then exposed in the liank.s of the vdley down to ahoiil three or four miles helow JJattle liiver. Exposures are contined entirely to the \alley, as the sli^jht southerly dip hy which they ai'c allected for some miles Itelow the forks, fails to briii;; them to the surface of the jilateau, and fuither down they become almost horizontal. The i'eace |{i\er s.indstones consist of hea\y massi\e beds cif yellow ish und iiiayish soft coarse sandstones, alternalinjj; with lianils of thin-bedded sandstones and shales. Thi^ massi\e beds ha\ e an oi.-casional thickness of tifty feet or more, and weather into a series of stee)) clill's separated by sloping terraces cut out of the shaly b.mds. Lii^'iiite seams occur occisionally, and hard sandstone concretions rani;iiii;' from a few iiu'hes to ten or fifteen feet in diameter form a prominent feature of the formation. In descending; Peace l!i\-ei\ tiie I'eace lii\er samlstones become more argillaceous, decrease giadually in thickness and at length disappear a few miles below the mouth of iiallle Hiver. They occur along Loon Hi\er for some miles, nearly due east from the mouth of I'.attle |{i\er, but in dimiiiislieil \(ilume, and the eX|iosures here mark appro.ximately the northern limits of the foi-mation in this longitude. Fossils were found throughout the i'eace lii\er sandstones, but occur most abundantly near the base of the mountain, 'i'he fauna dilFers from that of the l)un\eg;in group in being strictly marine. (See list |ip. 17-IS. ) The Loon River shales, the lowest division of the Coloi-ado or l^eace River, consist of al.iout KJO feet of dark grayish to neai'ly blank, soft shales', holding calcareous and ininstonc nodules, stratitied with occasional beds of sandstone, inipiui- lime-< ironstone. l''ossil wood was found in con>iderabli tered through this formation, and a lignite seam i> e miles above ]M)rl X'ermilion, but was not sihmi. Loon \er shales ap|)ear in descending l'eac(> l!i\er, about twi iii\ mili ibo\e Battle ]{iver. and are exposed on the banks of the \alley w- <\ all the way down to the N'ermilion I'alls. 'I'hey also occur on the lower part of Loon Iviver, and on lied Hiver. They alternate above with Peace |{i\er sandstone, and below appear to rest directly on the De fos; me ave McCONi INCU.1 (JEXKHAI, i;Ku|,(((;V. ' 1-4 ■ »( I) Devuniiui liiMfstoncs, jiltli()Uj;li tlic contiict was miwlifi'c seen. The fossils collected tVum tin' Lunii Hi\er sliiiics cniisist ot' miiiH'rous speci- mens ot' /Ji'siiidirriis itj/iiii\ Whiten ves, I). "(/I'w, \;i\\ i/hi/ini m, White- aves, jiiul //oji/i/i's C'liniidi'H.ils. Wliitcavcs. Tilt' Colorado, in tlie paralii'l Athabasca section, rcsciiililcs in its ('olmailn .Ucncral features that i>]i Peace Kivci', lint (liflcrs in detail. It |i|'.'''(tii'."" includes, accoi'diny; to present evidence, the lower part ot' the l^a ''i"*i"i- [?iche shales, the Pelican sandstone and shale, the (!iand iiapids sandstone, and the C'leai'w atec shale in all about \)'M) t'eet of strata. The. liiwi'i' iiart of the La IJiche shales coricsimnds in a ucneral I.a Kiilic way witii tile l'"oi't St. Jnhn shales. They consist of soft dai'k yrayish to black clay shales, difVei'ini; in no i-espect litholoicically fi'oni those fofinini,' the iipjier part nf the foi'niation. but have been sepai'ated fl'oni them nn fossil evidence. The U]ipei' pai't of the La lliche shales Imlds a cliarai'tei'istii' Pierre and l''o\liill fauna, while in the low cf part O.ilruK I'liiii/i .■aiiil- Kaiiids sandstone, the lu'obable eiiuix alents nf t he Peace Ui'.ei' sane 1st one ""i"','' '"' III -lllllc'. The Pelican sandstone is forty feet tiiick, anists of a massive bed of soft 1,'i-ayish sandstone, which becomes liemit iferous abo\(,' in some places. No fossils wei-e oiitainod fi'om it. The Pelican shale is ninety tVet thick, and is aiL;illai.'eou> throuuhout. It altciiiales above with the Pelican sandstone, and ajipears to die out towai'd the north- west, as tli(( thickness on ]Moose KiNcr is only a few feet, aiul it was not I'ccogni/.ed at all on the north end of the Piiri'h .Mountain. The Graiul liapids sandstone is .")(.)l) feel thick, and is conijiosed of niassivc (liaiul K.ipiils clilT-formiuii- beds of yellowish and grayish sandstone, separated by ' bands of thiidy-bedded sandstones and shales. Liuiute seams .appear in places, and laru'e, rounded sandstone eon<'i'et ions occur so abundantly in some of the lieds, that they form a ronsidei'able portion of the sub- stance of the f(M'mati(Mi. {•"raiments of .\nnnointes and other marine shells were found in thedrand Itajiids sandstone, l)Ut no sjiecimcns perfect enough for deteiinination were obtained. The t'learw.ater shah', the lowest di\isionof t he ('olorarobably iflaucointic. yiv. Ferrier, Litholo.^ist to the Survey, rcjiorts ( ;i.„u.,,iiitii' on this rock as follows:- " .\fter a careful examination of this section '"'''■ and '■oniparinn it with .a series of tyjiical i^dauconitic rocks from the Tertiary of various foreii,'n localities, j can tind no dillcrence in char- acter between it and theni. The mineral agrees in all its characters iC":*!;, t 1, t I, ■ w: riiaiiicti'r I if ( 'li'Urwutcr Till' smiils. nS U DlSIIiKT OK ATIlAhASCA. with typical glauconite. Zirkel states* that the inincral, <;lauconite, is only siii^dc refracting. This must be an crrof. as the glauconite in all the slides examined was deoicff'dly double refracting, hut in weak colouis. It has a sliglit resemlihince to sume varieties of Serpentine." Ironstone in iu)dult>s and l)eds is also present, and fossU wood occurs occasionally. The Ciearwatei' .shale has an average thickness of L>7") feet, and occujiies approximately the same stratigraphical position as tiie Loon !{iver shale on Peace I'liver. and the Inwer part of the Peace I'iver sandstone. A nund)er of fossils were collected frnm it, lists of winch are given on pj). iU-S-J. The following list hy ^Ir. Whiteaves in- cludes all the fdssils collected from the vai'ious subdivisions of the Cnldiadd, As some of the sju'cies are undesei'ibed, only the generic name; nf thi'se can be gi\ 'U. Pki.kcvi'oda. LiiiKi sp. /'I'C/ill S[l. CdlHIihlHrCli'.l Sp. Minliohi. allied tn .1/. frinn.'p. Cl'.l'IIAI.OI'OllA. /h'siiriri'i-ds iijlim', Wlliteaves. " " \ar. i//Mt »;S^^-i' 'ifc. ^ .. • t^k, ' 'Hfe'^ls^^^ i^I^hB f ■."vv fV'^v*?-/'\' ^ ^' wlB^^Bik'^HS^I^'V' ' ^vi^^^^Sfe^^'^^^^ -'"'-« l*r'* ^^^^I^K^lHil^''''' "■ ' ■■''■'■^ ^ ^ ^^fe jSk, ' 'y i^mk w-i'^ ■" \ ""^m ■" "^ ■'^Mppp w^ra >•. West of the Atlialiasca tlioy aie s()(in concealed hy the o\eil\inu' ili\ isicuis of the (,'retaeeous, l)ut are exposed for snnii' nnles almiL;- the \alleys (if tile ti'ihutary streams. They were nut fiiund un I'eace Iii\i'i'. ivast nf the Atiialiasca they 'iccui' in hea\y Ncctions un the ( 'leai'watef, I'emliina and iliuh-iiank' fivcis, iiut on .^^^tskei^■ and l^'ireliai.' I'isci's the sections ai'e small, and the Lireatei' pait nf the materi;il in tiiis di-,tiict has evidently lieen planed away hy u'lacial ac-tinn. nearly e\ eryw her<'. except in the dei'p \alleys cif the main draina^'c channels, and alnni:' the escarpineni^ nf simie df the plateaus. The ;;lacial deposits hasc mil lieen distrilmted iinifoinily. as in some iif the old |ire-!:'lacial (lepre^^ii Ills they attain a t hjcknc--- nf Jill) feet or mnri', while nn the ridues they liccunie greatly attenuated, and in sciine places the Ijoulder clay disappears and the superlicial deposits are represented iinly hy t he mill li tied drift , Their inihie nee in le\ dlini; the cninil rv has, liiiw e\ cr, ln'cn dcsi idveil In sn.if rxieni hy irreuularil ies in their (iwn dcpii.sitiun, resulting;' in the pruductinn nf the rullini;' type nf cnunlry which pi'evaijs tliroiiuhout a laryepart of thereuinii. Another feat lire direct ly diU' In the uiieipial (list ril lilt ion o1' i he uiacial de|io,siis is the iiniiilier nf small lakes and pnnds in<-lnsed in shallnu land lucked liasins in ihe drift, whica are t with ihrnnuhniii I he disi rici . and which ncciir s,i frei|uciiily in snnie Incaliiics as in cnscr a considerahle prnpnl'tinli ^\i the surface. The presrlil lakes ;ind |Milids represent Olds' a part nf thnse which nri^inaliy existed, as many t\\ lliem ha \ e liecome idled II |i with s|ih;innum and cull \ ell ed intn miiskeys and marshes. The Lrlaci.'il Weds are \ery iinifnim in chariicter, and \mII nnly re- i ijucinl li.iN iiiiire a hrief deseriplinn. Un I he At iiiiliascii, hoiilder clays nf 1 1,,, "H tlic .\tlin nnliiiar\' Ivjie, usually undi'ilaid hy -liaiilied >ands and gravels .vM f-^ fiO 1) DlSTIUrr OK ATIIAIiASCA. of till' iige of tile Saskiituliewau givivels, are nict with, capping iiKtst of the sections )>etween the luoutli of LesHci' Shive River and tlie Pelican, hut from the latter point to the I'^n'ks, they were seldom observed, and the glacial dei)osils an- lepi'esented ehietlv bv a thicU < il;\ci;il lied, .Xl'lltCll liclll' the ImiiUs. cliiv. bed of gravel and boulders of all ages, piled confusedly tog(,'tlier, accompanied in sonu' places by sands and clays. Iielow the lAn'ks the glacial l)eds increase in importance, and from Calumet Hiver to the delta, they form the princii)al feature in the geology of the Athabasca \alley. They consist in this ])ortion of the \alley, of boulder clays, underlaid by stratitiisd sjinds, and overlaid by a bed of coarse sand and |iebbles. The lower sands are never fully exhibited, but show an exposed thickness in diU'erent sections of from thirty to lOU feet. Ihey are uni'onsolidatcd, and in some jil.iccs are inters! rati- lied with beds of gra\i'l and layers of I'olled sandy nodules, cenuuited liy tar. 'i'lie sands are chai-acterized in many of the sections by a ]ieculiar reddish colour, but in othei' places yellowish and brownish t ml ^ prevail. Ihey arc ex)ioseil in numerous seel ions nn hotli sides boti )f llic \allcv, II arlv to tlic head of tlie delta. Til arl- iKl (' holllllrr clav IS (ll ■hel I, \ ided iiy a diU'erence in coloration into twi o\\ cr di\ ision is char.icteri/.ed iiv a (list iiicl reddish tint w lille I he colour o >\' the upper pari is usually a dark gray. The line between tlie two boulder ciaS': while often iiidi>linel, is some times clearly drawn, and in one place, a short distance below ll niout th of I'^ireiiau l{i\i'r, lliev are separated iiv siratilied sands. Th si'clioii al liii'- point in asceiidinL; order, consists of Soft sands, holditu^ !a\ersof saiidv tar noduh r.-ct. ]\vd boulder cla\ 20 Sands, similar In those below bniilder clay 20 I )ark boulder cla\- "J HhN and gravels, partly concealei ir. 107 •SiTt i( 111 lull iw .\ niile I elow tile last scctiuli. the glacial deposits C(i||>ist of si\!\' l''ili'hiin . . I, • I I .1 I 1 • 1 , .. ,. i Itivfi-. leel lit vellnwish .'iiiii owillsll satuU, o\ellai(l liy Iwellly leel iit I'eil^ di->li clay, holding scrai. lied and pulished liollldels. abo\ e wliieli eollies ten to lil'lri !i feel of i'oai->e s.'iiids iuid gravels, pari of which is satiirali'd with lar. The lej liniilder clay is well e\|icised in llie vicinity of i!ed Ivirih ('reek. ;iiid w,is traced down tin' ri\cr to a jioilit abiilll ten mile'- belnw j'oinle ni\ 'i'rembles. Ili'ils iiMi'ly- 'i'lie bouldei cl.iy is iiNcrlaid in iiiost places by sands and gravel and j,|,^y_ ' pebble beds, a notable feature iif wliicli is the ,'iliiolinl lit lar ihey eon- NNELI. 1 (;I-.\(IAL (iKOr.OCY. ()1 It tiiin. The tar in these beds is m it distributed unifonnly like that in Tar in Klaoial the Tai' sands of the Ci'etaet'Diis, l)ut oecui-s in irreijidai' patches, t'ruin a few feet to 200 feet in ienyth, and from a few iiieiies to live or six- feet in tlucicness. Tlie tarry patclies, as a rnle, innnediately underlie the surfa(n', and are contined to tlie coarse beds. 'I'lie tar is in a soft condition, and the ]iercentai,'e is as lni;li as in i\w most saturated por- tions of the Tar sands of the Cretaceous. Tlie tar in these beds is nu.Ked witli frai;nients of bLinitc and Nliali', and ainiears to ha\c l)ccn derived from tlie Tar sands of the Cretaceous and i I'anspurtcd to its jiresent position in some way not fully understood. It has not ascended from below, as no (race of it was observed in the underlying' beds, and tliec(im|iact bouldw' clays, when present , would necessarily stop its upwai'(L llow. 'I\irry masses of sand and L;'ra\el dccur at intervals, iniderlyiii^' tin' surface d<»wii to a point about twelve miles below Pointe aux 'I'rcmbles. Iielow this point the cut banks show only stratilied sands, interbedded in place-; with layers of rolled tar nodules. The stratified sands and gravels, both below ami abo\i' the boulder ( iiiuin "t 1*11 • I i 1 I 11 ■ I t I >tr;lt llifii clay in the lower jiart ot the At liidia--i'a \alley, are evKlentiy lacustrine i,,.,)., in origin and wei'c doubtless ilcpusited aloiii;' the southern maryin of the ^'reatly extendeil i.aki' .\tliabasca of the (ila<'ial I'ci'iod, The upper sands iwii'iid down to and form laru'ely the pie-.eiit ^Ica'c-, of the lake, e\cc|il when they arc coM'reil liy the more leccnl ilelta deposit s. The .\thabasca, in the lower thirty niile,^ uf its collide cuts tlirimuh liclia its own delta, and beds n the Athabasca these clays are found, from alM)\(! lied Ivirlh ('reck down to a jioint about ten milts bi'luw I'oinir aux 'riembles. below which the liouldcr clay is co\"er(nl by more ii'cent l>i I w (I lakes and II udson I'.ay, FcoNoviic < ii;oi,o(.v. ( Inl'l Mil Prari' (,'ii/t/, — ( Jold was t'liuiid ill iiianv of the bars aloiu;' P^ace liiver. an 1 HbiT. ,,-,.■ ' ■ • 1 • -1-1 111 several places in suilicient i|uaiil il U'-. to (leserv(> attentinn. I liree miles above (III' nioiitli nf Italllc liiver. a large bar nearly a mile long. on the left bank, was examined, from which we obtained tifleiMi lo twenty ('( wav. Numerous othei' liars oecur in this portion of the river, whieli proliaoly lcivo as l,'oo( 1 results as tiiose exiimined. Tl le prcseii )t tine siold 111 som e i|Uantity in the hars al)o\'e the ( 'aii.-i' of mou til of liattle Ri\er is prohahly rlue to the diminution in the streii;;th ^,||},i ilf|iositii(n iif )f the r eaee Kiv or eurreiit which take lace 1 piac lore, and it^ is shown 111 consi'(|uent loss of transporting; power. The same fact the ^I'.idiial >uljst itut ion of sand liars for i^^rax el liars which occur at the same jioint. liesides tln^ i;old on i'eace l!i\er, twci rdlmirs were also waslii'd out of a liar on ijioii Hixcr, an eastern triliutary of the Peace. Iron. — Clav ironstone in nodules and thin lieds, is of uni\ersal I )i-tiiliuti occiirience in the (.'letaceous shales of the rei.non, liiit is especially aliuiidant in some of the outcrops of the l'\irt St. John shales on Peace Ui\'er, lietween iJattle I!i\-er and the mouth of Siiiokv l\i\er. 'I cl.iy uiiii- (leoloLcical .Sur\-ev. and found tc \-l-\ iier per ci'iit ot metallu' iron. J 11/ III I.'. I lunite was touiid in the I eace Hi\ er san(Ntone> on the lii^inti .aild.-lniii'. Peace l!i\'erin several placid, liut in seams too >mall to lie workalile. It also occurs in the plateaus south of Lessen' Slav t; Lake, In one sec- tion at the latter place, four seams ranifiny in thi<-kness from one to four feet, liesides a iiumlier of smaller ones were found, distriltuted t lirouuh alioiit 1 ,1)00 feet of samUtones and ^hali's. I hi ft li^idte was aNo found in .Marten 1 iiNcr near theliaseof .Marten .Mountain, lait it not traced to its source. ( )n the .\tlialiasca, the (Irand Itapid^ sand stone is liyiiitiferoiis, some (if the --eams lieiiiL; from four to ti\e feet thick, lint ihe ipiality i-- usually infeiioi Se\ eral Nina 11 seams also occur imliedded in t he Ta r sand Suit. Mineral spriiiifs holding;' i'oii>iileralile |icrcentau-es of sodic Mincrii chloride oc low the ]■ cur on the .\thalias.'a at i-a Sal iiie, t went \ eedit mi. s|l|llH,'S. orks, and alioiit two m iles alioxe the mouth of Iteil llartl Creek (see p, .'t(i), Saiiijiles of the water have lieeii analysed in tlii Survey lalioratorv li\- .Mr. Wait, with the following result. G4 D DISTinCT OF A'l'HAIlASCA. (ifiiiiis i)f siiliiK^ foMstitueiits ill one imperial j^iillitn — iit 60° F. Cliloride of potiissiuni 4-S9 1 1' 1 -ST " sodium sriO-28 4, 17")-(;'J " mji^'iiesiuiii 77'L*") Sulpiiiitc of lim.' L'-_'S-10 ;i'.l 1-12 " mauiicsiii i;;-i'l sri-O") Total l,i:?(r4S a, 153-98 Specitic gravity a1 i\() V 1 '01 1' l-Oni' Saline springs of small soluinc also oucur on the I'cniliiiia lii\craiRl at Tar Island on Teacc Kivcf. tlyii^uMiMt I,' iiiisii III. (iypsinii is deposited in small i|Uaiililies liy the ndneral '"" ■ sprini;sat La Saline, and it also orciiis on I'eace Uiver between I'xiuilK' Rapid and Peace Point, wliefe beds ten to litteen feet in thickness ai'e said to exist. P>lock> of ijypsiini se\-eral feel in diameter were found on Peac<> |{i\cr alio\ c its conllueitce with Loon l\i\ er. and on \\ei\ Ui\er, a few miles alio\e Is mouth. They ha\-e prolialdy heeii derived from the Peace Point exposures, and carried up tlie \alley of the Peice Kixcr liy ice durinir the (Ilacial Pi'riod. • ia.-< >|iriii^rs Xiitiiriil (.us. The most important natural Lia-- spring' in the dis- 1,.,.^,.., ■ ' I rici occurs on the .\thal)asca at the month nf Little IJullalo l!i\er. The yas here forces its way up from the Tar sands. throii:;h :!■"»() feet of the Clearwiiter shales and issues from the surface in ntiiaeroirs smaM jets distrihuted o\ er an area, lifly feet or more in diameter. Some of the jets luirn steadily when liulited. uiilil extinguished liy he;i\y rains or strong' wiiul, and alldrd sulHcieiit heat to cook a cam|) meal. \ seconili|y hi' due to dei'ayinu' \ei;eiahle matter. On Peace l\i\er natural ^iis issues in small (plant ities from (iiis .siiiiMK' I'll ''"' ''"'"' ^i"''ii,i;'on Tar Island. The natural i^.-is s|>riiii.'s ha\-e less value Lu' IsliUhl. jii theiiiseU'es at |iresent, t iiaii in I he indical ions theyalVord of the existeni'<' of petroleum lieneath. Akc iit'Tar /lihnii'ii. The Tar sands, the principal iiitiimen hearing forma- ~""''''' lion of the district, are dcsi'rilied in a precedinii: part of tlii' report. This iiiiiipie formation is of l»akota a^e, and coiistiluies in this rej,'ion MccoNNELL.] KCONOMIC GEOLOGY. 65 D the basal meml)ef of the Cretaceous series. It rests unconformably on the Devonian, and is exposed overlying the latter along the valley of the Athabasca for a distance of ninety miles. Lithologically it may be described as a soft sandstone, the cementing material of which is a bitumen or inspissated petroleum derived from tlie subjacent limestones. The boundaries of the Tar sands were only precisely defined at a few Distvilmtion • .1.1 • 11 ■ ■ 1- . -1 J- i-i- 11 of Tar sands, points, but tliey were estimated to have a minimum distribution oi rully 1,000 s(|uare miles, where either completely uncovered, or buried beneath a part of the overlying Clearwatei- shale on the highlands, and exposed in the river valleys. They vary in thickness where tlie section is com- plete, from 140 to 225 feet. The bitumen is unequally distributed through the sands, in a few places merely staining the grains, but in most of the sections examined it is present in sufficient (juantity to render the whole mass more or less plastic. The following calculation, which is e.xtracted from the Summary lieport for 1890, although it can only be regarded as an approximation, yet will serve to give .some idea of the enormous outp(juring of liituminous substances which has taken place in this region. " An analysis by Mr. Hoft'inann of a specimen collected some years ago by Dr. Bell, gave by weight : — ' FHtumen 12-42 Water (mechanically mixed) 5 ■ 85 Siliceous sands 81 ■ 7.'5 "A cubic foot of the bituminous sand I'ock weighs, according to Mr. .Vnidunt of Hoffmann, 117'5 lbs. This figure multij)lied by the ])ercentage of " ""'*""• bitumen 12-42 gives 14'59 lbs. as the amount of bitumen present in a cubic foot, or ,V4 'V = --"9 P^'' cent in bulk. Taking the thickness at 150 feet, and assuming the distribution as given above at 1,000 square miles, the bituminous sands in sight amount to 28'40 cubic miles. Of this mass, if the preceding analysis is taken as an averttge, although it is probably rather high 22'9 per cent in Imlk, or (••50 cul)ic miles is bitumen. The amount of petroleum which must have issued from the underlying limestones to pi'othice (i'oO cubic miles, (»r by weight ai»proximately 4,700,000,000 tons of bitumen, cannot now be estimated, as the conditions of oxidation and the original comjiosition of the oil is unknown, It must, however, ha\e been many times greater than the present sup])ly of bitumen." The commercial value of the Tar sands themselves, as expo.sed at the Commercml « . .11.1 ..I'll value of T ar surtace, is at pre.sent uncertain, but the alnindancoiler Hai)id by a cover of shales suHicient to prevent the oil from I'ising to the surface, and ill ascending the ri\('r, this covei' gradually thickens. Tlie geological attitude of the shales is not the most favourable, as the beds dip away from the outcrop at the rate of five to ten feet to the mile, and it is possible that a part, or oven the whol(> of the nil may ha\e tlowed noi'tliwards and eastwards through the sands, and escaj)ed where these come to the surface. It is unlikely however, that all the oil has escaped in this manner, as small anticlinals in the covering beds are almost certain to exist, and a difl'erential hardening of tlu^ beds them- selves may serve to inclose reservoirs or inverted basins of large capacity. It is also possible that the; sands at their outcrop, may by the dejiosition of tarry substances be plugged tightly enough to pi'event further egress. Isnourable indications of the jiresence of oil in the vicinity of the Athabasca, are also all'ordiid by the existence of the natui'ai gas springs referred to on a prcxious page. j,.. The question of the continuity of the Tar sands and their petroliferous charactei' under cover, can, however, oidy l)e settled in a decided manner by boring, and it is highly desii'ablc that drilling opeiatioiis should be undertaken for this [lui'pose. At the mouth of Pelican River the Tar sands are probably covered by about TOO feet of strata, and this amount increases as tlie river is ascended. At the Athabasca Landing, if the formation extends to that point, it [irobably lies at a depth of from 1,1*00 to 1,500 feet below the surface, but the distance of the Landing from the outcrop of the Tar sands, and t\w variability in the thickness of the Cretaceous formations make it impossible to give more than a rough estimate. ,,f Indications of tin presence of oil in the tlistrict is not confined to the Tar sands, as on Peace Kiver and Ijcsser Slave l^ake inspissated • bitumen was found in a number of places lining cracks in nodules, and at Tar Island in Peace l{i\er, small (juantities of tar are brought to the surface by a spring. Tar springs are also rej)orted from several MCCONNELL, ] KCONOMIC fiEOLOCiY. 67 F> other points, but their existence lacks verification. North of tliis district tar occurs at intervals in the Devonian limestones exposed along the valleys of Slave River and the Mackenzie, all the way tf) the Arctic Ocean. ft I It: J I Mft. .5^^ f Shah son. 2rjrt. foon + i > Lai^/ntU . \ \ CRETACEOUS. ('o///frif/o. f'j\ loinuriiVHmtiiii 0S5:-n } fffif^'oia . :^. DEVONIAN and liCssei' Sla\'e River iVLakt Secdon L ■■I ■'% To (um/fnfuiHi/ /'art D. A/tmut/ Hc/wrf \oi /' /^M)-SW. w \> I 4 -mw, •::i;.','u..-:;iurjj._n: BIMii^^^X^ •V/v/ J.o'ti K- X. JO" /; Au/ot/rrifjJif(/ /,tf Cf/.Afff/rH/ (/. (Smhigtml Smteg BEttiumtt Cmxaiii. HONOURABLE EDGAR DEWDNE-1 IN ISTER ALFRED RC.SELWYN. CMG.Ul D.FRcDlRfCTOB DrU'f ^ 1- •s. ^ ■1 l^> § .^ =5 =^ t 1 ' /; -X- SECTION ALONG THE ATHABASCA VALLEY FROM ATHABASCA LANDING TO FORT M9 MURRAY |V«»j(M'(«'(i oil linos Ali.Rr. as slu'Wii «m slu'ot 2 cil' tna]i. Scnlcs I 1 : , . . ' -I ^ IliiiMioiilal It* +-- Iinir- — -i r— Tt- - r ■„ ", 1 1 ■jk miUff*. Biftrtinintt, R r TOB HvDNEMlNISTER ■d.FR t.DIWECTOR I ^ ~? r 1 .;5 1 SI-^,. 55 $^ ■^ r<. ■< ^ ^s^ * A'. T2"SO'£ . r| I ^ ^ ^ "^r «5 >. -^ s. '-^ >^ . ■^ S^' <;). J ^. 5i -"S?'«9B«i.aB»55,,,j»_ I-. /.inifsioii*- ■>; aarf S/mfes /.2m ft* E^-.;>;l Fox/u/f SuiifhfofU '^(Jfc. La Hu'heyS/fa/f.f.^. 900n. m-^ Sh/Ue 4-0 ft. son . fle/t'r/t/i OraudJOipuisSaJitMit/if^iOO/l. f'karnnfn Shale 2TJft. Tar SoNfh- ZOOfh Dfio/wi/t /.wtf-t/a/ie fOCH.f- f l'ifrir'/\Hu-/ii//.J > CRETACEOUS. sns:^ f'o/(/frtfio. ( Aiobtruv iVHttitan Hukoia DEVONIAN Athabasca River uml Lesser SlHwRiverMiab Seclion /// ntnj/»fit//n/ /'art l>. ht^mt/ Hfpor/ Voi /' /SM)-W i 3r. I ^ 3E i ^ F .rii - -^ t 4 D t S5 Su/ Lei'f/ Au/oijraphrti //t/ COXairra/ ('.J-! is I « niLiliiil'lirr rt' i i i i n |i |i|' nriff .z..--ir^^=r=:::i^Ef0r^&f^m^^k^MEFF3- Teace Ru'er Stuid^tr/ne X. 10'' E (SmIxTgiralBacjjartui HONOURABLe|^^B)NEY MINISTf ALFRED RC SEL'^^Hkrs.&c.DIREC SECTION ALONG THE PEACE VALLEY FROM SMOKY RIVER FORI»E/tE RIV Pi-ojocied on lines DE.EK, as she^ni oi» sKoots 1 &'.'^ otj •L. 1 "" I u- i Scales Hiiriioiital i" I' uw ViTticnl 1100 uormlt.'l — ^ -I i giralBacjjartmmt, iurable^^Hne:y minister ) RC SEL'^^BfrS.ScDIRECTOR. I -5 I Iraii^puiEmfflQBEiiiPiii^^ E Iimr!' : !mmTTrMTnT.-ngimg; j Y-^ --^ — FORlH>E/tE RiVER FALLS I kC t ^ I sS I nril TTT F ri!EEianz:3iri!EQ llJ r_W'"T|y'T'r';pTTw nnTT|yr nirirT'Pmninni g?"|"BVi'ir~Tmmir"| 5S5==t^P»^ X. 7J" E. -----4, J Fua-ht!l Sftfifisf/ific FtSf./oJt/i s/u//fs loan. Jhici Ji. S(m. A/uiua/ Nr/fOf/ Voi V /Si9-S70 .