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Those too large to be entirely Included in one exposure ara filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diegrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., pauvent dtre filmis A des taux da rMuction diffirents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre raproduit an un saul clich«, II est fllm« A psrtir de Tangle supArieur gauche, de gauche it droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'imagas nicessaira. Las diagrammas suivants illustrant la mithoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 : " ' ■ ,- • e SOURCES OF THE SASKATCHEWAN. By WALTER D. WILCOX. The Saskatchewan, one of the larger rivers of North America, takes its source in tlie rugged fas^tnesses of the IJooky mountains, and flows east- ward over the sparsely inhabited plains of southern Canada till it reaches Lake Winnipeg. Save for a rapid at the very mouth, the river is navigable for steamboats about 1000 miles. Strangely enough, its two chief branches come from the same ice-fields in the high Rockies, and, after diverging several hundred miles, unite far out on the rolling plains about 900 miles from their source. The North Saskatchewan and the IJow or South Saskatchewan are, at their point of union, each about the bizo of the Ehine. From the Canadian Pacific railroad, the easiest way to roach the headwater tributaries of the Saskatchewan is by ascending the Bow river to its source. My friend. Mr. U. L. Barrett, and I left the station of Laggan on July 12, 180(i, bound northward, in the hojie of reaching the Athabasca pass and measuring the height of Blount Brown and Mount Hooker. For such an (wtensive journc^y, which would require two months to accomplish, wo had live saddle-horses and ten pack- horses to carry our provisions and camp necessaries. To manage the horses and arrange our camps, we engaged two skilled packers, Tom Lusk and Fred Stejihens, the latter an expert axe-man, and also a cook fur the party. On the third march frnm civili/atiou Ave came to the upper Bow la on & of id tv w in SOURCES OF THE SASKATCHEWAN'. 3o9 ica, takes its 1 flows east- nada till it tb, the river enough, its S'h Rockies, the rolling chowau and each about ' reach the 'j; the Bow the station f reaching irown and Id require ten pack- in age the ^ers, Tom so a cook pper Bow lake, which is about 20 miles from the railroad. This lake, thoush only 4 miles long, has fine surroundings, being closely pressed by grand precipices hung with ice and frequently echoing to the thunder of avalanches, wliile its indented shores and green forests make it one of the most attractive spots in the Eockies. A muddy stream descends from a glacier beyond the head of the lake and pollutes its clear waters, while a clear trout-brook comes from an upland valley lying to the north-west, and this latter stream is perhaps the true source of the Bow. Uj) the valley, countless springs and melting snow-banks, with large tracts of swampy land, contribute their waters from every side. The level of the valley rises into a gently sloping plain, the last rivuh't is i)assed, and one stands on the divide overlooking the Little Fork of the Saskatchewan river. Those who have reached this region have had an opportunity of seeing one of the grandest views that the mountains offer. For to the west are the lofty peaks of the highest range of the Kockies, buried in perpetual snow, and discharging their surplus ice by glaciers in every lateral valley. Deep set amid dark precipices, such a glacier is to be seen west of the pass. From two caveri ous ice-tunnels a large stream issues and sweeps in a devious course over a barren gravel wash for a mile or more, till it entei's a lake. Then, as the clear stream leaves the lake and winds away to the north-west, it is lost to view, hidden amid deep forests, and only reveals its course here and there, where it expands into some one or other of the many lakes which this valley contains. Between the spurs of the sunmit range on the west and a parallel range on the east, the great trough or valley which carries the Little Fork and the North Fork of the Saskatchewan draws away in a nearly straight line for more than GO miles, till its end is lost in the blue haze of distance. The summit of the pass is a delightful region, situated at an altitude of G700 feet, or only 300 feet below tree-line. Thr woodland is con- sequently rather open, and abounds in meadows, wliile the spruce trees, many of which must be four or five centuries old, have that sj-mmetrical beauty of form rarely seen where there is less space and light in the crowded forests of the deep valleys. It seemed best to camp on the summit, as a forest fire had broken out in the Little Fork valley some miles distant, and was sweeping furiously up the mountains to the east. I\lr. Barrett and one of the ])ackers spent the next day by making a horseback excursion to inves- tigate the extent of the fire and see if there were a way through. Tliey returned in the evening, after a hard day's travel, without having reached the fire. It was evident that the distance had been much underestimated, perhaps owing to the great extent of view from the pass ; but it was small comfort to know that tlie fire was much further oif than had been supposed, as we had to change our ideas of its iOO SOL'i:CES I'K THE SASKATCHEWAN. magiutiide. As there Avas iiothin<;- to be gained by waiting, wo moved ii short marrh into the valloy the next diiy. The descent into the Little Fork valley is much steeper than on the other side of the pass, a..d in the lirst three miles the trail drops about 1000 feet. These mountain trails were nsed by the Indians at an indefinite period before the whites came into the country. In every important valley. es|ieclally where game abounds, there are trails which pi-ove of great value to the traveller. As our horses were winding through a deep forest, a bird appeared which resembled a pine bulllinch, flitting from tree to tree and follow- ing us closelj'. .Somewhat later it gave the most remarkable instaneo of tamoness that 1 have ever seen. Having followed us for about L' miles, it waited in a tree during the bustle and confni^ion of making camp; but during the afternoon, when all was (juiet ..nd some of our men were asleep, the bird became exceedingly familiar, and showed no fear to walk on the ground near u.s, and finally to perch on our extended hands. It was soon ('vident tliat the object of our visitor was to catch mosquitoes, which were hovering in swarms around our heads. It pecked at a ring on my hand, at our needles, and in fact any metal article; but the climax was reached when by accident the bird saw its own image in a small looking-glass which lay on the ground. Then, with extended wings and ojten bill, it uttered crie i of rage and pecked madly at the glass wher(^ an enemy appeared. Among the solitudes of mountain forests, squirrels, tiiiehes, and whiskey-jacks often show a remarkable eonlidence in man; but this particular instance is note- worthy, because the bir^l would light on our persons, even after it was momentarily though gently detained several tinjes as a prisoner in my hand. Further investigation showed that it was possible to get our horses through the fire, Avhich had spent its energy on a large extent of green timber. So, after three hours' travel from cami"), we came to the burning trees wliere the fire wjis advancing slowly, as there was a ealui. Then came several miles of the recently burnt area, now changed to a forest of blackened sticks, some of which were airead}^ fallen, with here and there a column of smoke rising from smouldering moss, and everything half concealed in a snowy eovering of ashes. At the other edge of the fire there was more danger, and frequently some tree would flash up and send a scorching heat towards us. A\'e were chiefly anxious that the packs should not take fire and cause a etampede among the horses, so for a considerable distance we drove our aninuils alonj; the edge of a lake, and frequently waded deep in the water to avoid the heat of lilazing trees. After an exhausting march of six hours, we made our camp in a muskeg or swamp, about half a mile from the lire. The wind, however, which had been increasing for a time, began to carry the fire towards •im. t ^ '%'1 g, we moved •than on the drops al)oii1 idians at an 7. In every trails whicli rd appeared and follow- ble instance for about 2 1 of niakinii' ;orae of onr showed no iir extended as to catch heads. It ' any metal ird saw its ncl Then, Hid pecked iolitndes of en show a e is note- fter it was )ner in my onr horses t of green le burning m. Then a forest here and verything ige of the flash up ious that le horses, idge of a ! lieat of imp in a liowever, towards 117" w 52° N. C/acier La.hf f^\^^ / r^'K' ^X^ M*- MurcKison 13.500 ^ Howse "a-ss S300 5r->o SKETCH OK THE SOUKCES OF THE SASKATCHEWAN Trom a rcniKli Survey "by WALTER D. WiLCOX. Scale of Miles 51 -TO- wmmmmBmrTST^ 362 s(»(Ti;('i':s o IK SASKATillKWAN. 8, and our situation soon became alarminy; when some heavy tiiuln'r liegan to bhize, and the columns of fhiiuc, shooting liuudreds of feet iit^ the air, niado a terrifying roar, wliich caused our liorses to stop feodiii,' At one time a funnel-shaped whirlwind aliout liOd feet high fiirinii, over the heated area and remained there a few moments. At the rate of piogross the tire was making, we should soon hav. been surrounded had wo not jiacked Tip and moved ti mile further dou; the valley. The second camp was made by the side of a considerall. stream, wide enough to stop the fire. But towards evening eloul- banners began to form at the peaks of the mountains, and in the earlv morning, after many weeks of drought, it began to rain. Kaiu fell Bteadily fur ten hours, and fortunately extinguished, for a time, the fire> that were destroying this beautiful valley. Wo were now two days" journey down the Little Fork valley, ;i distance of about 18 miles in a straight line. We remained in cani[i the next da}*, to do a little stirvey work from a mountain to the east, From this point, at an altitude of SOOO feet, the Little Fork valhy a]ipears straight, deep, and comparatively narrow, with a number of lateral valleys coming in from the west side, and cutting the mountain masses into projecting spurs. The strata of tho mountains ai-e for the most part nearly hori;:ontal, and the clitfs are frequently almost vertical. There were six lakes in view from our survey point, of which two, each about a mile long, were merely expansions of the river; three wore in lateral valleys ; and one lay far u|) the valley where the river takes itis source. Tho lateral valleys head in the summit range to the west, and have probably never been visited. The scenery is very grand near the lakes. A striking peak about 10,000 feet in height, with a prcei|iitous rock face and wedge-shaped summit, stands guardian over these lakes, and together Avith the jagged mountain near it helps to give a gloomy fiord-like appearance to the region. Mount Murchison is supposed to lie in a group ^f mountains to the east of this place, and, as seen from the Pijiestone pass by i)r. Hector, was estimated to be 1;!,G00 feet high. It has never been seen from the Litth.' Fork valley, though it cannot be more than 10 mih s distant. On July 22, we marched six hours and reached the Saskatchewan river. The trail is very gooil, and runs for many miles through forests which are of splendid timber, especially in the great valley of the Saskatchewan. At the forks or junction the Saskatchewan is a rapid stream about 150 yards wide, and apparently (|uite deep, and the pure blue waters of the Little I'ork are soon lost to view in the muddy volume of the main river. The Saskatchewan valley is about 4 miles wide at this point, the river itself flowing between blutfs of glacial drift, and while tho massive mountains on every side are between 10,000 and 12,000 feet Iiigli. they are less imposing than usual because .So(:ncKS OK THE SASKATCHEWAN'. .•;63 lieavy tiiul.: lis of foot ill «to|) fooilir^ high foriiir iM sijdii liav. further dou:; I consiileraM. voiiiiig cloii'l. ill tho earl\' Kain foil iiue, tho fires in ork valley, u ined in caiii|, n to the ea.st, ( Pork vail. V a number nf the inoiintaiii ;is are for tlif most vortical, lich two, oaoh three wore in liver takes its the west, and g peak about wedge-shaped ;h tho jagguJ irauoe to tLu ^f mountiiins pass by J)r. ^■er been seen lan 10 niil.v^ askatchewaii rough forests ■alley of the .n is a rapid md the pure tlio muddy bout 4 milos :s of glaciiil ire bot weou 3Ual because of their distance. Tlio main river runs about Udrth-oast. outtiii:;' through tho mountain ranges, and taking its souno to tho south-uost among tho liiglies; ;/hu'ior-bearing peaks of tho suniniit r;>ngo. A very largo tributary, which wo came t') ciU tho •' North Fork," comes in from the north-west, and joins tho main river about one mile above the Little Fork. Tliis rivor is not correctly plucod on Palliser's map; nor was thoro any available infnrmatiou alioiit tlio region wheneo it conios. Kvon tho Stony Indians who travel through these mountains know little of this river, boeanso it is said that many j'oars ago ono of their Lribo was lost while limiting in tiuit region, and tlioy think ho sofiioK OF Tiir; i.rnxi; KoiiK m-' Tin: s:A>KAn;in;\\AN. was destroyed by an evil spirit dwelling thoro. At all events, tlioy will not take chances in visiting that part of the country now. Our route to the Athabasca, however, lay up this river, and our first duty was to tiud a ford across tho ,Saskatchcwan. A day was spent in finding a safe place, as the river was in summer flood, though not at its highest stage. Mr. IJarrett, with characteristic enei'gy, dis- covered a ford about one mile up-stream, where tho river spreads out amon miles, because of thr uncertainty of the trails, the rough nature of the forests, and repeated crossings of the river. This slow progress was made in spite of our custom I day as I bottomi adornoJ Stream! spray The 11 clianni-l of the oondit staiiilNl SOUl;cKS i>¥ THE SASKATi'IIEWAX. ;1G.- fr. Al)oiit (,i;. -^< f'-'i' the d;,v "lilt's (ij, ious hiyer nn c'^ft and unites ■^ize, wo wei'e 3ca, In ordei k'as made of a summit, at an kes its sou]'ct' of the branch ionfessed that lie .Saskatche- 3 firm in the • Tlio other 1 iu the very ' was smoky ' late, I trie.l mout when J camera over 'ragile 2)arts, od and brass agencies, the itl excellent ■nd reported cause of th.> "(J repeated ipite of our custom to have one or two nn'ii o^phirc Jind out out tiio trail for the next day us far as iidssible each afternoon. In this place the river i.s at the bott(»m of a narrow valley, the sides of which arc smooth precipices adorned here and there by clumps of trees dinging to the ledges. Streams and spi ings from far above come down in delicate curtains of dpray or graccfnl waterfalls wafted from side to side by every breeze. The Hood of glacial waters swee|i'^ over a giavol-wash in a network of channels, witli tiie main liody of water swinging from one side toanothor of the valley and washing against stee|i or inaccessible banks. This condition of things caused us to cross and recross the stream almost con- stantly, and though the lords were in general iv more than •'< feet drep. SWAMT IN Tin I.lTTl.i: IIMI NAI.i.LV. the icy waters ran with such force that uur crossings were not witli(jut excitement. In spite of the best judgment and care of our packers, some horses got beyond their deptli several times and had to swim across. As the saddle-horses are guided by riders, they rarely lose their tooting ; but the pack-animals coming along in a bunch, confused by the shouting ot the men and the roar of tho rapids, hesitate, and often enter the river a little above or below the best ford, and so get into deep water. iJanger- ous rapids or a log jam below make such occasions critical, not alone for the safety of the horses, but even for the success of an expedition, in case a large (puntity of provisions are lost. Pack-honses cannot swim very far with their tight cinches, and, moreover, the icy water of these moun- tain streams jiaralyzes their muscles very quickly. The trail at length loaves the river and makes a rapid as'. cut through :U)t3 soi'ki'Hs OK Tin: saskatiiikwan. lorcHth oil tlic cast siilo of tlip valloy, so that in an hour wr had j^aiin 1 IfKMi ft heavily tinihcnil or rlHirj; into .snow-HumniitH, und to tli« west an iin- mense j^hicier, which \vi s the Kourcc of the hirj^est Ntreani. Tho North Fork was rapidly diviiiin}.'; into its nltimatc trihuturics. Tho sound • t iiionntain stroanis fallinj; in cascailos, the iiictnrcscjuo train of horst -. each animal cantionsly iiickin<; a salo pasNaj^o along thr rocky pathwa\ , the si»londid trees around ns, oiir i;real height, and the tremendous grandeur of the mountain scenery, all helped to make our 8urrouudin;j:s most enjoyalile. Above the sound of wind in the forest there was pn - sently he.ird tlie roar of a waterfall, and half a mile heyond we saw :i, large stream apparently bursting from the top of a fine precipice and falling in one magniliceut leap down a great height. 'J'hrotigh a notch ill the mountains there was another fall visilile some miles distant, fully twice as high as the one near us. It was learned later that every stream descended into the canyon by a fall and a succession of cascadeb. We camped in a beautiful wooded valley with much open country, at an altitude of GoOO feet above the tea. Near our tents was tho river, which at this place is a comparatively small stream of crystal-clear water. In the afternoon, with one of tie men, 1 ascended a small uioun- laiu which lay to the west of our lamp. From this summit two passes were visible, one o miles to the nort'j, and the other more distant and towards the north-west. The view west was more extended. There was a large straight glacier directly before lis, tho one we had Keen earlier in the day, and which supplies the greater part of the water of the North Fork. 'I'his glacier is visible at least G or 7 miles, but it may extend much further behind the intervening mountains. 'J'he glacier has no terminal moraine, and slojies down by a very even grade to a thin knife-like edge where it termimites. The next day Mr. liarrett went off to climb if possible a high moun- tain, over ll,| safely aci to g" "^1 we wore S(.['f;cKS OK TIIF. SA>KAIVHE\VAN'. .;•)< "iiifiiin-si,!,. \v''Hf (111 II,). Tlio North Ih) sound . t ill of Jlol-H. ^ }i;eth»3r out of the (lUPstion. Ahi};ii valley on tlic rij^ht, lidwuver, ott'errd the last and only escain.' for us, and, after rcaohinj;' an altitude of himk.) feet, our dcscfiit li'^ian into a valley that we know must be eithei' the Athabasca or Whirlpool river, whi' h flows into it. Thus the most critical part of our exjieditiou, the discovery >>( a pass from the Saskatchewan into the Athabasca, wat safely accomplished. It is highly probable that ours is the iirst jmrty to ji'o over this routi-. 'i'hou^h now twenty-six days out from Lani^an, we were only a little innrc than halfway to the Atliabasf.'a pa.-s, but r\yiV Si ENE IN I ANVuN iiF Niiirill I IJKK. a descriiition of that country would carry us beyond the .subject iu hand. < )winsi; to force of circumstances, it was not till hite in the season of 18'J8 that I hail an ojiportunity to visit the source nf the ^liddlo Fork of the >Saskatchewan. For this trip 1 enga';ed as packer ^Villiam I'eyto, a man who had proved very efficient on previous ex]ieditions ; also a cook, and an outfit of nine horses. It seemed almost ibolhardy, when on Octobjcr 12, against diiving enow-showers and a cold wind, we set out from l.agp;an and once more pursued our toilsome march through the many miles of burnt timber northwards, as it were, into the very teeth of winter. Through constant snowstorms — for the headwaters of the I3ovv are a breeding-place for bad weatiier — we jiassed the upper Bow lake, the divide beyond, and got U miles down the Little Fork on the thiri, day, as a result of forced :u;r .-^Ol'iii F.S Ol Till. .>.\,sKATi m.U'AN. iii!ir(;|j<;H. l)\ir\U'/ \,\\i: f'll Imviri^j ui<^\il tlicro was ;i ciirioiiH iicukiri;^ hOMiiil of Uio t,(.'iil-io|i(.-H uiid a H;i;^^i;i;^ ol'tlio curiviiH, ami iu tlii' niMrniiij^ our |ir(.,s[)CctH for a Hricfict-sl'nl tri|i wc.fi; vin- Ht.ariccs, (d ;^(;t fiutln r aw;i,y from ci vilizatiuti, wo Kiuaiii'ii in r;ini|i all (lay. I)y ni'ti'.rwixni tlio hhow rcaHfid, and tlio next, day wi; wen; a;^ain on t,li« niarcli. 'I'Ih' snow wan I .') inf;ln:K doop in tlio I/ittlo I''ork valley, Imt, finly half tliat, aiuonnt near tlii! SaHkalchfjwan, wliicli wo rraiin'.d on tlio hixMi day. On Oot.olior J.'! we, riros.soil t.lio Ijittio T'liik, and fnrriod wo.stwardH into .'I. ii'i^ioii that promised to lie I'lil! of int.oicst.. 'I'lio woatlicr, wliioli had ])f:cn oloiidy and thrtialoniii^ I'oi' houm' days, now j^avo sifj^nH of improvo- mont, hy tlic a[)pcaran(:o of liliio sky in the weHt,,and soon after the hi^h niount.aiiiH ii[i tho MicMhi I'ork- were hathed in snnlij^hl. 'I'ho dazzling ]i<^ht, ()i\ the Hnow-(!overeil landHoapo was very ohoorinf:; alter tho days ofj^looni and Htorni. 'I'Ik; l.rail p'nict.rat.OH a loroHt, on tho Honf.h hank, and f'ro'jMontly coming on t,Ii«! rivor allows viowH of the wido loj^-,sfre,wri ;4ravoi-\\ asii, the wori; of siinimer ilo'dls. Ahont, .") miles np flio river a. valloy coirKss in from 'ilaf;ie,r lak<;, and onr eanip was fiiao<;d on a point of lan ilio olindi waH f:oninion(;<'.d witli dry hoots. In lose tli,ui fivo niinnlos a iiii'- trail i KM. I. M \f( -111 l.",l, OK Miinil rnliK, app<',iuod, wliifdi Havid :i ;: loat doal of laiioiii' ^md eonHidtTfildo tiino in ffcttinjr to tlio hiko. 'I'lio trail at ]orie;th divore;od to tlio oast, towardH tlio rnonntain, and went iu ilio ri;.i;lit diroofion fi!i tho altitiidf; was (100 foot abovo tlio, lako, ata j^roat Haviiijf oforiorfj^y in fonjinf; a way thron^^li tlio nndorliHKli. Tlio sunlight was painfully hrilliatit on tiic .snow, wlii'di was f'dly a foot in dopth at TmO'i fcot. ;\t tiiis altitndo, in a last olninri of hpriioo, trof'H, I liiin^ niy oanoTa to a liraiuli and toidc ;i short rest, as tho rdirnl) m far Jiad lioei. vory o.xh.iOHtinjj;. No. IV.-, A riiii 189!* 370 SOURCES OF THE SASKATCHEWAN. After a pause often minutes, the sharp air urged a recoinmeucemeut of the ascent. The brilliant glare of an hour provious had given place to a somewhat cloudy sky, as a belt of heavy cirrus was drifting along over the mountains in a great line running north and south. The sun shone through it feebly, and was surrounded by a halo. I soon began to have doubts of my ability to succeed in the ascent, as my strength began to fail under so much exertion in the deep snow. The bushes, rocks, and other inequalities of the ground were buried, so that I fre- (piently stumbled and fell. Moreover, it now became apparent that the size of the mountain had been much underestimated, for the heights on the right rose tremendously even after an altitude of 7500 feet had been reached. The inclination was very steep, and the now returned sun on the vast expanse of snow, and the great height above anything to fasten the even upon for relief, gave a curious sensation of dizziness, due per- haps in part to exhaustion. I felt, however, the importance of reaching the summit, as it meant practically the success of the entire trip. More- over, the extraordinarily fine weather on this the critical day of the trip seemed too providential to be lost from any lack of exertion or ambition. Summoning, then, all my resolution, I made reasonable progress for a time, but soon, in spite of every eager desire for success and ambition to reach the summit, the contest between will-power and tired muscles became doubtful, as the snow grew deeper with higher altitude, the slope .steeper, and the far-oif summit seemed no nearer than ever. Every few yards of progress was invariably terminated by a fall in the snow, and it seemed better to rest for a moment in whatever position chance had it, than to get up at once. A little later a view appeared that in itself well rspaid the labour of the climb. On the right was an expanse of spotless snow, exceedingly steep, vast in extent, and dazzling in brilliancy. Its rounded contours were sharply oixtlined against the sky, but there was neither any interruption of stone or clitf in the monotonous covering of snow, nor any scale by which to judge of size or diHtance. The chief object of interest in the view was a snowy triangular peak covered with ice which now began to appear in the west. The colours of rocks and clifi's in the distant rocks and precipices seemed absolutely bhick in contras: with the remarkable whiteness of the snow surface on all sides. Over- head the sky was intensely blue, but marked by distinct wisps of white cirrus cloud, spun out like tufts of cuttou into shreds and curving lines. At a 1 altitude of 8800 feet, or more than 4000 feet above our camp, I reached at length the summit of the mountain crest. It was necessary' to walk along the crest a (juarter of a mile to reach a somewhat higher point, which was the true summit. The snow along this mountain ridge was in many places 3 or 4 feet deep, and, mindful of the terrible alpine SOURCKS OF THE SASKATCHEWAN'. 371 accidents caused by cornices, I kept well away from the edge, below which it seemed to drop sheer several tlioiisaud foet. The snow was sparkling in the sun, and of the myriads of bright points about one-half were merely white light, like diamonds, tlie other half were either green, blue, or amber-coloured, like emeralds, sapphires, and to[)azes. From intense frost my gloves were frozen so stitf that notes and sketches had to be done with bare hands. The most conspicuous and interesting part of the whole vast panorama was the lofty summit of Mount Forbes, bejond the valley of Glacier lake. Another mountain, about 10 miles to the west, and Mount MOUNT FOIiBES, FRIIM ABiJtT 000(1 FLICT. Forbes were the two highest mountains in sight, and each arc probably between 13,000 and 14,000 foet in altitude. Glaciers of very large size come from those mountains and terminate a few miles above the lake. The whole valley of the Saskatchewan to its upper end, and in the opposite direction many miles below the mouths uf the North and Little Forks, was clearly' visilde. There was a very high rock peak in a group of mountains east of the Little Fork that occupied the position of Hector's Mount Murchison, which he calculated to be 13,000 feet higli. This mountain is hidden away in a group that must Lo 75 miles in cir- ciimftrence, and so it is rarely seen. There was a due view to the north, where a wild and desolate valley thousands of feet below was dominated by a castle-like mountain over 11,000 feet high, probably Mount Lyell, cut in ruins like ancient towers and battlements. Of four plates :372 SOURCES OK THE SASKATCHEWAN. <'X]>ose{l on this mountain, onl^' one was successful, so that I had a narrow escape from failing altogether in ;j;ettiiig a view of Mount Forbes, Avhich, because of its great height, is veiled from view by clouds, and is freipieutly invisible for weeks at a time. Thursduii, Octuher 20. — The day broke grey and unsettled, with the highest mountains touched by clouds. Wo continued our march up the Saskatchewan valley, and urged the horses rapidly over a level gravel jihiin at such speed as to make in all 10 miles. On the west side of the valley there is a stupendous wall of rock between 11,000 and 12,000 feet high, which terminates in the giant peak of Mount Forbes a little to the north. About 4 miles from our camping-place there is a grouj) of curious rounded hills, rising like forested islands from the sea of gravel. There was a strong raw wind against us, and, because of our water- soaked boots half fro.".eu by contact with snow, it was altogether too cold to keep the saddle long, and every one walked most of the time. We made camp in a miserable place of stunted timber, half killed by gravel which hai been washed over the region in some change of the river course not many years before. The liver here divides into three streams : the smallest near our camp came from the Ilowse pass, less than 3 miles distant ; the other two from a valley to the south-east, each, curiously enough, on opposite sides of a flat. In the afternoon, I walked some li miles up the valley to where the lesser stream turns in from the west, and, as it heads at the base of Mount Forbes, I followed it a mile or so further, till i)resently the current became rapid, the valley narrow, and the water closely hemmed in oy rocky banks, so that the walking was very difficult. The snow was a foot deep in this little valley, where the sun and wind could not exert their influence as in the open. The stream on the other side of the valley is larger, and comes from a glacier several miles distant. This whole region was very thoroughly examined last summer by Messrs. Collie, Baker, and Stutfield, who not only explored the large glacier, which is supposed to be 10 or 1 5 miles long, but went up the other stream several miles to the base of Mount Forbes, in the hope of ascending it. The flood of waters that sweeps down here in summer from the long glacier has cut channels o or 4 feet dee]), lined with immense boulders, across the whole bottom of the valley. This is the chief stream or source of the Saskatchewan. During the night the wind came up infltful gusts, the stars were no longer bright points, but foggy spots seen through a thin mist, bands of cloud swept along the mountain-sides almost as low as our camp, and at length the whole sky was overcast. The barometer was much lower at midnight. By one in the morning it began to snow, which was a cause for no little apprehension, as we were far from the railroad. Friilni/, October 21.— The sky Avas still threatening, though very SOURCES OF THE SASKATCHEWAN. 37:3 t' little snow had fallen. We were on march a little after ton o'clock, ami reached the summit of tbo Ilowse pass in an h