The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-10-24
TRIP DOWN YUKON.
Two Fairhayen Men Journey
From Source to Boring Sea.
$500 MILES IN AN OPEN BOAT.
shooting the Fearful White Horse
Rspids-The Diggings of Franklin
Gulch-Goid In Frozen Muck.

Ter IN the First National bank Of this city
and Henry With. another prominent
young man here. returned yesterday from
one Of the most remarkable trips ever
made in the interior OF Alaska. no. even
excepting that Of Lieut.. Schwatka and the
! expeditions sent out last year BIZ the pub
| fishers of the Frank Leslie periodicals.
| They were gone seven months, most Of
| which time was spent in traversiug the
| great valley of the Yukon from the head
waters Of that mighty river in the North
west Territory entirely across Alaska TO
Bering sea. The story of this trip is we'll
| calculated TO dispel many Of the illusions
| which the roseate reports Of the great CON-
mercial and transportation companies in
terested in Alaska have had tendency to
create, not as regards the scenic glories
el'her Of the interior or the coast,
| but as 10 the extent AMI value
| OF the great discoveries and the con-
| ditions OF life in the vast valley Of the
| Yukon. In conversation with the Posi-
| lsTELLIGEscER's correspondent last even
ing Mr.. Black gave the story OF the trip
| substantially as follows:
1t was March u when We lef. here, ou- party
| consisting NJ Henry With. who returned with
| me: " V. Hendricks, who Will winter within
| tAc hfctsE cIFc4e, ana myself. We were wei
equipped with clothing. provisions ard suppl es
| OF all kinds for six months trip a, Por.
townsend We took passage On the steamer Mex-
/ leo Tor Chilcoot vi!lsge, ninety miles north OF
| juneau, near the head OF an arra OF the ocean
norsn OF Cross sound and east of Noun: Fair
| weather. aoou: 1920 miles from here. From
| there we went by Indian canoes TWENTY-FIVE
| miles further north 10 the mouth of Dyee river,
| al tie head OF salt water navigation, crossing
| IT. IL as range Of mountains from there By way
OF the Dyee pass TO the headwatcrs of one of the
| several streams or chains of isxes which unite
ana form the Yukon. or, as the Russians call IL,
| the k~ichras. Here We stopped and whip
sawed lumber and built 4 boat. IL wasn't re-
Inarkabie Tor beauty or symmetry hut il was
| large enough and staunch enough 70 carry Us
with all our supplies. and in it We Travelled
safely upwards oil 2, 500 miles 70 Norton sound,
encountering no serious danger except in
shooting White Horse rapids, between Lax,
Marsh aud Lake La Barge. II is a fearful place,
We got into it by accident, and very luckily got
ont without accident. Five boats have been
lost there with ell their occupants. Reaching
the main river at point designated on the maps
a Fort Sslkirk. though there is no fort or any
thing else habitable there, W. driftei aud
rowed down DC miles TO the mouth Of Forty
Nile creek, and pulled up that stream ninety.
five miles to the gold diggings in Franklin
cuich, perhaps the richest and certainly the
most discouraging placer mining camp on the
continent.
1t is wild, weird region. The creek is about
200 miles long, and has fall of sd feet in
ninety-iive miles. strip 500 feet in width
across the gulch constitutes a drain. The di III
custies attending mining there are very great
The ground is covered sll over with deposit of
frozen muck twenty five feet deem, all of which
must be removed by picking and shoyeIing be-
fore the gravel can be reached. The gravel too,
Is frozen deep. but no great difficulty is expert
in,
water Is plentiful, which not the case this
year. the scarcity Of water making the season
there practically failure. Even when there ia
an abundance OF water siGcing is seldom pos
sible more than forty days in the year, so you
see the ground must be very rich indeed to
make mining there at all profitable. Ii cost.
soo Tor au outfit for a year. including pro-
visions, clothing aud tools At the station
on the Yukon at the mouth nf Forty-Mile creek
hour sells for so a barrel, while at the dig
gings. ninety-fve miles above ii n valued a,
ID. Bacon there is counted worth co cents a
round; sugar, 20 cents; teams. 81 cents; coffee,
% cents: tca $l.25, and butter ST. 30 Wages for
miners are sl1 per day. The papers have greatly
oyerstated the number of miners working there
There were not more than - there az any time
during the summer. and a large portion OF them
are discouraged and would be glad to get OFT
Some, however, who own claims. seem content
to stay iroSn year TO year. taking the chances of
making big clean-ups when there is p,entv of
water. We arrived there on June IS and left ON
July u, going down the Yukon and prospectlnp
went.
Al the mouth of the Kiukuk. 900 miles down
the river from FOr,y-AIie creek Hendricks left
us, going up the kiukuk 100 miles to the forks.
within the Arctic circle. in latitude aoou, 10 de-
grecs. lie vent with a man by the name of
Frank Hawiey, the latter's companion AL
tsrstoa, coming out with Wirth and myself
They were both hearty and in good spirits when
we left them. and well supplied with provisions
for the long winter. We went on dow, tho
great river 10 Norton sound. arriving thera n,
August p and going up the coast eighty mile,
In IT Michaeis. the northernmost station Of tho
Alaska Commercial Company. We experienced
a good deaf OF difficulty in ga.,ir,
away from there, the agent OF the NORTH
American Trading Company tried 10 force ia
20 work on a toat which was building In taka
supplies up the Yukon. aud practically com.
PEELED the captain OF the Alice blanchard
which steamer had brought NJ a cargo for tha
company. to refuse to take us, as did also tia
commander OF the revenue cutter Bear unress
We would work for the company which had
treated US In a contemplate manner This IT,
refused To do, and were preparing 20 90 back u,
the river 10 go into winter quarters whom tha
steamer -. Paul came Ia unexpecteilv ~,
second trip and took us TO Tna!sssa ON m.
Aleutian 1isiand peninsula 1000 miles so,,b
tarsiou. however, bad been permitted to On on
snS A'itS htdHCuhu, MS services being needed
a. maehinist From Uusaska, through the
kindly Intervention of the commander OF thu !
cruiser Yorktown, we were taken to san Frau
cisco, 100 miles, on the Cunboat Ranger whose
captain had peremptorily refused Us nassag,
uatii ordered by his superior officer 10 take ~.
From san Francisco we came up To the souna |
on tie steamer Malta Waila
You ask about the Yukon 7, isa,o;.,
river. ZOO milos long. am told and know !, |
IL utieen miles wide at Fort Yukon / esl, ,pi,a.
ABOVE Us mouth, and that its average width |
from there - BerIng sea is fully four miles II |
is ninety miles wide at is mouth III rar,,a
bic tof over 1000 miles from June 20 October |
though there is some floating ice tu,ir- -,
oi THIS time It's current runs 81 the rate Of a, |
OF seven miles an hour The valley j. 60,
grand IN places, and ia other Is as irsarya |
utterly deSolate you can imagine -, an |
niles above the rivers mouth /, is ABSOLUTELY
iree.e's, the only vegetation being r,c.s o., |
swamp grass. Further up there is = depse |
growth OF scruoby tlmber-birch. bullpine ana |
spruce In places, even as FAR III as Fort Yukon
The valley Is fully 20 miles wide II ahnr.ts
IN gafne-InOose. cArrIbJo and bear; while di1-
Ing the short summer there ara nyr!adx ~ /
geese. ducks and swan, So Plentiful that We
Al Ell many 81 them nth clubs - save Emrps
milton. Though there Is frost there every tao3th
IN ihe year. the mercury al midday in summer
sometimes F!ses high 40 rs fha
shade. TIE scenery is Iadesorlbably rranB
We have "a large collection os ka,tae
negatives. tho only ones ~
walca have ever been brought iron thsrs. 80,
az the Wells and SchwatAs parties or ...lr /
ail OF them. having been lest. thou~h ~
Sketches of the artists were saved aaI rr,,,,