The record-union., 1893-08-01
OVERLAND TO THE ARCTIC.
4 Route Over Which Tourists May
Make the Trip in Seventy Days.

A Route Over Which Tourists May
Make the Trip in Seventy Days.
William Ogilvie of the Canadian Land
Survey is the most Travelled explorer In
the service of the Canadian Government.
1t was he who, four years ago, surveyed
the unknown country between the upper
tributaries Of the Yukon and the Mae
kenZie Rivers and then assembled that
stream 10 its headwaters, a journey that
cut him completely Off from the civilized
world for more than year. More re-
Gently he has been studying the little
known Peace River and its tributaries,
and in the report he has Just made OF his
researches. part Of which is given in the
st. Louis Democrat, he says that
any one desirous Of going beyond the
Arctic circle or to the Arctic Ocean may
easily carry out such design at compar-
atively small expense.
Starting from Ottawa to visit the land
of the midnight sun, four days viii take
the tourist, by way OF the Canadian
Pacific Railroad, to Calgary, and day
later he will reach Edmonton by the
branch railroad. Edmonton IS on the
North Saskatchewan and three days more
Will he required to travel with horses 100
miles further north TO Athabasca Land
ing, on the AthabaSca River. If the
tourist times his Journey so as TO reach
AthaDaSca Landing about the lst OF June
he viii probably catch the Hudson BAY
Company's steamer Athabasca, on which
he will descend the river to Grand
Rapids. 1t Will take three or four days
more to make the portage around the
rapids to Fort McMurray, and If the
traveller catches the steamer Grahame
day more will land him at Fort
Chipewyan, on Lake Athabasca. Then,
the descent OF the Great Slave River to
Smiths Landing will be made.
There are no serious distractions to
navigation from Fort Chipewyan to this
landing, but in the next fourteen miles
to ort smith there are numerous rapids,
aggregating 80 feet of fall, which put all
IDEA Of navigation out OF the question,
and land portage is required. At Fort
Smith the tourist will meet the steamer
Wrigley, which plies to Fort Mcpherson,
near the head of the delta, hundreds OF
miles down the Mackenzie River. The
steamer starts down the river late in June
or in the first days of July and reaches
Fort Mcpherson in seven or eight days.
This is the little vessel which the Hud-
son Bay Company placed on the Lower
Mackenzie several years ago. When ice
does not impede navigation she is almost
constantly plying between the various
company and missionary posts along the
river. The steamer has not heretofore
gone further down than the delta, but it
is possible that hereafter she may de-
scend to the Arctic coast and along it for
a short distance.
According TO Mr.. Ogilvie's itinerary, it
appears that even with the present mea-
ger facilities tourist can reach the Arctic
Ocean from Ottawa i'll about twenty-three
days or, to cover possible delay, in thirty
days. Ascending the rivers on the return
journey about forty days would be re-
uuirod. The traveller would pass through
! 200 miles of beautiful prairie land, ex-
tending from Winnipeg almost to Atha-
basca Landing, and from the landing to
the Arctic Ocean. a journey OF upward Of
l 800 miles, he would have ordinary river
navigation, broken by TWO land portagcs,
a few miles on Lake Athabasca and
about l20 miles on Great Slave Lake.
During the whole Of the journey the
tourist would be likely to experience
weather fully as pleasant as that Of OF
tawa. He would see much that would
interest and surprise him, and would GER
tainly gain clearer ideas of the extent and
value of the northern part of our conti-
nent.
All the way to the Arctic coast he would
see timber and plants similar to many
varieties he meets in the Province OF Que
bee, and were it not for the absence of
many familiar species of trees and the in
creased duration of daylight, which at the
coast would continue throughout the
twenty-four hours, the traveller would
hardly realize that he had iourneyed up
ward Of 1000 miles from Ottawa and more
that 800 miles north of it. Mr.. Ogilvie
thinks the cost Of such a trip would not
at the outside exceed $500. North of Ed
monton the steamers have no regular
date OF departure, their movements be-
ing governed by the Hudson Bay Com
pany's needs, but the dates given here are
approx imately those Of sailing.