The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-02

lS putting up SdWulli IOI tue MISSION
1t is by far the best, most successful anC
most literally managed mission in al
Alaska, and is supported entirely by thu
Moravian church. A week was spent il
enjoying Mr.. Kilbuck's hospitality, anG
with fresh dogs and Indian guides fur
nished by the mission, start was made
across the country to the head of the
Alaska peninsula.
Before leaving the mission I learned
that considerable prospecting had beer
done on the Kuskokwim, with every indi
cation of some itch placers being opened
up in that section this season. The Kos
kokwim is quite large river and there i:
no reason why as good diggings should
not be found along its banks and upon it,
tributaries as on the Yukon. 1t is practi
cally an unknown country, but with the
advent of the thousands of prospectors
now flocking to the interior it is safe &c
say it will not long remain unknown.
Leaving the mission, our course lay in
a northeasterly direction. We proceeded
up the river distance of what | estimated
to be about $50 miles, where we left the
stream and turned due east. A vast and
almost impenetrable forest of spruce was
encountered through which travelling
with dog team was not only slow but ex'
tremely difficult. The higher the altitude
the slower became our progress, and fire.
quently but a few miles a day could be
made on account of windfalls and huge
slides. 1t being midwinter, the days were
very short and we had but five hours Of
daylight Passing above the timber line
the cold became intense. / had no Their
mometer with me, but l judge it must
have been 40 or so degrees below zero
"Our faces were badly frozen several
times, and at nights, having no wood with
which to make fires, we would have to bur
row into a snowbank, and with the dogs al
our feet and lying about u.s. we would man
age to keep passably warm. As we neared
the summit huge icefields were crossed
and canyons and crevasses were encoun-
tered which seemed to have no bottom,
and whose sides were absolutely perpen-
dicular. By the time the divide was
crossed and chain of lakes on the oppo-
site side was reached, my supply of food
had become nearly exhausted and neces-
sity compelled me to resort to the native
food. Did you ever eat frozen, raw seal
meat? No? Well, its flavor is not exactly
like that of pate de fol gras, l assure you,
but to a famished stomach it is much
preferable to either whale or seal blubber,
or to steady diet of SNOWFALL pudding.
Travelling upon the smaller chain of
lakes, which run into and terminate in Lake
Tlkchlk, was much easier, and thence
down the Tikchik River to the Nushagah,
then down the latter river to its mouth,
comparatively rapid progress was made.
Near the point where the Nushagah River
puts into an arm of Bristol Bay is a can
merry. 1t was deserted save by Waterman,
who heartily welcomed me. l was the first
white man he had seen since the close of
the canning and shipping season last fall.
Two days were spent here, during which
l secured new dogs and other guides, who
were better acquainted with the route
which lay before me. From the Nushagah
We proceeded overland to the aKvichak
River, thence up that stream to Lake
Hanna.
Here it was learned from some natives
that it would be impossible to cross the
straits from that point in a bidarka on ac-
count OF floating ice. AT the village of
Hanna, near the head of the lake, another
change of dogs and guides was made. The
very heaviest teams procurable were gotten
and start was made for the settlement
called Katmai on Shelikoff Straits The
nature of the shore line rendered land
travel near the water an absolute impos-
sibility, it being studded with mountain
like glaciers impossible canyons and
streams that fairly stood upon end in their
mad race for the sea. These were avoided
by following as closely as possible the sum-
nit of the range of mountains which lie
along the coast. Reaching Katmai a
three-hatch bidarka was secured, and with
two natives attempted to cross the straits.
Stormy weather set in, and we were COM
PEELED to turn back. We waited eight DAYS
for favorable weather, and during that time
sklrted the coast as far north as Cape
Douglas.
'On the ninth day out from Katmai a
second attempt was made to cross the
straits, this time our efforts being crowned
With success and landing our bidarka on
Afognak Island. At Afognak l took the
schooner Lettie and landed at Kodiak
April 6. l had been gone four months on
the way, and had travelled, as closely as 1
could compute it, about $500 miles, a great
deal of the distance being over section of
country which l am positive had never be-
fore been trodden by man.
cat Kodiak | FOUND great excitement ex-
listing over the Cooks Inlet country.
Nearly eighty miners are there waiting to
be taken to the new discoveries in that
section upon the first boat. Most of them
will prospect on Turn-Agaln Arm, about
$50 miles from Kodiak. / came from the
latter place on the mail steamer Dora to
Sitka, and thence to Juneau. 1 am thank
full, indeed, once more to be in civilization
and among those friends whom l hold so
dear"
Mr.. Merriam may well feel proud of
having achieved an undertaking the like
OF which would have appalled, some of the
UIdFeSI OI Tie WOTlQS explorers. LORD
Lonsdale's journey a few years ago was
somewhat similar to that of Mr. Merriam,
except that it was over much easier
territory and was attended with COMPARE
lively little danger and almost no hard
ship. His route lay north from Winnipeg
to Hudson Bay, thence to the Mackenzie
River and on down to the Arctic Ocean.
His lordship had small army of retainers
and bearers and travelled about as COM
fortably as he could have done over the
Western prairies.
The trip from ST. Michaels overland to
Kodiak in midwinter is hazardous in the
extreme. One must necessarily walk
every step of the way in order to break
trails for the dogs, and with the mercury
lowering around so and so degrees
below zero, no fuel with which to build
fires, frozen food to eat and nothing to be
seen but an illimitable expanse of barren
and snowcapped icehelds, an indomitable
pluck, an iron will and heart that will
finch at nothing are the essential quail
ties of the intrepid traveller who will I'M
dertake such journey.
Word In tho CAIonoIsc