River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1895-08-01

the substantials, and coffee. tea
sugar, fruit and spices, and such othe
delicacies as ones purse can afford
make up the balance. Most oil
miners will tell you not to take
pound with you that is not absolutel
necessary, as the labor and expense o
packing over the summit are great
They even affect to laugh at the ten
and sheet-iron stove as uselessluxuries
but our experience has convinced m,
that the comfort and pleasure de
rived from these cOnveniences, ant
little articles of personal use, NOR
than repay the extra labor involved
Such an outfit as described above
need not cost over fifty dollars pei
man, and fifty dollars more will put
il over the summit.
We left Juneau April Goth, il
company with thirty miners bOunt
for Forty Mile on the Yukon river
A small tug carried us one hundred
miles farther north, landing US at the
head of one OF the numerous inlet:
with which this coast is indented
This was the Dyea inlet and here al
Wilson's trading post began the long
journey inland, where we must
provide our own means of Transports
ton. Loading our outfit upon our
sleds We followed the ice up the Dyea
river about six miles, to where il
emerged from one of the widest and
most romantic canons / ever beheld
Some gigantic thrOe of nature S
forces has here burst asunder the
mountain wall and opened narrow
gorge three miles in length, whose
perpendicular sides rise hundreds OF
feet into the air. So closely do these
| walls approach each other in places,
That the overhanging trees nearly
meet and exclude the light, giving an
air of mystery and gloom to the whole
scene. The well beaten trail crosses
AID re-crosses the pent up stream,
sol etimes clinging to one wall by the
narrowest Of footpaths, sometimes
crossing by means Of two logs thrown
over an unusually troublesome place,
where the dark and turbulent waters
boil and foam below unfrozen in the
coolest of weather. Emerging from
Sheep Canon the trail leads upward a
few miles more, following narrow
mountain valley. Higher and higher
we go until near the upper end We
reach timbe Rhine, ana here camp of
several days and sometimes weeks
must be made until all the loads are
packed to the top of the summit,
three miles farther on. This work is
usually done by Indians, who camp
here in large numbers eager 70 earn
the white mans money, to be spent
later on for the white mans fire.
water. The price demanded. is usually
ten cents per pound, and no one who
has the money will ever begrudge the
natives the job after he has tried one
trip to the summit with fifty pounds
on his back.
At this season of the year terrific
billiards rage round the mountain
tops, and it is only during the
intervals between storms that the
crossing can be made.
Our Indians were all engaged and
on the third morning after our arrival
at Sheep Camp, at four o'clock we were
lp and away. The narrow vail y
led skyward, and soon we left the last
vestige of vegetation behind. Snow
| clad mountains are on either hand,
except at one place on the left, where.
far above us huge glacier thrust its
| face OF dark green ice out over a pro-
jecting spur, down whose side great
blocks came rolling and crashing at
intervals. A mile and half of toll
| some climbing and the foot of the
| glacier, that had seemed so far above
us at the start, was on level with us
| and far behind. We could even look
away beyond for miles, and see its
| glistening back and trace its course to
| some distant peaks farther north.
| Another mile of still more difficult
| labor and we were at the foot of the
summit. Here we stopped aghast
| for although we had heard that the
\ pass was difficult we had gathered nc
| adequate idea of its nature until il
confronted us face to face. The trail
| led up the face of the mountain by a
grade much sleeper than the ordinary
roof on a house. Foot holes and hand
holes had been cut, and without these
the ascent could not b made. Come
on boys" said McCue, 1--WE have got
| TO make timber-line on Lake Under
man b. night, and that's nine long
| miles from the summit what
will happen IL you slip?" | asked
He replied, "Well, you'll have to
climb up over again, but there is
three hundred feet of snow between
US and the rock underneath. so you'll
not likely break any bones going
down." This was reassuring, but
was very careful not to make a mis-
step but chung ON by tooth and mai
until we arrived painting and exhaust
ed at the summit just at twelve
O'Clock. Behind us was the wide
expanse Of the Pacific with its in
Vulnerable islands and inlet indenteC
shores. Away 10 the northwest
stretched range after range of hoarl
mountains, with Mt. st. Elias tower
ing above all in the dim distance
Turning to the interior the sam,
wild, broken scene met our view.
frozen ocean of mountains, as far a
the eye could reach in all directions.
| dcCue would allow us but few
moments to enjoy this magniticen
view. A blizzard might spring up a
any moment. in which case on
position would be extremely perilous
The sleds were loaded and safel.
dashed and drawn TO the brow of
descent on the other side. While no
nearly as steep or long as the one W
had Just climbed, il seemed lik
, turning our sleds loose into space, a
we followed the directions of McCue
On making the descent we found tn
snow was loose and we had no difficult
, | in keeping our footing, so abandonin