The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1899-03-21
GOLD ON
kOYUKUk
The Story Told by a
Preacher.
liz fOliD SOME RICH CLAIMS
VIII Return to Alaska to work
and Develop His Promising
Properties.

PORTLAND. or. Maiyh 2i,--H O.
Nordvlg. pastor OF the Norwegian
and Danish church in Portland. re-
turned from the Arctic circle yes
terdAy after an absence 81 ~ months
from hia family lie has secured
some valuable placer claims on the
koyukuk river. AZ far narth a. iati.
tude a., and the nuggets he brought
baCN wisk. aS.----- -s-s..-. -2.---.---se -
i,ayo beans.
Tho keynkuk u tributary - the
Yukon. emptyink into the north side
of that big river about 500 miles
from 81. Michael lie was up the
koyukuk some 800 miles from is
mouth. and says there ate good dis
gings all the way along Captain
Young. Of Portland. has the pilots'
drrdge Laxaiie Young tied 90 the
bank about rs miles from the Yus
knn. lie found tho vessel impracti.
cable as a drsdxer and does not Use
her for that work. bat the crew has
good placer diEEinKs and are doing
we'll Mr.. Sordvig held services on
the boat ON December ~. and there
were about iTs miners In the conetes
cation. lie thinks there are Ave or
slx white women In that region and
that one thousand or mare men are
doing we'll IN the diEEinga along the
rivers length.
The country IL mountainous, but
spruce timber AttAina larger
growth than {, does further reuth.
The streams abound in salmon.
white nsh. picksrci and pike. the
game consists of caribou Ga species
Of r~inde~rl ami the moose. whiis
ducks. geese and arctic grouse nr
ptarmiRan make fine eating. Dur
las July and August the woods are
hiiesi with rcd currants. raepherriss
biueberries. huekirherrtrs and Gran.
berries. the largest wild berries he
ever saw anywhere. and very sweet
There are several prosperous viii
tagcn along the banks Of the koYus
kuk. bergman. go miles from the
mouth. has n population 81 40. The
Alaska Commercial company has
several stores at bergman and desn
n hlK business with the miners
peAry. ss miles further ~ the middle
fork. IL the headquarters % the y
A. r. a r. company. There are
some 20 buildings. a church and a
schooih0nse there.
Jimtosn. he thinks. viii be the
main distributing point This u e.
miles further W. on the south fork
Of tho KoYekuk. The river Il navi-
gable 20 Jlrntown during the sum
u1cr months
There are now 81 steamboats, win
tsrinr along thr Knyakuk. These
mostly belong 90 prospecting parties
from the various states all ~ whom
Mr. Sordvlg feels assured srr doing
well. The owners claim the diFginKz
will pay from cents 20 tit 10 the
pan. Hts own claim. on Davis creek,
nets him $40 20 SEQ a day per man.
for four months % the year. ana the
hydraulic projects along the river
viii pay big when opened. Several
rich quarts hedges have also been
found but very little has been done
In the line of development work a.
yet.
The weather gets very cold ocea-
sionaliy up there. freezinF began
last year on October fs. but snow
ala no, fall until December IS. on
December II the spirit thermometer
Indicated u degrees below zero. but
the air was so dry that no one would
suspect that II was 80 cold And IN
this popularity the danger lies. as
n man IL liable 20 stop out doors
until overcome by the extreme cold.
A miner on the Alaina. In peccm-
Der. became very cold while working
hts prospect hole. some distance
from his cabin. and started for the
camp. on the way he evidently he
came alarmed and started 10 build n
firc under n tree. Will. In the act
of shaving some hndling ne was
frozen stiff. his body being found n
few days after. where he had sat
down. His knife Was in one hand
and stick in the other. Many min
erH have frozen their feet during the
past winter.
Mr. NordviR came cut by dog
team down the Koyokuk and M the
yukon 10 Bennett and over the pass
10 skagway. making the 1000 miles
in 80 days. He had n companion. q.
II, Wilson. Of browning. Mo. on the
tourney with him. They had six
good Inside" dogs. IA he calls the
dogs raised In the frozen north. The
"huakies" cost si2s apiece where he
startcd from. but he sold the sir
dogs for $50 at the end OF his jour