Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1906-10-04

most dangerous and treacherOus in the
world. 1t was necessary TO take all
waves on the quarter. as no craft or
our size could hope to keep the bow
up for any length of time. One inlet
is named Turnagain bay for no other
reason than that the varying winds
and waves make il absolutely neces-
sary to keep changing the course in
order to stay atioat. hundreds or
prospectors have met death i'll these
dangerous waters. for i'll their zeal to
reach new country they attempt the
passage in small craft that stand no
chance of weathering and often are In
complete ignorance of the dangers they
must encounter Why, with all our
experience and precautions, we thank
ed our lucky fates on more than one
occasion for pulling us through, and
| in one of the little rivers we all but
lost our lives in a terrible and unex-
pected storm.
Besides our boat. we were provid-
ed with a pack train so that we could
go over Brooks pass by the old route
in case our attempt farther along the
coast proved futile. We sent the
horses overland from Tyonek to
point near the pass, so that all would
be in readiness when we returned for
them, and by using the boat instead OF
going along on foot we saved fully
three weeks on the time it had re-
quired the previous expedition to cover
the same territory, for we were COM
PEELED to return.
| Now leaving the boat we took our
horses and followed the Yentna river
lalong the lowest part of the range, and
| in this way we got within ten or tif-
teen miles of the other side of the di-
vide. We had TO swim our horses in
many places and got along ourselves
by hanging to the sides of the packs,
being in the icy waters for hours at
time. yet feeling no. i'll effects from the
exposure. Finally we reached a place
where the stream was too large to
ford, too strong to swim and impossl-
bic to pass around. IT entered what Is
known as box canyon. which COM
Ipletely put stop to further proceed
IingS. These box canyons consist OF
lswirling rapids. pouring through cleft
| in the mountain. whose banks are
sheer cliffs, impossible to climb and
entering the water as smooth as the
side of a box
with this second means of attack
proved useless, we returned TO the idea
of going up over the two glaciers dis
covered on the previous eXpeditiOn-a
plan we had been considering from the
first So we worked our way back to
the coast and went across the ice beds,
I'll, e., In aSin
was at first expected. AS we approach
ed Mckinley more closely we climbed
several peaks in our path and camped
on their tops to take observation, some
of them being fully 5000 feet high.
If | had known as much about the
mountain when we started rs we knew
after these observations ! would not
have hesitated on the trial this sum-
mer instead of waiting until next.
I'VE climbed two peaks close by, one
10 the south. the other to the south
east, and finally third. some distance
away to the southwest reaching
point about ten miles from the sheer
ascent. which was fully as near as we
had hoped or expected to get. The I'M
portant question was now solved. We
knew there was only one method of
attack left, because we had observed
three sides and found them all imprac-
ticable The whole south face consists
of precipice with n sheer drop of
about $4,000 feet The east and west
are long terraces of snow. broken by
vertical cliffs with drops of from 1000
to 5000 feet, there being no single
ridge by which it is possible to go to
81 lar. N
formation. so those four routes had TO
be put aside as impossible.
THAT left only the northwest as
possibility, and Mr.. Porter was able to
observe about $1,000 feet of this side
from neighboring peak. He found 1t
almost all snow. though terribly steep
and presenting no impossible features
as far as he could see. Yet he couldn't
observe right down TO the base, ana
until we learn how that Is formed we
shall not know whether there is even
one possible way OF reaching the top.
If II is all snow there will be no great
difficulty, for where this is found ii Is
possible to climb with the aid of good
guides. But if that UNEMPLOYED base
turns out to be cut by ravines and Gre
vases our last hope will be gone. DR..
Cook and his party will try to observe
this base during the present summer,
and If they succeed | shall go up there
next summer fully equipped with
guides and information resolved to
make the ascent If such a thing is pos
sible"
Speaking of his plans for next year,
DR.. Parker said he would leave New |
York about May /. He will start into
the northern territory at Skagway, go |
ing around by way of the Yukon river |
to the Tanano river by means of the |
steamboats, that ply that far. Thence |
he will either pack" across the coun- |
try or go up the Kantishna river by |
boat. The attempt to climb the noun |
tain will be made during June, July or |
Annl1St &c he SarS these are the only