Year: 1874




lively style also at the door, At the lower end
of the all a dining room il parttioned of; AMI
in the vicinity of this main building are three
four plain cottages for the of the families OF
members OF the association.


Richardson.


the camp superintendent, is q man of intelli-
gence, and of great experience in all that per
tsins to the forest and stream, having lived in
this wild region and at the site OF this camp some
twelve years. In many respects he is the c0uu-
terpart of Hutchings, the guide, phlosophsr
and friend of the visitor TO the Yosemite VALLEY.
Visitors TO the Yosemite who call to mind Hutch
ings acting ss landlord, cook, waiter, guide and
adviser, ard perpetuslly being summoned like
Figaro-"Figsro here, Figaro there, Figaro
high, Figaro low, Figaro come Figaro go"-to
answer questions on all sides about the geology,
tanns, bora, length, breadth and depth of the
valley; how to catch the sly trout OF the Merced.
bow and when to go to Mirror Lake, Inspiration
Point, Bridal Veil, how to ''sinch" a mule, & =,
&c, can imagine Richardson. now in the kitch
en-, superints ending the cooking ITO q nicety) of
mess of trout, now in the dining room, the re
pair shop, the boat house, the big camp room;
and every where beset with enquiries from gree
lew comers a bout the lkeliesr place-wind and
weather consideration fish, and about flies;
and about the way to get to KennebagO lake or
Bema stream, or the dam or the Cupsuptic; and
do trout have scales? and are ten pound trout
genuine brook trout? &c., &c, etc., etc, and all
answered with off-hand promptness, but with
certain dry Yankee humor and self possession,
distinguishing him somewhat from his more
nervous and impulsiye yis-a-yis of the yese-
mite.


A Days Fishing ON Cupsuptic Stream


We slept the sleep OF the virtuous and the
greatly tired that night in Camp Kennebago.
and in the morning set about testing on our
own hook land line) the much tslked-of trout
fishing of the region. As our time was short,
Capt. Prescott, who knew the ground, proposed
that we should go up Cupsuptic lake and sire am,
where, though We should not get the biggest
fish to be found, we should be very sure ct goOd
sport and also get fish of very good size. Our
guide, Frank hewey, seconded this suggestion
which was the more disinteTested in him a. the
Cupsuptc trip involved some twelve miles hard
rowing and no little troublesome work in taking
the boat through jams of logs and floating rub
bish, and dragging il up rapids by main force.
A spacious float in lieu OF a wharf Is kept on
this Kennebsgo stream, at the camp, 20 accom-
mOdate anglers embarking in the boats for ths
various fishing grounds, aud while the two boat
for cur party were being launched and loaded
with nshlng apparatus and supplies (the latter
including lunch substantial enough for a din
ner, provided by the thoughtful richardson } |
UTied my maiden hook from the float, though il
seemed in consequence of the noise and bastIe
from dozen different boats starting away TO be
an unlikely place to get bite. Presently il
occurred TO me that had done a foolish thing
tor to all appearances the strong current had
taken my line under the float and fastened il TO
q leg; but on workingit about TO detach the hook
If possible, found there was something alive on
1t, and moreover something heavy. The fish then





under the float, and in my furry TO get him out
OF the water before he could entangle the line
and escape, made rash pun and got him
nearly out when the hook broke and back he
went to the water and off. And all this with a
landing net within six feet OF mel IL was con
soling 10 be assured by Richardson that it wa
a four-pound trout at least, and that had
played him awhile, waiting until he was tired
TO slip the net under him, / should very likely
have saved him. But had no expectations o
hooking such fish at that point (thoush {
learned attErKaId iSl rzk
just there,) and in the excitement mutf.i the
biggest trout 1 had on my hook at any time
" { started for the Cupsuptic about ID a. IN
the weather threatening rain, eni at one time
Il seemed likely that we should have to resort
TO the shelter of camp on an island in our
way, but this shower passed over without wet
ting US much, though it remained cloudy al
day, and as 10 turned out the most favorable
weather we could possibly have had for fishing
purposes. Passing UP Cdpsuptic lake We entered
Cupsupuc river, beautiful nmpid stream with
such wonderful effects in the way OF shadow pic
lures along its banks as one sees in the similarly
peilucid waters of the Merced river in the
Yosemite valley. But the Cupsuptic is as
crooked as a rams horn, and its tortuous course
together with distractions OF Jams OF floating
logs and rubbish, makesi IL slow work getting up
TO the beet fishing grounds at the falls or rapids
For considerable stretch the stream was lined
at one point with spruce trees loaded down with
gray moss that seemed at distance not un-
like the Spanish moss of the southern states
Hewey said il had sOurish taste and was the
food OF the caribou in the winter; that there are
many caribous in this wilderness yet, and also
bears. Ii seemed difficult TO realize that W.
were far enough north to have reached the
home OF the American reindeer-the caribou
The pine timber OF this region has been pretty
well exhausted by the hardy lumbermen, and
the spruce is now being made available. Thr
spruces are knOtty and nothing like the size OF
the pines OF the past but they make the next Desl
substitute for pine. Hewey says they find mans
spruce trees there that are three feet through
and will "scale thousand" About three
miles from the raplis we encountered a large
flock of young ducks-the sheldrake-and which
were not able 10 ny. They scuttled through
the water ahead OF US, half flying, half-sWim-
ming, and making great pother; the mother
duck keeping mp the rear. The youngsters OF
our party considered the capture of more or less
of the ducks an assured matter, az the stream
was narrow and not very deep; and landing
nets, fish poles, and everything about thu
boats available were brought into requisition
to aid in scooping in the birds when W.
should overtake them. We gained upon
them momentorily, but on turning one or
be loops Of the stream only the parent
duck was to be seen ahead, and aswe shot along
the whole squadron of yOIng'uns, who ha9
concealed Themselves IN little cove oVerhung
with low spreading bushes, came out a. soon IS
we were past and scuttled of down stream ".
called to the boat behind to intercept them
but they escaped again-thtS time BY diving
the water being here deep enough for tneIr pnT-
pose. The old duck. seeing that her brood naI
made good their escape. then rose in the air and
flew back ever our heads TO join them, chuck
i1Dgi no doubt, in her wing at the success Q.
her tuse


Arriving at the first rapids, Frank Hewey GOT
out into the water, and, wadiDg, pushed the boa
up as far as practicable, and then we fastened
to the bank in rapid where the water ran
clear and swift over q rockv bottom, show ing
apparently every pebble, the on mness
being from the rapidity of the current. Yet
the trout were so greedy that Mrs. Prescott and
the children (lncluding Master Frank Prescott,
Get 81 } who remained in the boats here, caught
quite respectable string while we were pros
pecting for bigger fish further up stream. The
r0ughness OF the ground and the dense growth
of underbrush on the banks made il a very
tedious and fauguing task TO force ones way up,
but on once getting upon the rocks In the
rapids, and by dint OF jumping and wadns
from one point to another up stream without
going ashore, the difficulties OF progress were
much lessened. But the sport amply repaid the
labor, and fully sustained all that has been re-
ported of the superb fishing in this quarter.
The biting was 'stast and furious" and each
angler soon found himself so busy with his own
line that he bad little opportunity or inclination
to concern himself about his neighbor's. In four
hours fishing-or rather three hours, deductiug
an hour for luncheon-we caught 142 trout,
weighing from half q pound to a pound ana
three-quarters. All fish under half pound we
returned to the water, according to the fashion
set by the Oquossoc anglers. and IN consequence
OF our abundant success we were soon able TO
DO this with toerable equanimity, though ct
uvan he