Travels in Alaska 



The weather that morning, August 27, was dark 

 and rainy, and I tried to persuade myself that I ought 

 to rest a day before setting out on new ice work. But 

 just across the river the "Big Glacier" was staring 

 me in the face, pouring its majestic flood through a 

 broad mountain gateway and expanding in the spa- 

 cious river valley to a width of four or five miles, while 

 dim in the gray distance loomed its high mountain 

 fountains. So grand an invitation displayed in char- 

 acters so telling was of course irresistible, and body- 

 care and weather-care vanished. 



Mr. Choquette, the keeper of the station, ferried 

 me across the river, and I spent the day in getting 

 general views and planning the work that had been 

 long in mind. I first traced the broad, complicated 

 terminal moraine to its southern extremity, climbed 

 up the west side along the lateral moraine three or 

 four miles, making my way now on the glacier, now 

 on the moraine-covered bank, and now compelled to 

 climb up through 'the timber and brush in order to 

 pass some rocky headland, until I reached a point 

 commanding a good general view of the lower end of 

 the glacier. Heavy, blotting rain then began to fall, 

 and I retraced my steps, oftentimes stopping to ad- 

 mire the blue ice-caves into which glad, rejoicing 

 streams from the mountain-side were hurrying as if 

 going home, while the glacier seemed to open wide its 

 crystal gateways to welcome them. 



The following morning blotting rain was still falling, 

 but time and work was too precious to mind it. Kind 

 Mr. Choquette put me across the river in a canoe, 



[ 104 1 



