22 



THE OOLOGIST 



We took dinner that day at Neptune Bay 



—Photo by L. E. Healey 



the Arctic waters of the Hudson Bay. 

 From Thief River Falls, the last 

 large town up the River to Red Lake 

 Falls, the parental home of "Bud" and 

 myself, the river leaps from one rapids 

 to another in its mad rush seaward, 

 except where man has dammed its 

 course in three places to force it to 

 give of its power. It was impossible 

 on this account to begin our journey 

 by boat from home. We shipped by 

 freight to Thief River Falls, and Sat- 

 urday saw us nicely on our way in the 

 back water of the last dam. Our boat 

 was a sixteen foot launch with a two 

 horse power stationery engine. It was 

 equipped with all-weather top with 

 side curtains inclosing the entire boat 

 after the manner of the auto, and ex- 

 tra curtains of mosquito to proof net. 

 The writer built the whole outfit and 

 installed the engine, and he knew 

 every nail and rib, every stitch and 

 tack and he loved her, too, as a home 

 in the wilds. Before we tied that night 

 to an over-hanging tree, we had 

 climbed the last rapids and still had 

 one propeller to our credit. With this 

 we were more earful but the trip from 

 now on for the next fifty miles was 

 dear sailing until we reached High 



Landing, the only Post Office that 

 might be designated a town on the 

 River after leaving Thief River Falls. 

 As we progressed up the river the 

 next day, the higher banks were grad- 

 ually replaced by lower banks, the 

 rocky shores by fewer rock the heavy 

 hardwood timber by scattered groves 

 and the swift current by more slug- 

 gish waters. So gradual was this 

 change that without at first realizing 

 it, we were that afternoon fully aware 

 of the fact that we were among un- 

 accustomed surroundings; that the 

 river had become choked with water 

 weeds, weeds such as one finds grow- 

 ing in muddy lakes; the shores had 

 become boggy; the groves of poplar 

 timer had receded to far distances 

 from the course of the river and the 

 occasional farm house and homestead 

 shanty were few and far between. 

 The balance of fifty miles to the Lake 

 was destined to be frought with much 

 difficulty in keeping our propeller 

 free from weeds and our hides from 

 mosquito bites, although be it said in 

 favor of the pests, we were not 

 troubled to the extent we had antici- 

 pated. Bird life had as gradually 

 changed from the birds of the woods 



