138 A SHOOTING TRIP TO KAMCHATKA 



I do not think I ever came across a more willing 

 and determined lot than these natives of the coast, 

 whose intelligence, much above the average, was 

 constantly sharpened by the countless hardships of 

 hunting. Their dug-out canoes, which represent boats 

 in the interior of Kamchatka, are no more than poplar 

 trunks, some twenty feet long by a couple of feet in 

 width, rounded at the bottom and hollowed out by an 

 axe. They are skilfully manned l)y the natives with 

 the aid of a long pole or a spade-shaped paddle. 

 Owing to their rounded keel, however, the slightest 

 awkward movement may turn theni over, and it re- 

 quires great experience to punt theni across a fast 

 current, which is done by Kamchadales at full speed, 

 and when manned by them appears quite easy. For 

 greater steadiness two dug-outs were lashed together 

 for us, and we soon found ourselves comfortably 

 seated in them. 



On entering the river we found the current exceed- 

 ingly strong, flowing at places at the rate of eight 

 knots an hour, which considerably reduced our speed. 

 The country on either side was low and marshy, with 

 dense vegetation, occasional birch woods, and willow 

 trees overhanging the water. In order to avoid the 

 swift current in mid-stream, we ke{)t close to the 

 banks, and, though olu" men rowed ever so hard, it 



