HUNTING THE NARWHAL 349 



With a light crust over the snow to make it worse, 

 the labor of walking and the necessity of frequently 

 helping the dogs was exhausting. 



After crossing two mountains, however, we found 

 the ice-foot intact for a few miles, and where this 

 was the case traveling was fairly good. Now and 

 again we halted to smoke and let the dogs get their 

 wind; and while resting thus on the ice-foot, which 

 skirted open water, immense flocks of thousands 

 upon thousands of ducks proved a continual source 

 of interest; and once I saw a flock of brants, the 

 first I had observed. 



Annootok was a sea of slush and slop. Two 

 streams of water flowed through our shack and the 

 place smelled very strong and unwholesome. The 

 ground was still frozen too hard to turn the water 

 aside by digging drains, and the conditions had to 

 be endured. I carried flat stones in and placed them 

 around the floor to step upon, or I should have been 

 ankle deep in water. 



We were joined at Annootok by Pennipar. No 

 narwhals were to be seen, and Abidinguah and Penni- 

 par, therefore, planned a week's seal hunting to the 

 northward. I decided to join them, and after a day's 

 rest we left Annootok for the north, traveling for a 

 little way on the ice-foot. 



In the vicinity of Annootok and northward the sea 

 was still frozen, and everywhere the distant expanse 

 of ice was dotted with seals basking in the sun near 

 their holes. Numerous as they were, they were ex- 

 ceedingly shy and difficult to approach. Following 



