THE FORKS OF THE MAcMILLAN RIVER 85 



bed of the river, had a hole punched in its bottom, small, 

 but bad enough to cause us to tie up for repairs. We 

 remained there during the dark hours of the night. We 

 had been assured that not more than five days would 

 be required to reach the head of navigation on the Mac- 

 Millan River, but were beginning to realize that it would 

 take longer. 



August 25. Starting the next morning and forcing 

 our way against the current, we glided between high 

 terraces which often shut out a sight of the rolling hills 

 and low ridges farther back from the river. From its 

 mouth to the MacMillan River, the Pelly, tortuous in its 

 course, is from four hundred to eight hundred feet wide, 

 and flows through a low country. It is closely bordered 

 by low hills and ridges, and often flows between terraces, 

 some of which rise far back from the river to heights of 

 one hundred and fifty to two hundred feet. These, often 

 lightly wooded, mostly with poplars, and clothed with 

 grass, particularly on the southern exposures, present a 

 very attractive appearance. Bluffs or high escarped 

 banks are usually on one side or the other, and opposite 

 them are wide gravel bars, fairly smooth, so that it is 

 quite easy to tow a canoe up the river. The distance to 

 the mouth of the MacMillan along the river is seventy- 

 four miles and the current runs at the rate of two and 

 one-half to three miles an hour. Here and there wide 

 flats intervene between the river and the terraced hills. 



Now and then we frightened a flock of mergansers, 

 and twice saw a graceful duck-hawk sailing by. The 

 landscape was warmed by the poplars, then showing a 



