HOMEWARD BOUND 191 



so that the period to which it belongs cannot 

 be an exceedingly remote one." 



I have quoted thus literally from Dr. Daw- 

 son's reports because I am of the opinion that 

 it is perhaps because of this eruption of vol- 

 canic ash, with its wide-spread deposits, that 

 vegetation is so sparse and irregular through- 

 out the territory. There is comparatively lit- 

 tle timber, and none of the forests seen by us 

 showed any extreme age. The willow brush 

 and alders are plentiful in many districts, and 

 Jack pines in others, with moderate growths 

 of spruce and balsam firs in a few locations. 



When the creek above described had been 

 left behind, a day's journey took us to the base 

 of a mountain where we rested for the night. 

 The next morning the Chief went ahead of the 

 outfit to cut out dead-falls on the trail to the 

 crest of the mountain. There were many of 

 these and at best the trail was awkward and 

 hard, the horses frequently loosening or turn- 

 ing their packs as they forced their way 

 through between the trees. 



By noon we had gotten to the top and 

 shortly afterwards the trail led down to a 

 canyon. After crossing the stream, an imme- 

 diate sharp ascent was before us, which took 

 some time and care to surmount. The lunch 



