CAMP FIRES IN THE YUKON 147 



tempt to track him, as a bull moose at this season 

 is one of the most wary animals that roam the wil- 

 derness. They are very particular, when they lie 

 down, to select a place where they can not only 

 observe their immediate back trail, but where any 

 hunter following the trail is sure to have his scent 

 wafted to the animal. Albert looked at the country 

 to the right of the lake, and finally decided the 

 moose would circle carefully around a certain hill 

 which was a mile and a half from the lake and would 

 go to the top for several hours' rest. Why Albert 

 selected this particular hill among any number of 

 hills, I know not, but the writer never questions the 

 judgment or instinct of an Indian on the subject of 

 moose hunting, so we started down the mountain. 

 The timbered valley, that appeared so inviting from 

 above, was found to be one vast bog, into which 

 we sank six inches with every step, making walking 

 very slow and tedious. 



At last we reached the base of the hill the Indian 

 had selected as the resting place of the moose, and 

 after testing the wind to be certain our scent would 

 not be wafted towards the crest, our final stalk be- 

 gan. Crouching low and placing our steps care- 

 fully in order to avoid breaking any twigs, we had 

 almost reached the crest, when, in spite of our cau- 

 tion, we made a slight noise, and the bull jumped 

 up seventy-five feet ahead of us and made off before 

 we could get a shot. 



