356 BIG GAME OF NORTH AMERICA. 



commenced the ascent at half-past twelve. After five and 

 a half hours of hard climbing, we pitched our camp within 

 the timber, a few hundred yards below the bare summit. 

 The Indians advised this, lest by camping in the open 

 our camp-tire might warn the game of our presence. 



By daylight the next morning we had eaten our break- 

 fast of bacon, crackers, and coffee, and leaving the timber 

 behind, passed up a beautiful, grassy lane to the summit. 



We had scarcely reached this when a dense fog encircled 

 us in every direction. It was so thick that objects two 

 hundred yards distant were totally obscured. This was 

 aggravating, the more so as appearances indicated a contin- 

 uance of this state of things all day. The air was chilly, 

 and, as we had left our coats at the foot of the mountain, we 

 were obliged to unpack our blankets and wrap them 

 around us. 



At half-past eleven a slight breeze sprung up, a few 

 faint shafts of light penetrated the darkness, and then, as 

 if by magic, the great bank of fog rolled away; the sun 

 burst forth in all his si)lendor of noon, and daylight was 

 with us. We were now enabled to determine our position, 

 and found we were on the summit of the divide between 

 the north arm of Burrard Inlet and Seamour Creek — a 

 broken and uneven backbone, made up of sharp ridges. 

 dee]3 ravines, and level stretches, as smooth as if graded 

 by human hands. Everywhere, excei)t on the tops of 

 the rocky ridges, was heather — beautiful, sweet-scented 

 heather — over which we moved as if treading on carpet. 



We now picked out a place for a permanent camp, and 

 leaving our grub and blankets there, started out on our, 

 hunt. At every step we came upon fresh signs of the 

 game, but for awhile the Indians appeared i)nzzled as to 

 which way to steer; for although the country was open, 

 and the eye could reach for miles in any direction, yet the 

 broken state of the ground was such that Goats might be 

 within a few hundred yards of us and still be out of sight. 



At length the old Indian left us, and started down the 

 side of the ridge. He had hardly gone two hundred yards 



