Trail and Camp-Fire 



managed to go a mile up a steep hillside and 

 back again, with tolerable success. The next 

 day I hunted caribou, walking about ten miles. 

 After that we did from fifteen to twenty 

 miles every day, in a very rough country, 

 and in snow that was both deep and soft, 

 my companion being a man who not only had 

 not worn snow-shoes, but had never even 

 been in the woods. 



The shoes should be large, and not too 

 heavy ; the webbing of the best, and tightly 

 strung. The strings should be of moose-hide, 

 in the aboriginal fashion — the white man's 

 " improvement," of straps, is a snare and a 

 deception. The strings must be carefully 

 adjusted, which takes a little trouble at the 

 outset, but is of the first importance. If too 

 tight they hurt the foot ; if too loose they 

 allow it to slip forward, and catch under the 

 toe bar in a way that is dangerous when going- 

 down hill. The foot-gear varies somewhat 

 with individual preference ; but there should 

 be several pairs of thick woolen stockings or 

 socks, and over these moccasins or felt boots. 

 For one whose feet are not toughened by 

 much snow-shoeing, I advise the use over all 



of snow-shoe rubbers — heavy rubber over- 



12S 



