GEOGRAPHIC NOTES 



EXPLORATIONS IN ALASKA 



THE U. S. Geological Survey had 

 four important parties at work in 

 Alaska during the past season. As a 

 result, large sections of territory pre- 

 -viously unmapped and but little known 

 have been well explored geologically 

 .and topographically. 



The first party, under command of 

 Mr. W. J. Peters, assisted by Mr. F. C. 

 Schrader, left Seattle early in February. 

 They went by trail from Skagway to 

 White Horse, and then pushed on with 

 dog teams 1,200 miles to Bergman, a 

 trading post on the Koyukuk River. 

 The year previous a cache of canoes and 

 provisions had been made at this point 

 in anticipation of the trips which the 

 party under Mr. Peters and another 

 under Mr. Mendenhall were to make. 

 The party then advanced about 100 

 miles, to the summit of the divide be- 

 tween the Yukon and the Arctic Ocean, 

 to select the best route to the ocean. 

 Here they made a portage of several miles 

 across to the waters of Colville River, 

 which they followed to the Arctic Ocean. 

 After leaving Bergman thej^ were in ter- 

 ritory that had previously not been pene- 

 trated and was entirely unknown. Mr. 

 Peters reports that roUingtundra extends 

 from the mountains to the ocean. The 

 original plan for the party was on reach- 

 ing the Arctic Ocean to turn east, and 

 then return to Bergman over land, but 

 the season was so late that Mr. Peters 

 decided to proceed westward. The party 

 ■obtained some small canoes from the 

 natives and pushed along the shore to 

 Point Barrow. Here they obtained a 

 whaling boat, which they hoped would 

 ■enable them to reach Cape Nome. When 

 350 miles down the coast they fortunately 

 fell in with a collier, which shortened 



the remainder of the journey to Cape 

 Nome. 



The second party, under Mr. T. G. 

 Gerdine, assisted by Mr. A. J. Collier, 

 sailed from Seattle June i with twelve 

 pack animals and reached Nome in the 

 middle of June. They found the season 

 there very backward, so that it was sev- 

 eral days before they were able to begin 

 active work. The last week in June 

 they proceeded in small boats to Teller, 

 about one hundred miles to the north- 

 west, the pack train following them 

 along the beach. The mapping of Sew- 

 ard Peninsula, including the whole of 

 the Nome mining district, begun last 

 year, was brought to a successful termi- 

 nation. 



The third party, under Mr. W. C. 

 Mendenhall, assisted by Mr. D. ly. Rea- 

 burn, starting from Fort Yukon, made a 

 survey of the Yukon River as far as the 

 Dall River and up the Dall River to the 

 portage across to Old Man River, and 

 down this river to Bergman. Here they 

 also made use of the cache placed there 

 the year before. From here they pro- 

 ceeded up the Allashook River, and then 

 down the Kowak to Kotzebue Sound, 

 The territory that they passed through 

 after leaving Bergman was unknown. 

 The party has not yet returned to Wash- 

 ington, so that further information about 

 their work cannot be had. 



The fourth party, under Mr. A. H. 

 Brooks, worked in southeastern Alaska. 

 For two months Mr. Brooks' labors were 

 on Prince of Wales Island and the main- 

 land to the northeast, investigating the 

 mineral resources of the country. He re- 

 ports much development of the country 

 in progress. Another month was passed 

 in making a reconnaissance of the region 

 to the north extending from Juneau to 

 Skagway. 



