1911] Swarth: Alaska Expedition of 1909. 25 



willow and alder swamps which they frequented. I saw grass- 

 hoppers here upon our first arrival, seen nowhere else during 

 the summer, and also two species of butterflies not observed 

 at any other point. 



In the vicinity of our camp the river was from half a mile 

 to a mile wide, with steep, abrupt banks all along its course 

 and no shore at all suitable for waders, which were consequently 

 almost absent. At this place there is a tract several miles long 

 and half a mile wide, approximately, a short distance back 

 from the river, grown up with dry woods such as I saw nowhere 

 else in southeastern Alaska. There is a scattering growth of 

 cottonwoods, with a few birch and a sprinkling of spruce, 

 and very little underbrush, the ground below being dry and 

 gravelly and almost bare of grass. Between these woods and 

 the river there is a strip of alder, which, except in a few places, 

 is very difficult to penetrate, while south of these woods is 

 another and broader belt of alder and willow swamp. Beyond 

 this, between the brush and the mountains, is a stretch of 

 meadow land, thousands of acres in extent, which at the time 

 of our stay was mostly flooded with water. Below my camp, 

 bordering the river, were stretches of meadows that were com- 

 paratively dry. Across the river are thousands of acres of 

 willow and alder swamp, impossible to penetrate. The mountains 

 rise abruptly on either side of the valley, and are almost barren 

 of timber of any sort. 



We remained here from September 4 to 28. The first four 

 days in September were bright and sunshiny, but beginning 

 on the 5th it rained steadily during the remainder of our stay. 

 Toward the end of September it turned much colder, and there 

 were several snow flurries. At the base of the mountains there 

 were deep snow banks that had evidently remained throughout 

 the summer. I left Juneau for home on October 1, but on 

 October 13 Hasselborg returned to the Taku for another hunt. 

 Continued inclement weather made the trip a failure, although 

 he saw several mountain goats. He also saw twelve-inch tracks 

 of what was probably a grizzly, as well as sign of several blacl^ 

 bear. 



