82 A TRIP TO THE LA VAL. 



we commemorated the fact by undertaking to descend 

 the La Val from the outlet to our home ; a roundabout 

 journey of some fifteen miles, in lieu of the portage of 

 five. It was to be a final test of the depth of the water, 

 as the course lay over bad rapids and falls, and we 

 entered upon the journey with great uncertainty. Pack- 

 ing our temporary bedding in a water-proof blanket, our, 

 party embarked and sped gaily along for the first mile 

 or two, but soon found the bed of the stream one mass 

 of huge rocks, over which the canoe had to be driven 

 with sheer force, and which tore and strained the fragile 

 bark till it leaked terribly. 



During this day our progress was necessarily slow 

 and laborious, and to relieve ourselves we fished continu- 

 ally. The trout rose beautifully — in fact, in one pool 

 they were so thick, sweeping round in shoals, that we 

 grew surfeited, and left it for a spot where they were 

 less plenty. Still it required a long line and light fly to 

 cull the largest — ^which were the ones we sought — and 

 skill and patience to land them. We might have taken 

 hundreds had the time permitted, or our canoe been in 

 condition to carry them ; but every strain had increased 

 the leak till we could no longer keep it down by bailing, 

 and had to land from time to time to turn the water out. 

 In fact, it was a wet time altogether ; there was a driz- 

 zling rain, the canoe was three inches deep with water, 

 we had both been wading part of the day, and had so 

 arranged our water-proof blanket that it projected be- 

 yond the temporary tent, and catching all the water that 

 drained oflF, would not permit it to soak through, but 

 collected a miniature Lake la Yal in the middle of our 



