152 The National Geographic Magazine 



Photo by Wilcox 



Spray River near the Forks 



"No better selection of men could have 

 been made. Each could serve well in 

 the capacity of cook, packer, or axeman. 

 Subsequent success was partly due to 

 ■completeness of equipment and the effi- 

 -ciency of our men. 



iT Our general plan of exploration was 

 to proceed directty south from the White 

 Man's Pass and make the Kananaskis 

 Lakes our first headquarters. It was 

 then our idea to follow the Elk River 

 southwards and explore the unknown 

 streams which come out of the high 

 range of mountains on its west side. 

 Circumstances entirely changed this 

 order of travel and added a decided in- 

 terest to our movements without in anj' 

 way defeating geographical work. 



Our scientific equipment was simple. 

 It consisted of a prismatic compass and 

 Abney's level, two aneroid barometers, 

 thermometer, and three excellent cam- 



eras for tripod work, panoramas, and 

 snap shots. We also carried a King 

 folding boat for exploring the Kana- 

 naskis Lakes and crossing rivers. 



No weather could have been more 

 perfect than that of August 4, the day 

 after our guides were sent back and 

 we were to set out for the unknown 

 south land. The sky was perfectly 

 clear and the mountain air invigorating 

 as we commenced marching. Two 

 branches of the Spray River run north 

 into the great transverse rift called the 

 White Man's Pass, and of these we 

 chose to ascend the more westerly, as 

 it was not mapped and would lead us 

 at once into unexplored territory. On 

 Dawson's map this valley bears the 

 words ' ' trail to the Kananaskis Lakes." 

 We set out with full assurance that in 

 four days at most we should reach 

 these lakes, and in an hour had left the 



