﻿520 
  

  

  THE 
  NATIONAL 
  GEOGRAPHIC 
  MAGAZINE 
  

  

  hurry 
  a 
  forester 
  to 
  the 
  rescue 
  within 
  the 
  

   hour. 
  

  

  Reaching 
  Rocky 
  River, 
  we 
  noticed 
  the 
  

   foothills 
  giving 
  way 
  to 
  the 
  increasingly 
  

   high 
  and 
  rugged 
  peaks 
  of 
  the 
  Rocky 
  

   Mountains 
  proper. 
  

  

  Xow, 
  for 
  the 
  first 
  time, 
  snow 
  peaks 
  

   came 
  into 
  view. 
  A 
  haze 
  had 
  settled 
  over 
  

   this 
  colder 
  elevation, 
  as 
  the 
  morning 
  sun 
  

   lifted 
  the 
  moisture 
  from 
  the 
  ravines. 
  

   The 
  snow-clad 
  mountain 
  tops, 
  shining 
  

   almost 
  pink 
  in 
  the 
  sunlight, 
  burst 
  sud- 
  

   denly 
  upon 
  our 
  view. 
  

  

  Turning 
  north 
  still 
  more, 
  we 
  picked 
  up 
  

   the 
  Athabaska 
  River. 
  We 
  passed 
  over 
  

   the 
  little 
  town 
  of 
  Pocahontas, 
  flying 
  be- 
  

   tween 
  Jasper 
  Lake 
  and 
  Brides 
  Lake, 
  and 
  

   swung 
  into 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Athabaska. 
  

  

  THE 
  GRANDEUR 
  OF 
  THE 
  GREAT 
  DIVIDE 
  

  

  The 
  magnificence 
  of 
  the 
  scenery 
  about 
  

   us 
  was 
  beyond 
  description. 
  One 
  was 
  over- 
  

   awed 
  by 
  the 
  solemn 
  grandeur 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  

   sight 
  of 
  the 
  Great 
  Divide. 
  We 
  were 
  fly- 
  

   ing 
  at 
  6,000 
  feet 
  over 
  a 
  scene 
  of 
  surpass- 
  

   ing 
  grandeur. 
  Below 
  us 
  lay 
  myriads 
  of 
  

   ghostly 
  gray 
  peaks, 
  colored 
  here 
  and 
  

   there 
  by 
  verdure 
  and 
  by 
  shafts 
  of 
  sun- 
  

   light. 
  Scattered 
  among 
  them 
  were 
  crystal 
  

   lakes 
  so 
  deep 
  in 
  color 
  as 
  to 
  appear 
  arti- 
  

   ficial. 
  From 
  every 
  side 
  hundreds 
  of 
  

   gleaming 
  cataracts 
  tumbled 
  down 
  sheer 
  

   mountain 
  cliffs, 
  dashing 
  and 
  whirling 
  

   dizzily 
  along 
  their 
  deep-worn 
  canyons 
  

   until 
  they 
  were 
  all 
  gathered 
  together 
  in 
  

   the 
  more 
  placid 
  progress 
  of 
  the 
  Athabaska. 
  

  

  Our 
  motors 
  hummed 
  sturdily 
  over 
  this 
  

   terrible 
  landscape 
  — 
  terrible 
  to 
  the 
  anxious 
  

   pilot 
  who 
  is 
  constantly 
  straining 
  his 
  eyes 
  

   to 
  select 
  the 
  site 
  for 
  a 
  forced 
  landing 
  

   should 
  his 
  motor 
  fail. 
  

  

  As 
  we 
  flew 
  along 
  above 
  the 
  river, 
  the 
  

   valley 
  widened 
  and 
  we 
  dropped 
  down 
  to 
  

   1,000 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  river's 
  bed. 
  Ahead 
  

   of 
  us 
  a 
  gigantic 
  pair 
  of 
  buttresses 
  stood 
  

   shoulder 
  to 
  shoulder, 
  appearing 
  to 
  resist 
  

   invasion 
  into 
  the 
  regions 
  beyond. 
  Only 
  

   the 
  resistless 
  torrents 
  of 
  water, 
  that 
  for 
  

   centuries 
  had 
  worn 
  deeper 
  and 
  deeper 
  its 
  

   passage, 
  and 
  the 
  airplane, 
  that 
  scorned 
  

   all 
  earthly 
  impediments, 
  dared 
  look 
  for 
  an 
  

   outlet 
  there. 
  

  

  Passing 
  over 
  the 
  crest 
  of 
  one 
  buttress, 
  

   we 
  gazed 
  ahead. 
  They 
  were 
  sentinels, 
  

   guarding 
  the 
  valleys 
  beyond 
  ; 
  a 
  level 
  plain 
  

   stretched 
  before 
  us, 
  a 
  plain 
  covered 
  with 
  

   quaking 
  aspen 
  and 
  jack-pine. 
  

  

  At 
  the 
  north 
  end 
  of 
  this 
  flat 
  valley 
  the 
  

   Snaring 
  river 
  poured 
  into 
  the 
  Athabasca 
  

   from 
  the 
  west. 
  Beside 
  the 
  Snaring 
  River 
  

   lay 
  our 
  landing 
  field. 
  

  

  AIRPLANE 
  A 
  STRANGE 
  SIGHT 
  IN 
  JASPER 
  

  

  Landing 
  was 
  made 
  after 
  a 
  flight 
  of 
  

   three 
  hours. 
  It 
  was 
  a 
  pleasant 
  surprise 
  

   to 
  find 
  a 
  splendid 
  field, 
  after 
  all 
  of 
  our 
  

   apprehensions 
  concerning 
  Jasper. 
  Special 
  

   efforts 
  had 
  been 
  made 
  to 
  make 
  the 
  run- 
  

   way 
  smooth, 
  under 
  the 
  supervision 
  of 
  

   Colonel 
  Maynard 
  Rogers, 
  superintendent 
  

   of 
  Jasper 
  National 
  Park. 
  Colonel 
  Rogers 
  

   hopes 
  that 
  one 
  day 
  this 
  field 
  will 
  be 
  the 
  

   headquarters 
  of 
  an 
  airplane 
  squadron 
  of 
  

   the 
  forest 
  fire 
  patrol 
  of 
  Jasper 
  National 
  

   Park. 
  

  

  The 
  people 
  of 
  this 
  remote 
  country 
  had 
  

   never 
  before 
  seen 
  an 
  airplane. 
  The 
  in- 
  

   terest 
  and 
  curiosity 
  with 
  which 
  they 
  ex- 
  

   amined 
  our 
  machines 
  and 
  the 
  variety 
  of 
  

   questions 
  we 
  were 
  obliged 
  to 
  answer 
  may 
  

   be 
  imagined. 
  

  

  Colonel 
  Rogers 
  had 
  provided 
  a 
  Chinese 
  

   cook, 
  abundant 
  supplies, 
  and 
  several 
  tents 
  

   with 
  pine-boughs 
  bedding 
  for 
  our 
  coming. 
  

   Aside 
  from 
  the 
  ferocious 
  man-eating- 
  

   mosquitoes 
  which 
  harassed 
  us 
  sorely, 
  we 
  

   greatly 
  enjoyed 
  our 
  camping 
  out 
  in 
  these 
  

   wilds. 
  Bears 
  and 
  coyotes 
  are 
  so 
  bold 
  that 
  

   the 
  residents 
  of 
  Jasper 
  are 
  compelled 
  to 
  

   lock 
  up 
  their 
  butter 
  and 
  sweets 
  from 
  these 
  

   midnight 
  prowlers. 
  

  

  We 
  tried 
  swimming 
  and 
  fishing 
  in 
  the 
  

   mountain 
  creeks, 
  neither 
  of 
  which 
  seemed 
  

   very 
  satisfactory, 
  as 
  the 
  mosquitoes 
  bit 
  

   and 
  the 
  fish 
  did 
  not. 
  At 
  11 
  o'clock 
  that 
  

   night, 
  when 
  the 
  cold 
  grew 
  so 
  bitter 
  that 
  

   even 
  the 
  mosquitoes 
  were 
  numbed, 
  we 
  

   rolled 
  up 
  in 
  our 
  blankets 
  near 
  the 
  side 
  of 
  

   the 
  fire 
  to 
  keep 
  warm. 
  

  

  Awake 
  at 
  6 
  in 
  the 
  morning, 
  the 
  valley 
  

   seemed 
  filled 
  with 
  a 
  rosy 
  light, 
  although 
  

   the 
  sun 
  had 
  not 
  yet 
  risen 
  above 
  the 
  moun- 
  

   tain 
  ridges 
  to 
  the 
  east. 
  We 
  were 
  still 
  on 
  

   the 
  eastern 
  slope 
  of 
  the 
  Great 
  Divide, 
  al- 
  

   though 
  from 
  our 
  elevated 
  position 
  • 
  on 
  

   the 
  previous 
  day's 
  flight 
  we 
  could 
  look 
  

   over 
  the 
  rim 
  and 
  view 
  the 
  other 
  side. 
  

  

  A 
  FIRE 
  SCARE 
  IN 
  THE 
  AIR 
  

  

  As 
  we 
  rose 
  from 
  the 
  ground 
  that 
  morn- 
  

   ing, 
  after 
  another 
  prodigious 
  meal 
  pre- 
  

   pared 
  by 
  the 
  Chinese 
  cook, 
  we 
  circled 
  the 
  

   town 
  of 
  Jasper 
  at 
  about 
  4,000 
  feet 
  and 
  

   took 
  our 
  photographs 
  before 
  starting 
  on 
  

  

  