82 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[August 81, 1882. 



ADIRONDACK SURVEY NOTES. 



»»<> r pHERB is a fish in Long Lake which some call a mus- 

 *~ ealonge and others a pickerel,'' said the guide, ■•ami 

 10 one serins lo fcnOW exactly what it is, or, it' they do. the 

 others who differ from them don't accept their decision. ^ on 

 should go there and see the fish and settle it." 



"Certainly, we will go/' said 1. "what will we want in 

 -way of blankets and baggage?" 



"Nothing; go as light as possilile, take your rods and creel 

 and that is all we will want. We will leave Fourth Lake in 

 the morning about 10, dine at Bennett's on theKaqic tte, go 

 down the lake aud river, carry into Forked Lake and again 

 down the river to Buttermilk Palls, where we have a short 

 carry and then a longer one of half a mile into Long Lake, 

 where we will stop for the night, at Kcllogg's and fish in the 

 morning. After getting- what you want we will come hack 

 byway of South Pond, Hud Pond, Minnow Pond and Blue 

 Mountain Lake, ashing them nil. and no doubt sorno new 

 specimens will lie found in some of these wafer- which we 

 have not picked up yet." 



We followed this programme and on arriving at. Kellogg's 

 on Long Lake, we found the question of maskiuongc versus 

 pickevel being argued in the bar room. One man said thai 

 he had been all through .New York markets and had asked 

 the differences between the fish, and the market men had 

 always, showed him tish like those in the lake for maskiuongc. 

 m mugcaloftgi as it is here called. Fortunately the landlord 

 had one in the kitchen and Sheppard suggested that it be 

 shown to me. tin producing it there was no difficulty in 

 determining it to be -the great lake pike, or pickerel, E»v.r 

 Iwitix. It is Singula! how much mixed the mass of anglers 

 are about this family of fishes. The colors alone are sufficient, 

 generally, to identify them without going into the slrueiura! 

 differences, as scales on cheek, etc., yet many who can dis- 

 tinguish the two named do not distinguish the great pike 

 from the smaller pickerel, E. n'tievlntvn, the one which only 

 grows to live or six pounds and has black network on its 

 sides, but call them both "pickerel." We only stopped n. \t 

 day long enough to take four specimens, two of which were 

 too large for the alcohol tank, aud therefore bad to he given 

 away. The smaller ones, about two pounds' each, were put 

 in the creel and we climbed the high lull that lay between the 

 tike and South Pond, where we risked tor small fry. and then 

 struck the hard I wo-milc earn to Minnow Pond, which must 

 be some three hundred feet above Blue Mountain Lake, into 

 which it empties. The carry to the lake is described as "half 

 a mile going down, but a full mile going up." 



We took sorae black bass in Knquette, going back, and 

 they seem to be exceedingly plenty. They took the fly near 

 the shores, but the larger ones were not there, or not in the 

 humor for flies. A. big one struck a spoon but broke away. 

 The introduction of bass into these trout watcis was agrave 

 mistake, and is a source of regret to trout fishers. It was 

 done some years ago by the New York Pish Commission, 

 and they have been doing Something equally bad this -| 

 in putting rainbow trout into the Pulton Chain, a fish much 

 inferior to our brook trout, and one which will grow taste 

 and eat up the [bod if it does not eat the trout. Like th 

 introduction of the English sparrow, this tish may turn out 

 a nuisance. No wafers that will sustain our brook trout 

 should be planted with bass or rainbow troul, for when they 

 come in the brook trout go out. The guides said that many 

 of the rainbow trout were dead, but I fear enough were alive 

 to establish themselves. When Ihe Scotchmen held a con- 

 gratulatory dinner over a single thistle planted in Victoria, 

 twenty years ago, they did not foresee (hat to day many 

 farms would be ruined by it. 



Most people agree on the excellent table qualities of the 

 Adirondack lake trout. They are a line fish, and 1 prefer 

 them to the brook trout for the pan. In the spring, while 

 the watei is cool near the shore, these tish take the fly will, 

 but iu summer they must be sought in deep wafer, lor of all 

 their family in Ami rica they are most sensitive to warmth 

 and die soonest from it. The salbling, or German cliarr. is 

 probably as sensitive, and these waters would suit it very well. 

 The lish would also suit the waters, as il is a lake trout of 

 large size with a beautifully colored crimson side and belly, 

 and a fine table fish. The native lake trout of this region 

 can be distinguished from those planted here by the com- 

 mission from parents in Lake Ontario, by their color. The 

 skin is. darker aud the flesh redder, yet ichthyologically they 

 are the same fish. One would think the strangers, having 

 been placed here in babyhood, would assume the characters 

 of the natives. I had no chance to test their comparative 

 table qualities. The land-locked salmon planted in Bfsby 

 and Woodhull have thriven and will no doubt be a Valuable 

 addition to those waters, I hear of one having been taken in 

 Woodhull of one and a half pounds. 



Bullheads (catfish) and frost fish (a species of ( 'oregonus). 

 are the main table fishes beside those mentioned. The for- 

 mer can be readily taken near the shores, especially at night, 

 but the latter do not bite and are usually captured in the 

 fall, when on the spawning beds iu the iidets. Sunflsh in- 

 fest all the lakes. These pests must destroy millions of 

 trout-try. Worthless themselves, nature has seen til lo guard 

 them with formidable spines which even a ravenous pike is 

 forced to respect to some degree, hence they increase at the 

 expense of trout. If the amount appropriated to the river 

 and harbor bill could be. diverted to the extermination of the 



lasl sunlish in America it would be money well spent, pro- 

 vided it was not distributed by the politicians. 



The "salmon'' which one hears of so much here is simply 

 the lake trout, sometimes called salmon-trout, and often 

 the first part of Hie name only is used. [ heard a man try 

 to make a distinction between brook trout which live in 

 lakes and tho.se which inhabit the inlets or brooks, lie 

 leaned the latter brook trout aud the former "lake-brook- 

 trout,*' in his argument lo sustain his position that there 

 were two species, or rather to maintain I bat "lake 

 trout" was an indefinite term and meant any trout which 

 was found in a lake, lie did not succeed very well after a 

 guide asked him lo desciihe hi.- lake-brook-trout so that it 

 could DO distinguished from the ordinary brook trout, and 

 Suggested thai a deer was the same animal whether found on 

 the mountains or in the lakes. A lake trout of 274; pounds, 

 from Knquette Lake, is credited to Alvah Dunning, the 

 guide, who sent it t o the superintendent of the Adirondack 

 Railroad It W.as taken July 2, 1879. 



Brook trout abound, but are not as plenty us I thought for. 



In ,-ome of Ihe lakes they are either scare ■ won't rise. 1 



did not try bail for them and did not change Hies often. On 

 Big Moose 1 took many. and. of course, lost a. big one. This 

 is bow it happened. lie Btfucfa and 1 struck, lie appeared 

 astonished and opened his throttle valve, and crowded on 

 all steam; hoping to reach the lower end of the inlet mi time. 

 The brake on the reel broke at this instant and the bell cord 

 overran. He turned at the same time and started iu on the 

 down grade, and passed the bottt with axles red hot; saw 'em 

 gleam against the dark bottom. What could be done when 

 the air-btake was gone? We held our breaths at the pace, 

 but he slowed up on a curve and the strain was fell on the 

 coupling again. 1 whistled "down brakes" and be mistook 

 a lily-pad for a turn-table and went round it, something be- 

 came uncoupled and lie slowly steamed out of sight wilh a 

 train of only two tlies behind him. .hick called 'fifteen 

 minutes for refreshments, "and 1 hauled into the shop for 

 repairs, p. .M. 



fy'he ^parfsiqiin gattrtit 



A 



I.I.IMV I 



letter 



EAGLES MERE. 

 2 to open this 



•tide 



c foi 



kit the 



1 for a 



right 



than a clergyman of tl 

 it he the sudden relaxation from the resp, 

 regular vocation I know not, but be is ai 

 ever varying phases of the trip, and while 

 ecclesiastical air-brake, does not in any s 



the contrary enhances- the pleasures of th 



It was my good fortune last May to be 

 such an one for a two weeks' sojourn in t 

 van county. Pa. Leaving our valley home 

 York, we arrived at Towanda, Pa., at3P. M, 

 take the train on the "State Line & Sullivan 

 coal road that pierces the wilderness in a som 

 'ringing up at the Loyal Sock coal t 



l th.-: 



sort. Whether 



inabilities of his 



Ways alive to the 

 ictingasa sort of 



■use mar— but on 



•outing. 



be companion of 



le wilds of SulU- 

 rest re New 

 goodlimc to 

 sturdy little 



•tiv 



duct Of wbicl: 

 tributed all 



an almost e 

 P 



lie 



it hauls do 

 rt In- 



to IV 



Our tra 



ips. with 



Hit] 



No' 



i the 



tu 



three SCO 

 favorite tt 

 lis of the 

 tants. 



•i-iui 



I 111: 



and thro 

 long covere 

 could nol si 

 La Porte 

 ler ol won, 

 moved to tl 

 transitu" O' 

 two hotels, 

 or four ato 

 eye can rea 



■le, and not a 

 ching the representatives of Sullivan 

 to the wonderful fishing yarns of an 

 uthough way beyond the regulation 

 d ten, was bound like ourselves lor a 

 itv. Arriving at Onshore, the metropo 



•laee of perhaps live hundred iultabi- 

 ar La Porte, tile county town ; and now 

 o in the woods in earnest. Over rocks 

 i jolted, crossing the Loyal Sock 

 i-tening to the swirl of the 



died at al» 



gier's delight. 



1:80, 



•at < 



illle 



without w 

 •oads. Tl 

 murch, a 

 jgol' bou 

 ■etches th. 



:ld tin 



id il is still a ma 



•■nm'itTdl :'ul 1 

 • town consists i 

 irge tannery, tbn 

 ». A- far a- ll 



dear friend of the dominie's that Chris, hauled up and de- 

 posited his load of two fishermen and their impedimenta. 

 Do you call this a cottage? 1 remarked as I looked up at 

 the hotel-like structure before us, with its two stories and a 

 broad verandah all around. "O well, S. has a large family, 

 and no man delights in plenty of room so well as he," quoth 

 the dctoinie; "but come in, here is the key on the joist, just 

 as Mis. S. wrote me." A jolly wood lire "wa.- soon crackling 

 in the grate, and another in the kitchen stove, and after un- 

 packing we donned the fishing suits we were to wear during 

 our siav and sal down to a cup of coffee. Talk about cot- 

 tages in ihe backwoods, why this was a finely furnished 

 house — carpets on the floors," easy chairs, sprinlr beds, pic- 

 tures, besides many little comforts and luxuries that a goad 

 wife will accumulate for the good of her family aud guests. 

 After looking over the supplies and rinding everything in 

 good shape the dominie suggested that we try our New 

 York worms (he had brought some along to be ready, vou 

 know) on the trout in the outlet for an hour or so and see if 

 we could get enough for supper, and we did. basketing 

 twenty small ones, .and you maybe sure they wen.- not 

 large, for we ate them all. 



There are no trout in the lake, but within a radius of 

 three miles are a number of streams tributary' to the Loyal 

 Sock and Muncy Creel; that afford fine fishing. Among 

 there are ••Slianersburg," "Kock Run" and "Pale bridge," 

 all near enough to reach comfortably by walking, lish and 

 return at night by supper time. The trout run rathersmall 

 in these streams, but are quite plenty, the large ones lie in 

 the big creeks below, imi ihe water being high we had to 

 confine ourselves i<; the branches. 



We had resolved to put in our first day on Slianersburg. 

 that being the most accessible of tie" streams: so the 

 ?ith breakfast dispatched al an oar.lv 



patches, showing where the Insatiabi 



at work, lint we slept well at the comfortable hbstelr 



and Ihe following morning were all ready for the last staj 

 of our journey, a six-mile ride to Bagicsmere, our Objectrt 

 point. While making arrangements with the local butchi 

 for our transportation across country, who should come ra 

 l ling into town with an excellent team and double-seated 

 democrat wagon, but Chris. Peale, an old and tried friend o 

 the dominie's, whose route lay exactly in our direction. \\ 

 soon had our imp- aboard, aud bidding good-bye to La 

 Porte, went bowling along the forest road at a rate that 

 tossed oil' i lie six miles in no time. 



Iviglesmere is a lovely little oval of spring water about a 

 mile in Iciigln. IwhiIv -tu o hundred feel above tide water. 

 Far from the haunts of civilization it still has a romantic 

 biatory. Nearly a century ago a wealthy Englishman while 

 hunting in this region was -truck by the beautiful sand 

 along its shores, and conceived the idea of founding great 

 glass works here that should bring him in wealth and fame. 

 He carried oui his scheme and spent a large fortune pulling 

 up tnagniflcenl .-ion,- buildings and tenements, but the trans- 

 portinj ol to- wares to Baxnaburg by wagons over frightful 

 mountain road-, and the bringing in of supplies by the same 

 slow process proved disastrous to the undertaking, and the 

 works were abandoned and tumbled into ruins. Tor years 

 spot lay tenanted only by the wild deer and bear 

 iscovered by the ubiquitous trout fisherman, and 

 uiages began to spring up, a hotel was built, and 

 finds a summer resort in miniature, with good 

 u telegraph si at ion within six miles, a little steamer 

 1 a baud thumps a windy accompaniment 



this lo 



until r 

 sunimi. 

 today 

 hotels and a 

 plies the lab 



to Hying feel on the balcony of the hotel. 



Il was al ihe door of one of these cottages loaned by a 



•niug found 

 hour, and With 

 ritual— in the 1 



couple ol school 



the dav line, ai 



wolves and I 



s the 



.ildcl 



ntrv like 







i tit 



sin 



im. On 



ire huh 



-link ' 



far fro 



our <..teb preparatory "to going bon 



one trout, none of Ihem monsters, 



quite a mess for two men— even in 



appetites— to surround; but a hen 



and another next morning, son-din 



for Kock Bun without feeling that 



ers of the loveliest of game fish, and 



the medal awaiting those who by theii 



to entrance to the 'most noble order 



Kock Kim was a good three-mile walk 



old mill in good time, and although the day wai 



we beat our previous catch eight lish. It was a • 



ward walk we took that night in the gloaming 



seem as though the cottage would never come i 



it did at last, and what was our surprise to SCI 



light Streaming from the open door and window 



come" quoth the dominie, quickening hi- pace, 



lowed feebly licet, and .sure enough we found 



hut his good wife, waiting' with open arms to 



They had driven over from Munev. tweiitv-fou 



a wagon load of delicacies and siib.laiitials jnsl to maki 



happy, bless 'em. .May be we didn't make awful inroads 



into the steak, lettuce and asparagus provided, and maybe 



the bottled pop (I guess it was) didn't di-appear? Ask the 



dominie who had a headael II the next day. so w.' couldn't 



id as the day 



we got throii. h : Laming 

 a- it only numbered sivu 

 But sixty-one trout are 

 he first llu-h of mountain 

 ie onslaught at i) P. M., 

 edthe pile tbalwestarted 

 we wore wanton dcslrtn, 

 io wise entitled to 

 twess are entitled 

 'trout hog;-." To 



eedat tie- 



and if did 



sight, but 



a cheerful 



"S. has 



vhil.- 1 fol 



ol only S. 



receive' ii-. 



l.es, 



until Monday bef 



But don't think Sat 

 different. L'ncle 'Lijah 

 to see how their cottage 

 o.skv leak in the cisteri 

 favored with a call fr 



rations could be resumed, 

 rdav and Sunday were wasted— far j 

 and his amiable wile, who were up 

 was gelling along, and to mend a 

 , dropped in to dinner, and we were 

 Mr. and Mrs. Peale, who had raised 



fine family and wrested an independent livi.ig from tin 

 stern and barren soil, not forgetting Davy Sams, ihe min 

 strel. who. bet ween sips of hot lemonade and the crunch i 

 of ginger nuts, discoursed original snatches of psalmody 

 that we all vowed would put Messrs ~" 

 their metal to equal. So the (lavs 

 mornhig came, and Mr, and Mrs. S.'io 

 however, until our host had driven i 

 ing distance of Kock Kun, where u 

 full day. The day was fine, aim hai 

 euce where the barren waters were, 

 our privileges, and when brought up 

 Icrritic thunder shower we scored < 

 What a tramp we had home that night— five mill 

 the driving rain, wet to the skin, baskets heavy 

 nehs empty. I never so fully realized what In 

 Misty visions of our long table well filled with gi 

 danced across my disordered vision, and my groiil 

 ach seemed lo say " 'twas never thus before." 

 reached the cottage, all soaked and "busted, 

 strength enough left to grope in the darkne- 

 pilot "biscuit with one hand and a wired cork \ 

 and sink exhausted into a chair. (). it wa 

 dominie remarked "that the instinct of self pre.servalio 

 seemed fullv alive in me when I made that niastnh n-.ov 

 in the dark." 



And so the week Aeon- away, our catches averaging; abou 

 the same dav in and day out. Individually the' "apostoli 

 hook"was In the ascendency, and I had the honorof bea ' 

 my friend but once. Not a trout was wa-ted. for Uncli 

 'Lijah going home carried a fine lot down to the' friends 

 Mutiev. ami when the last dav came, we went down 

 Slianersburg and eaughl an even hundred. These w 

 packed in ferns and prinee - .- pine and carried home with 

 fresh a.-, daisies. 



We had hoped our last day to fish down to the Loyal Soc 

 in time for a few ea-ts for the big bllow.-, but the tijstanci 



. Buss 



passed and Mo.'ida 



ok their departii 



.is lo within easy walk 

 e proposed to put in a 

 ■ing learned by exper 

 we made Ihe' most. ( ' 

 with a round turn by 

 Hie hundred and I 

 l thro 

 aid stoin 



od'thi 

 •ailing -loin 

 ' When w 

 ' 1 bar, ju 

 j and gra 

 rt-ith the oliie 

 awful, but. Hie 



and 



. tie 



tficenl in Sull 

 sight of the big creek be- 

 t-racks for home" or -la \ 

 li'tlcsad next morning t 

 of civilization, pack up 

 spot win re we had been 

 the door with his broad-; 

 adieu to Kagli.-sincre and the 

 truck, and with a stern resolve 

 ling eown the mountain. No 

 will make a man forget trouble, 

 Morgan of Eagle-mere. Mr. M. keeps an 



couldn't even 



n abou; and "mak 



obli. 

 in- trap 

 i happy 



all night, 

 odoll the 



ad leave 

 : Mr. Mo 



lid wagoi 



It seemed 



habiliiuen 



he pleasai 

 gan was at 

 , so biddin 

 idled iu tin 

 .vent truiu 

 ivlhing tin 

 ride with M 

 ilenl boardin 

 house at the lake, and he and Mrs. M. have the- happy faculty 

 of treatiug their guests so they are. sure to come again, i 

 is a bluff, hearty Milesian, full of anecdotes that he recount 

 inimitably. A strong Church of England man, he holdt 

 all other sects (especially the Baptists) in quiet couloiupt 



lie 



atn 



