OUR ALASKAN EXPLORING EXPEDITION. 



IG 3 



At every point we visited the river came 

 pouring through these beds of rocks, yet 

 the monster king and silver salmon, would 

 continue to fight their way up stream, 

 seeming to, in some way, surmount every 

 obstacle. 1 spent several days watching the 

 salmon, and was astounded at the wonder- 

 ful pugnacity with which they fight their 

 way to the source of the river. I have seen 

 them repeatedly attempt the passage of a 

 certain fall until, completely exhausted, 

 they would retire to some convenient eddy 

 for rest, preparatory to a renewed effort; 

 but never have I seen one of them give any 

 indication of surrender, or show inclina- 

 tion to return down stream. What a lesson 

 to doubtful, weakened, and discouraged 

 humanity! What a striking illustration of 

 the determined effort necessary for the 

 human traveler through this Northern 

 wilderness. 



Among a number of salmon taken from 

 the Tooya, the noses of several were bat- 

 tered or torn off against the rocks. I 

 managed to get pictures of several salmon 

 during their efforts to clear the falls. 



The source of the Tooya is in a large 

 lake, to the North, near Level mountain. 

 This mountain is also the home of the 

 woodland caribou. 



From the Tooya we passed over a stretch 

 of high land, through forests of small 

 spruce and black pine, 35 miles to the Tan- 

 zilla, the last important tributary of the 

 Stickeen from the North. Crossing the 

 Tanzilla into the Hoo-tai-luh mountains, 

 we pitched camp, for several days, on a 

 high, rolling, moss covered plain. From 

 this camp we climbed a high, rocky knoll, 

 from which we could overlook a country 

 drained by the Stickeen, the Yukon, and 

 the Mackenzie, which empty their waters, 

 respectively, into the Pacific ocean, Bering 

 sea, and the Arctic ocean. 



Wherever we went, on this mountain we 

 found it covered with a deep, spongy moss, 

 thickly studded with tiny flowers of every 

 conceivable color and shape. Small groves 

 of balsam grew here and there, and their 

 branches made soft sweet scented beds. 



Returning to Telegraph Creek we made 

 several long journeys into the mountains, 

 in various directions. Black bear are fairly 

 plentiful throughout the entire Stickeen 

 region. The grizzly is found on its head 

 waters and the sitka, or big brown bear, in 

 the lower river country. 



Goats are plentiful in the mountain ad- 

 jacent the river, as far up as the little can- 

 yon, or 100 miles from the coast, but are 

 not numerous above that point. Sheep 



are found in the Chee-on-nee and Et 

 se-zah mountains, to the South of Tele- 

 graph. Moose and caribou are in fair num- 

 bers in the whole of the upper country, but 



are rarely found below the canyon or on 

 the coast side- of the ran 



The moose confine themselves to certain 

 general territories, hut not so closely to any 

 particular locality as do the caribou. The 

 former are great travelers and are known 

 to indulge in some peculiar cross country 

 runs. 



Spruce or Canada grouse are plentiful in 

 some of the timbered districts, and willow 

 and rock ptarmigan are found on the high- 

 er stretches of country. 



Any ambitious sportsman, who may make 

 a trip up the Stickeen in July, returning in 

 late fall, will be richly rewarded. He will 

 have opportunities to get bear, moose, car- 

 ibou, sheep, and goats. 



Telegraph Creek is the best point to hunt 

 from and parties going could secure com- 

 fortable passage on the " Alaska," a small 

 steamer that plies the Stickeen from Ft. 

 Wrangle. 



At Telegraph Creek can also be had 

 blankets and provisions of all kinds neces- 

 sary for the hunt. This would obviate 

 the necessity of carrying much luggage. 

 Here, too, the traders will provide you a 

 cabin to camp in and will take the best of 

 care of you. If you want a guide they will 

 select for you a young Indian, who is trus- 

 ty, a good hunter, and a good camp maker. 



Captain Callbreath, of the Alaska, makes 

 the trip pleasant for people traveling with 

 him and gives them a chance to visit some 

 of the glaciers and other points of interest 

 on the river. You can shoot bald eagles 

 from the deck of the steamer, as they sit in 

 the lofty cottonwoods that line the stream, 

 or as they pass over. You can take salmon, 

 with an Indian salmon pole, weighing 20 

 to 65 pounds. You can bring home some 

 fine game heads, Indian curios, beautiful 

 specimens of lichens, mosses, and arctic 

 flowers. You will see little wax-like butter- 

 cups, just showing their heads along the 

 edges of snow and ice, in August. You can 

 sleep on sweet scented camp beds, made of 

 spruce and balsam, drink pure water and 

 breathe pure air; and you will return home 

 with renewed health and vigor. 



A delightful route to Alaska, from the 

 East, is via the New York Central, the 

 Grand Trunk, through Canada and Michi- 

 gan, the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul, 

 the Northern Pacific Railway to Seattle 

 and thence by the Pacific Coast Steamship 

 Company's steamers. 



