Vlll 



RECREATION. 



A NEW YOSEMITE. 



Dr. L. B. Sperry, of Bellevue, 0., a well 

 known lecturer, has returned from a trip to 

 Puget sound, going and returning over the 

 Great Northern Railway. He stopped at 

 Lake Chelan, in the Cascades, and at Lake 

 McDonald, in the Rockies, looking up vari- 

 ous points of interest to tourists and scien- 

 tists. He says that the scenic and scientific 

 attractions in the regions about the two lakes 

 above named are most remarkable. Dr. 

 Sperry and party penetrated the trackless 

 forests to a point about 15 miles northeast 

 of Lake McDonald, and there came upon 

 one of the most charming nooks on this con- 

 tinent — a place that he thinks is destined to 

 become as famous as Niagara falls. 



He was accompanied by Prof. J. Paul 

 Goode, of the Moorhead normal school ; E. 

 R. Shepard, of Minneapolis, photographer, 

 and W. O. Jones and W. A. Wittick, also of 

 Minneapolis. 



At the head of Lake McDonald they se- 

 cured guides and packers, and from the end 

 of the trail leading northward from the lake 

 the> chopped their way through several 

 miles of tangled forests, where only the 

 trails of bears and deer could be seen. 

 About noon of the second day they came 

 upon a horseshoe-shaped basin about two 

 miles long and one mile wide, shut in by 

 walls that rose almost perpendicular to 

 heights ranging from 3,000 to 4,000 feet 

 The floor of this basin is a lake about half 

 a mile wide by a mile and a half long. It is 

 deep, clear blue, and is filled with mountain 

 trout. It is surrounded by several peaks, 

 which rise from 1,000 to 2,000 feet above the 

 timber line, and are covered with snow 

 wherever there is a surface for snow to hang 

 on. Along a portion of the southern wall 

 there is a slope, descending from a height 

 of about 2,000 feet down to the border of 

 the lake. This slope is covered with a dense 

 growth of forest tr es, mostly fir and hem- 

 lock. Just as the -party was emerging from 

 the forest into the basin they heard a rush- 

 ing avalanche ; and while in the basin saw 

 and heard another shoot down the steep 

 slopes into a great rocky chasm. Evidently 

 these are of frequent occurrence here, and 

 so the place was named Avalanche basin 

 and Avalanche lake. Rising from the high 

 enclosing walls are a number of peaks, 

 which the party named, respectively, " The 

 Sphinx," "Cathedral Spires," "The Dome," 

 " The Castle," and " The Matterhorn." The 

 latter is a surprising duplicate of the famous 

 Alpine peak of that name. At the head of 

 the basin two streams of ice water pour 

 down the cliffs. For the most part they 

 cling to the walls and look like ribbons of 

 silver ; but occasionally they leap over a 

 ledge and pour themselves in spray on the 

 walls hundreds of feet below. The total 

 height of these streams must be at least 

 2,500 feet. Above the falls lie vast fields of 

 snow which furnish supplies to the cascades. 



Dr. Sperry pronounces Avalanche basin 

 "a scenic gem of the first water." He be- 

 lieves that it will become exceedingly popu- 

 lar in the near future. He says that after a 

 good saddle trail shall have been cut to it, all 

 summer tourists, via the Great Northern, 

 should stop at Lake McDonald and take a 

 horseback trip to Avalanche valley and lake. 



The St. Lawrence Anglers' Association, of 

 which W. C. Brown of New York is presi- 

 dent, is making an effort to have the Thous- 

 and Islands set apart as an international 

 park. Many of the islands are being acquired 

 by private owners, and if the present rate of 

 sale is continued it will be but a short time 

 till the fishing and camping privileges will 

 be a thing of the past. Even now fishing 

 parties are met with such signs as " No 

 trespassing," "Keep off," and the like. 



The Canadian government is willing to set 

 aside some of its best river islands to be im- 

 proved and beautified for the use of fishing 

 parties and such others as may come, pro- 

 vided the State of New York will take simi- 

 lar steps. 



A Senate committee, together with some 

 members of the Fish and Game Commission, 

 will soon go to the river to inspect the islands, 

 and will then go to Ottawa to consult with 

 the Canadian officials and endeavor to arrive 

 at some definite plan of action. 



Here are the names of some anglers who 

 have recently visited the Island House, Lake 

 St. John, Canada, and of their catches of 

 Ouananich : 



No of Fish Largest. 

 Caught. lbs. 



J. B. Goodhue, Rock Island, 111.... 16 3 l / 2 



Jos. Gamble, Plattsburg, N. Y 8 2 l / 2 



William Borden, Chicago 16 3^ 



D.H. Ainsworth, San Antonio. Tex. 28 tfA 



J. L. Hayden, San Antonio, Tex.. . 14 3 



H. Beausobil, Montreal 26 3^ 



J. C. Hecksher, New York 11 4 



Wm. Borden & Son, Chicago 20 3^ 



Guy Peterson, Montreal 10 3 



Walter Drake, New York 12 3 



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