2 



RttCREATlON 



we fairly flew down the lake and it 

 was well that we did so while we could, 

 for. with a mile yet to go, we found 

 the channel choked with logs and held 

 in with the usual booms. There were 

 said to be ten thousand logs in the lake, 

 and one can infer that these made a 

 formidable barrier when gathered in 

 a compact mass. We found the chain 

 holding the middle logs of the boom, 

 and after ten minutes' work succeeded 

 in loosening it sufficiently to admit the 

 canoe. Our attempt to tighten the chain 

 again, in order to hold the logs in place, 

 was unsuccessful, and, doubtless, the 

 air was fragrant with profanity when 

 the lumbermen discovered the leak. 

 Once within, we were not much better 

 off than before, inasmuch as innumer- 

 able closely-packed logs intervened 

 between us and our destination. By 

 dint of steering for the open spots, by 

 pushing and pulling in rapid alterna- 

 tion, aided by quick turns to avoid 

 crushing, we made some progress. Two 

 more booms delayed us still longer, and 

 when we finally reached the settlement 

 it was well on toward train time. About 

 six trips with good loads found us just 

 on time, and we staggered into the car, 

 one of us bulging on both sides with 

 enormous bundles, the other with a 

 bursting package of food-stuff in one 

 hand and trying to balance a large 

 bottle of pickles in the other. We fell 

 into a seat in an exhausted heap, a 

 spectacle much enjoyed by the passen- 

 gers. 



The country through which we 

 passed was a succession of lakes and 

 alternate stretches of live and burnt 

 timber. A feature of the line is the 

 number of wooden trestles that are 

 built across the bays and inlets. 



From the station Cache Lake looked 

 like a small pond. "Cache" is French 

 for "concealed," and the lake was well 

 named, for from no part of it could 

 one see more than a third of its sur- 

 face. We were welcomed by the super- 

 intendent and his household with gen- 

 uine Canadian hospitality and per- 

 suaded to stay to dinner- We listened 



with interest to tales of the region and 

 the experiences of the "rangers," and 

 were shown many interesting trophies. 



There were other campers on this 

 lake, and we found that all but one or 

 two camp sites were occupied. Our new 

 friends conducted us to a spot located 

 at the mouth of a small stream called 

 the Uladawska, where we set up camp 

 on the top of a bluff. The frequent 

 strenuous hill-climbing that this neces- 

 sitated soon induced us to move to a 

 better site on the east end of the lake, 

 about two miles from headquarters. 



Deer were numerous in this region. 

 They first made their presence known 

 to us by night. We were awakened 

 on one occasion by the "blowing" of 

 one that seemed to be examining the 

 nature of our tent. He soon took fright 

 and we heard him go off snorting. 

 Often in our tramps we came upon them 

 unexpectedly, and it was an amusing 

 sight to watch them scamper through 

 the underbrush, "flags" up. Bass fish- 

 ing we found good, but trout fishing 

 better. There seemed to be but one 

 spot in the lake where the salmon trout 

 could be caught, but the supply seemed 

 inexhaustible. Few days passed with- 

 out from one to a half-dozen campers 

 casting anchor at the grounds. The 

 weights varied from one and a half 

 to eight pounds. In mid-summer these 

 fish seek the bottom of the lake where 

 the water remains cold. A hook and 

 minnow dropped down twenty, thirty 

 or forty feet brings up fish that are 

 ice-cold to the touch. Their gaminess 

 is not to be despised, but if hooked 

 sufficiently to bring to the surface, one 

 can usually get them in. 



It is from Cache Lake that many of 

 the canoe trips through the series of 

 park lakes start. Guides can be se- 

 cured at headquarters. The superin- 

 tendent issues fishing and camping 

 licenses. The portages are seldom more 

 than a half-mile in length, and often 

 but a few rods. Probably no finer 

 canoe trip can be found on the conti- 

 nent than through these magnificem 

 lakes of the Laurentian mountains. 



