OF THE POLAR SEA. 81 



On the 4th we embarked amidst a heavy 

 rain, and pursued our route down the Eche- 

 mamis. In many parts the morass, by 

 which the river is nourished, and through 

 which it flows, is intersected by ridges of 

 rock which cross the channel, and require 

 the boat to be lifted over them. In the 

 afternoon we passed through a shallow 

 piece of water overgrown with bulrushes, 

 and hence named Hairy Lake ; and in the 

 evening encamped on the banks of Black- 

 water Creek, by which this lake empties 

 itself into Sea River, having come during 

 the day twenty miles and three quarters. 



On the morning of the 5th, we entered 

 Sea River, one of the many branches of 

 Nelson River. It is about four hundred 

 yards wide, and its waters are of a muddy 

 white colour. After ascending the stream 

 for an hour or two, and passing through 

 Carpenter's Lake, which is merely an ex- 

 pansion of the river to about a mile in 

 breadth, we came to the Sea River Portage, 

 where the boat was launched across a 

 smooth rock, to avoid a fall of four or five 



VOL. I. G 



