PREPARATIONS FOR THE JOURNEY. 



83 



Eupert's Land, lie has accomplished the journey between 

 Pembina and Fort Garry, a distance of sixty-eight miles, 

 in seven hours and a half. The men Monkman engaged, 

 six in number, were generally excellent runners, and pro- 

 vided with good dogs. 



The preparations for the winter journey of both parties 

 to St. Paul were rather of a formidable character even at 

 Eed Eiver, requiring not less than sixteen carioles and 

 sledges drawn by fifty dogs in all. 



It being necessary that I should take with me a number 

 of geological specimens, field apparatus, books, &c. &c.. 

 my party required nine carioles and sledges, and a corre- 

 sponding number of men ; each sledge or cariole on a 

 long winter's journey requiring one man to manage it, 

 although the same individual, with well-trained dogs, is 

 competent to conduct two sledges on good roads and for 

 short journeys, when time is not an object and food easily 

 accessible. • 



I engaged a half-breed of the name of Cline, an excel- 

 lent runner and a very willing attendant, to organize my 

 trains. 



The distance between Fort Garry and Crow Wing is 

 about 400 miles by the winter road, and the only places 

 where supplies can be obtained are at Pembina, Eed 

 Lake, and Cass Lake. The chief objection to travel 

 with a large number of dogs is the difficulty of supply- 

 ing them with food, nor can the several stations be always 

 relied on to furnish the requisite quantity for an unex- 

 pected intrusion of many of these hungry animals. Each 

 dog requires daily about two pounds of pemmican or three 

 pounds of white-fish, so that the provisions for a train 

 of carioles employing thirty dogs would involve the 

 carriage of 600 lbs. of pemmican or 900 lbs. of white- 

 fish for a ten days' journey. A train of three dogs 



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