8o 
ALASKA. 
Ghilkoot Pass is the one most used by miners. Steamers ply from 
luneau to Dyea, a distance of 100 miles and the head of steam¬ 
ship navigation. The charge is $10 for one man and outfit. Mr. 
Wilson’s description of the route is summarized as follows: 
At Dyea, the actual journey begins. If the trip is made by sleighs, the parties 
usually do their own work; but if the snow and ice have left the canyon, the 
outfit will have to be packed to Lake Lindeman. Indian packers charge $14 
per 100 pounds; the distance is about 24 miles. Canoes can be used for about 
6 miles up the Dyea River; then the trail, steep and precipitous, leads up the 
canyon to the summit, 15 miles distant and 3,500 feet above tidewater. From 
the summit, there is a sheer descent of 500 feet to the bed of Crater Lake. 
The water has cut a small canyon down the mountain side which should be fol¬ 
lowed to Lake Lindeman (24 miles from Dyea Inlet). Here a raft should be 
made with a deck of small poles a foot above the body, which prevents the 
waves from wetting the outfit. The latter should be protected by water-tight 
sacks, either of oilskin or canvas. A short portage of three-fourths of a mile 
(the fall being about 20 feet) leads to Lake Bennett. The stream connecting 
the two lakes is crooked and rocky, making it unsafe for a boat. Lake Linde¬ 
man is about 6 miles along, and opens up from May 15 to June 10. After 
reaching Lake Bennett, the journey may be continued by raft, or by ascending a 
small river which enters the head of the lake from the west, a distance of one mile; 
good boat timber may be found. The only timber used in the construction of 
boats is spruce or Norway pine. Lake Bennett is some 26 miles long; Caribou 
Crossing leads to Tagish Lake. Navigation on these two lakes is sometimes 
interrupted by the high winds. A wide, sluggish river leads to Lake Marsh, 20 
miles long. The river from here to the canyon has about a 3-mile current. 
Just above the canyon, quantities of salmon are found. The canyon proper is 
five-eighths of a mile in length, but the distance to portage is about a mile, and 
that run by the boats is three-fourths of a mile. The average width of the 
canyon is 100 feet, and the water is very deep. There is little danger in passing 
the canyon, if the steersman does not lose his head. The water in the center is 
4 feet higher than at the walls, and if the boat is kept under control it will remain 
on this crest, and so avoid striking the walls. The boat should be strong, and 
the cargo well protected from the water. It takes two minutes and twenty sec¬ 
onds to pass through the canyon. Two miles below. White Horse Rapids are 
reached. It is practically impossible to pass these, and portage must be resorted 
to. This part of the river can never be made navigable for steamers. A tram¬ 
way could be easily built here, and operated by the power from the falls. 
About 15 miles from the rapids, the Tahkeena River joins the Lewis. This 
