BARREN GROUND AND 
‘WOODLAND CARIBOU 
(Continued from page 9) 
of packs of our blankets and about 
half of our provisions, caching the 
balance, covered with our inverted 
canoe, well back from the river and 
safe from any possible sudden rise due 
to a freshet. Shouldering our packs 
early on the morning of September 
1ith, we left the river and headed 
east through a forest of spruce, fir 
and juniper. The faint time-effaced 
trail was very hard to keep and con- 
stant windfalls, or blow-downs, made 
it impossible not to lose the old line 
frequently, which also often crossed 
open barrens or marshes of increasing 
‘extent as we progressed, and on the 
far side of which it was difficult to 
pick up the trail again. In places 
the going was good and with reason- 
able spells, or rests, we made fair 
progress, then confronted with a 
tangled mass of windfalls we’d make 
slow work climbing over down timber, 
balancing along fallen trees, often 
‘several feet from the ground, or strug- 
gling through the slippery and uncer- 
tain footing of some thick alder 
swamp. 
The next morning, Sunday, dawned 
bright and clear, and we decided to 
keep og so as, if possible, to reach the 
hills that evening. By noon, in cross- 
ing an open marsh, we sighted the 
high rolling barrens five or six miles 
ahead of us. The early frosts had 
already turned their moss and low 
‘bushes a deep crimson, relieved here 
and there by a white patch of last 
night’s snow and by the dark black- 
green of belts of spruce in the hollows. 
Having plenty of time to make the 
distance before dark, we selected a 
sheltered spot on the edge of the 
marsh to boil our kettle and have a 
bite of lunch. We had noticed an in- 
creasing number of tracks in the soft 
ground, including those evidently of 
some heavy deer. The barked and 
broken stems of _ several stunted 
junipers also bore evidence that the 
‘stags were beginning to “rut” and 
were hardening up their horns for the 
fray. 
Smoking a pipe before starting on 
again we were both taking a comfort- 
able rest in the dry moss when we 
were startled by a hoarse coughing 
grunt, which put a prompt stop to our 
quiet talk and keyed us up with ex- 
pectancy. Grabbing my rifle and just 
turning in my seat, I peered over some 
low berry bushes and there striding 
leisurely up the middle of the marsh, 
and stopping now and then for a 
mouthful of moss, was a splendid big 
Stag, his almost snow white neck look- 
ing thick and round and supporting a 
Page 55 
In writing to Advertisers mention Forest and Stream. 
head crowned with a set of heavy 
branching antlers, the great palmated 
brow tines of which almost reached to 
his nose. His course led him within 
eighty yards of where we were crouch- 
ing, and as he moved slowly along I 
took a careful aim and almost with 
the report of my rifle heard the unmis- 
takable muffled thud of the bullet as 
it struck the stag. He swerved off and 
ran several yards, stopping among 
some low junipers evidently sorely 
wounded. As long as a wounded 
animal is afoot it is, however, best not 
to risk its escape by an unnecessary 
economy of ammunition, so I pumped 
in two more of the heavy 45-90’s be- 
fore he came crashing to the ground. 
Here was luck indeed, for we were 
only now just beginning a_ serious 
campaign after caribou. He had heavy 
well-balanced antlers with thirty-five 
points, so after skinning out and re- 
moving his head we cleaned him and 
hung up the quarters. As the rut was 
only just beginning his meat was in 
excellent condition, not yet having com- 
menced to get strong and rank as does 
that of the stags later on in the season. 
Deciding to return for the head and 
quarters after having a look at our 
hills, we took the liver and tenderloins 
with us and set out on the last five 
miles of our journey in. The ground 
gradually rose as we_ progressed, 
changing from the deep spongy surface 
to the drier, rocky ground covered with 
gray-green moss, lichens and low blue- 
berry bushes now heavy with masses 
of ripe berries. 
Coming out of the last belt of woods 
at about four o’clock, the barren hills 
stretched before us, rising in gradual 
steps to the westward. We just then 
sighted three more caribou which, hav- 
ing winded us, cantered over a knoll 
and were lost to view, and as we 
wished to find a good camping place 
we made no attempt to come up with 
them. Half a mile farther on we came 
to a slight depression sheltered by 
higher ground to the north, and with 
a sparkling little stream running |—— ~~ 
through a grove of spruce. With one 
accord we exclaimed, ‘There’s our 
camp site,” and hastened into the little 
hollow to get things ready. To lighten 
our packs we had left the tent over 
the provisions at the canoe, but this 
country looked so promising that we 
decided to make our permanent camp 
here for the rest of the trip and to 
build a small but comfortable log 
lean-to, and then go out for the balance 
of our supplies. After collecting fire- 
wood for the night and picking some 
boughs for our bed, we set to work 
cutting logs, but as darkness was com- 
ing on had to defer our building until 
the morrow. 
On the next day we sighted a single 
old stag off by himself. He was mov- 





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