martin.] COAL IN CONTROLLER BAY REGION. 35 
said to be obstructed by an uncharted bar, and it is at present not 
known how firm the anchorage would be. The bay is, however, 
exposed to winds from the south. It is said that even the largest 
ships can run in close to the eastern shore of Fox Islands, where they 
would be sheltered from all winds except those coming from a little 
east of south. 
Controller Bay has the disadvantage of being shallow over a large 
part of its area and of being filled, at certain seasons of the year, 
with drift ice brought down Bering and other rivers from the Bering 
Glacier. The present steamer landing is at the village of Kayak, 
on the eastern shore and near the southern end of Wingham Island. 
The ships enter through a narrow passage between Kayak and Wing- 
ham Island, over a bar only to be crossed at half or full tide. There 
is another anchorage off the northern end of Wingham Island; 
though accessible at all times, it is farther from shore and directly 
in the track of the drift ice. 
There are several possible routes of transportation from the mines 
to the harbors. The most direct route from Katalla Bay to the 
coal fields would be in a straight line up the western side of Katalla 
Valley, over Katalla Pass (only a few scores of feet above tide) , along 
the west shore and northern end of Bering Lake, and up the western 
side of the valley of Shepherd Creek. From the coal openings in the 
headwaters of Shepherd Creek the road could be extended, around the 
edge of the flat land which forms the peninsula between Shepherd 
Creek and Bering River, into the valley of Lake Kushtaka ; thence 
down the valley of Stillwater Creek, up Trout Creek, and finally up 
Bering River and Canyon Creek. Such a road, with branches to 
reach all the existing coal openings, would be about 44 miles in length, 
divided as follows : 
Routes of transportation between mines and harbor, Katalla Bay. 
Miles. 
Fox Islands to mouth of Shepherd Creek 20 
Mouth of Shepherd Creek to coal openings on Carhon Creek 6 
Mouth of Shepherd Creek to mouth of Stillwater Creek 8 
Mouth of Stillwater Creek to coal openings on Trout Creek 4 
Mouth of Stillwater Creek to coal openings on Canyon Creek 6 
This route would have the advantage of a deep (though not very 
secure) harbor free from glacial drift ice, of distance, of a low grade 
from the harbor to the mines, and of the absence of bridges over large 
streams which are liable to severe floods. 
Another route would be from a long pier extending into Con- 
troller Bay from Point Hey over Kanak Island. This route would 
extend from Point Hey northwestward to Katalla River; thence 
up the east side of that river to Bering Lake, where it would join the 
route outlined above. It would be 1 to 2 miles longer than the, first 
