CHAPTER XIII
WRESTLING WITH A MOUNTAIN GOAT
While the rest of the party was engaged in landing supplies, Riversordered Gersup and his assistant, Bulson, to strike inland a short wayin the direction of the volcano, Redoubt Peak, distant about twenty-fivemiles, in the expectation of finding a trail near by. It seemed obviousthat there must be a route along the coast, and that it must lie betweenthe waterside and the foothills of the Chigmit Mountains. Less than anhour elapsed before the men returned with the news that the trail hadbeen located, but that it was entirely snowed under. The dogsaccordingly were hitched to the three sleds, one of the outside dogsleading, and the topographer going ahead on snowshoes to point out thetrail.
Roger had always had the idea that "mushing" or driving a dog team,consisted of sitting in state on the sled and cracking a conspicuouslylong whip at the dogs, but he speedily found out his mistake. Instead ofsitting on the sled he had to walk behind it, and in a great manyinstances to help the dogs by shoving it along. Instead of being able totake things easy and let the teams do the work, the boy learned that the"musher" had to labor far harder and more continuously than the dogsthemselves.
A GRIM AND ICY BARRIER.
Alaskan glacier, causing an obstacle to travel, almost inaccessible, yetcrossed at last.
_Photograph by U.S.G.S._]
They had not traveled far when Gersup called from in front:
"There's the trail!" and pointed ahead to the right.
Roger looked eagerly in the direction pointed out, expecting to see afairly well-beaten road, over which the succeeding day they could travelwith comfort, but look as he might he could see no signs of a trail. Thechief's grunt of satisfaction, however, was evidence enough to the boythat the trail really was there, and as he did not want to expose hisignorance by asking any unnecessary question, he kept his wonderings tohimself.
Having got fairly started on the trail, however, the boy found traveleasier, yet he was glad when the word was given for a halt, near someheavy timber, affording the materials for a fire. The tents were quicklypitched, wood gathered for a roaring blaze, the animals fed and thesleeping bags laid out, and in a surprisingly short time the party wasgathered around a savory supper prepared by the cook while the rest ofthe men were pitching camp.
The party carried a light-weight, sheet-iron stove, which was a greatconvenience inside the tent, but, of course, the food for the dogs wascooked on an outside fire. With slight occasional changes, the foodgiven was rice with a little bacon, and usually dried salmon besides.Roger noted that they were fed but once a day, and could not helpthinking how hardly used the petted dogs of civilization would considerthemselves if they were to be subjected to such treatment.
Roger slept soundly, despite his new surroundings, and the night seemedall too brief for him when he was roused by the cook. Being February,the days were short, and though it was nearly seven o'clock when thecamp was wakened it was almost full dark. But few minutes were allowedbefore George shouted, "Breakfast," and Roger fell to with the rest ofthe men, feeling as though he could eat the entire provision of theparty at one meal. After breakfast, Rivers told the boy that he would beexpected, at the breaking up of camp in the mornings, to help Harry,the Indian, in the harnessing and getting ready of the dogs, as most ofthe other men were more expert at loading a sled.
It sounded easy enough, but Roger soon discovered that it was far frombeing a snap. To harness a dog, or even a dozen, was not such adifficult matter, but to hitch them to the sled and to make them staywhere they were after they were hitched, that was another question. The"huskies" seemed to take malicious joy in trying to get their harnesstangled, and there was always the possibility of a scrap to be wardedoff. So it came about that the boy usually had his hands full in themorning, and was not sorry when the day's pulling was begun and the dogssettled down to their work.
The country over which they were traveling, moreover, was ideal for dogwork. The land was flat from the waterside up to the sudden rise of thehills, which were lofty and rugged, 10,000 to 15,000 feet in height,snow-capped and glacier-bearing. Little though Roger knew as ageologist, yet he was keen enough to see that this wide channel must bethe delta of a large river, and he was glad to get an affirmativeresponse to his suggestion that in the summer time this might be a goodagricultural country.
"The climate in summer here," said Gersup, whom Roger had asked thequestion, "is nothing short of heavenly, but you could hardly call itthickly settled as yet."
"But it will be some day? Do you suppose?"
"Most assuredly," answered the topographer. "There are thousands uponthousands of acres of land here, which would return immense crops, andall along up the river. All that is needed is a market for the produce."
"But how about moving it?" asked the boy.
"The Sushitna River is navigable for a hundred miles to steamers oflight draught, and to barges. You'll see this all in farm like the RedRiver Valley some of these days."
The thermometer staying about ten degrees below zero made the thought ofwaving crops a strange one, but this very low temperature was the bestof all possible advantages to the party, as it was good for dogtraveling. Cold enough to keep the trails in excellent shape, it was nottoo cold for traveling in comfort. Two days sufficed to bring the partyto the point of land jutting out in the sea that makes Cook Inlet adouble bay, but at this point, which is known as North Foreland, asudden drop in temperature, coupled with a gale of wind, delayedprogress, so that in all six days had elapsed from the time of landinguntil they pulled into Tyonok. This is one of the oldest mainlandsettlements of southwestern Alaska, having been used as the mainlandport of the former Russian capital, Kodiak, on Kodiak Island.
A GENERAL VIEW OF TYONOK.
The most northerly harbor in Cook Inlet, usually reached by seagoingvessels. Prospectors' tents along the beach.
_Photograph by U.S.G.S._]
One day was spent at Tyonok purchasing and packing larger supplies ofdog feed, of which only enough for a couple of weeks' journey had beentaken from Seldovia. Dog-feed is the one article that can always beprocured from the natives, but as there was no assurance that the Surveyparty would meet any natives up the river at that time of year, Riversdecided to complete his supply before he started. Despite the importanceof Tyonok as a trading post, almost ranking as a prominent seaport,Roger found it to consist of about forty-five rude log shanties, onlyone, the general store, being more than one story in height. In summer,so the lad was informed, hundreds of tents are erected along the shore,but the winter population, for such an important point, is ridiculouslysmall.
On March 1st, leaving Tyonok behind, the party proceeded along thewestern bank of the Sushitna River. The trail, which had beencomparatively visible as far as Tyonok, now was problematic, sometimesthe sleds were on it, sometimes not, but little difference could beobserved. Rivers did not follow the winding of the stream, but as far aspossible kept a straight course, though frequently diverted byimpassable bits of brush. Over the Beluga marshes, which a month hencecould not be crossed, the party skimmed readily, a firm crust havingformed on the snow and the dogs being in good condition. Successivecamps were made at the mouth of the Sushitna, at Alexander, and atSushitna Station, the latter a post of the Alaskan Commercial Companyfor trading with the natives, and the next day at Kroto. This was thelast settlement seen during the first part of the trip; and for manyweeks, March 6th was the last date that Roger saw any human being exceptthe members of his party.
Faint as the trail had been, it had been sufficient to point out to themen where conditions were favorable, or at least possible, but afterleaving Kroto the signs disappeared entirely. For a couple of hundredyards, perhaps, there might be smooth going, then the party would bebrought to an abrupt halt by a belt of forest, through which perhaps away would have to be made, or around which a detour would be necessary,consuming a great deal of time.
Generally it was possible to make some distance on the river ice, tho
ughthat was extremely rough and bad traveling, and days would be spent inpassing from one form of progress to another, much labor being expended,but the party going forward all the time. What made it seem the harderto Roger was that it was still cold enough to require heavy clothingwhile going ahead on the trail, yet being so warmly clad rendered thelabor at difficult places very fatiguing, and if he perspired, the coldwind afterward chilled him to the bone.
It was speedily evident that the rapid march of the first few days wasno true index of the time to be consumed on the trip, for while thedistance from Kroto to the mouth of the Chulitna, the great tributary ofthe river up which they were proceeding, was the same as from Kroto toTyonok, it took the party exactly three times as long. It was not untilMarch 25th that the Chulitna was crossed and the journey up the higherportion of the river begun.
But each day's travel now brought the mountains closer upon them, andthe banks of the river narrowed. The flat plain of the lower valley wasdisappearing and the mountains sloped nearer the water's edge. On thefarther shore the Talkeetna range, isolated from all other mountains,rose almost sheer from the water, while on the shore the party traveled,though beyond the Chulitna, the great Alaskan range towered up into theclouds, Mt. McKinley, the highest peak in the United States, rearing his20,300 feet, snow-capped and glacier-bearing, statuesque above all lowereminences.
Rivers, however, silent and determined, wasted no time or energy, butpushed on relentlessly every minute of the daylight, and often in dawnand dusk, while the light was yet dim. With this persistence it was butApril 10th when a halt was called at a little cabin, built at the mouthof Indian Creek, and which had been used by a former Survey party, whohad ascended the Sushitna and Indian Creek in the summer by canoes. Ithad taken that party over three months, while Rivers had been less thanhalf that time.
FAREWELL TO CIVILIZATION.
One of the dog teams leaving Kroto for the Sushitna River Trail.
_Photograph by U.S.G.S._]
From there the route taken branched off along Indian Creek, which couldonly be called a mode of passage by courtesy. They could not travelalong the banks for timber, and rock came to the water's edge, and asthe creek bed was a succession of boulders and rapids, half the time thesleds had to be lifted and practically carried over obstructions, inorder that perhaps for twenty or thirty feet there might be a spot ofgood going. Three days it took them to cover the twelve miles, and April13th found the party at the entrance of the Chulitna Pass, 3,000 feetabove sea level.
Here, of course, it was practically blind going, but despite the hardtrip the dogs were in fairly good condition and with Bulson's muscle andHarry's knowledge of the multifold peculiarities of the "husky," theymanaged to worry through the pass in four days, reaching the littlecache and log hut at the mouth of the Jack River, which was theirobjective point. So far they had been able to go with dogs, and nofurther, whereupon the work of unpacking the sleds was begun, the twocanoes duly inspected and found uninjured, the supplies redistributed,and the two Indians who had been picked up at Sushitna Station to takeback the dogs, were promptly sent back upon the downward trail beforethe river should break up and make dog-travel impossible. Of course, asit was pointed out, rapid time could be made with an empty sled, and thedrivers need rarely walk.
During all this time the whole energies of the party had been givenentirely to making headway, and no time had been spent either intopographical or geological work, but the urgency had borne fruit.Rivers told Roger that he had allowed two months and a half for thejourney to their present place, and they were ten days ahead of theschedule.
"And what is to be done now, Mr. Rivers?" asked the boy.
"Wait till the ice breaks, Doughty," replied the geologist, "and in themeantime some little investigation of the range may not be amiss."
The third day after they had made their semi-permanent camp Rivers tookthe boy with him on a geological trip back to Caribou Pass, the mostpracticable opening in the entire Alaskan Range. He spent some time inexplaining to the boy the general configuration of the range, and taughthim a good deal about the glacial conditions of the region. Happening toobserve a curious immense boulder in the pass, in the form of a rockalmost flat on the top, about twenty feet square and nearly as manyhigh, it occurred to Rivers that he might discern distinct striatedlines of glaciation if he could get up there on the rock to see. Theboulder was somewhat difficult to climb, but by getting on Roger'sshoulders, the geologist was able to reach a point where he could get agrip of the rock.
But, just as he worked himself over the edge of the boulder, what washis amazement to see a mountain goat, evidently descending from thecliff above, land with a clatter of hoofs on the rock not ten feet awayfrom him. Rivers promptly scrambled to his feet, and the goat,apparently thinking himself cornered and facing boldly an unknowndanger, rushed at him with lowered horns. A quick sideways jump was allthat saved the geologist, and the goat nearly went headlong over theedge with his rush.
For a minute or two Roger was in utter ignorance of what had happened,for being immediately under the rock while the chief was standing on hisshoulders, he had not seen the goat leap down to dispute the supremacyof position with the unexpected intruder. Not till he heard Rivers callto him did he know that anything was wrong.
"Doughty," he heard him say, "put a bullet in this infernal brute, willyou?"
The boy ran back to get a perspective view of the top of the boulder,and by climbing up the cliff a little way saw what had developed. In themeantime the position of the geologist was precarious in the extreme. Asuccession of short rushes he had narrowly escaped by dodging, but heknew that in a chase of this kind, he could not but lose, and if thegoat should catch him with his horns not only would the injury beserious enough in itself, but probably he would be thrown from the rockto fall a distance of twenty feet to the icy and frost-bound groundbelow.
Suddenly Rivers saw his opportunity, and as the goat paused to turn atthe end of a futile rush, he seized his horns sideways with a firmgrasp, in such wise that the creature could not get a purchase withwhich to butt, and determined to hang on for dear life. He purposed, ifit could be managed, to drive the goat to the edge of the boulder, andthen, by twisting its neck, force it over the edge. It was a doubtfulchance, but the only one he could see.
In the meantime Roger was cudgeling his brain for some means of climbingthe rock, but to no purpose, and he could have bitten his nails insheer vexation of spirit at his inability to give any aid, with hisfriend in so great peril a few steps away.
The boy watched and waited in the chance of getting a shot at the goat,but found it difficult to find an opportunity. Once, indeed, he fired,feeling sure that he could hit the animal's flank, but he was notcertain enough of his prowess with a revolver to risk a shot when he wasjust as likely to hit his chief as he was the goat. Once, indeed, theboy thought Rivers had his foe, for he forced him to the edge of theboulder and put all his strength into a violent wrench. But a mountaingoat, though not large, is possessed of considerable strength, and inhis effort to free himself almost sent Rivers over the edge.
Then suddenly an idea occurred to the boy, and watching a chance, with agentle toss he pitched his revolver up on the rock, hoping that thechief might be able to find some way of picking it up. A wild andvigorous scrambling could be heard, and a moment later the boy saw thecouple again perilously near the edge of the rock.
"Thanks for the gun," he heard Rivers sing out, "I'll get hold of it ina minute."
But evidently the chief did not dare to let go the goat's horns, lest heshould be caught before he had the revolver, and two or three minuteselapsed before the welcome sound of a shot came to the boy's ears.
Then Roger, looking up, was relieved beyond measure to see Rivers appearat the edge of the boulder mopping his forehead.
"Guess I'll throw him down," he said. "Of course we can't load ourselvesdown with the head, but the cook may want a steak or two," and suitingthe action to the word, he dragged the
animal to the side and flung himover. The boy noted immediately that the bullet had entered behind theear and under the roots of the horns, so that the combat had beensettled then and there.
The goat having been disposed of, Rivers made arrangements to come down,in the same way as he had gone up, by standing on the boy's shoulders,and both were glad when the chief reached the ground.
"That was nearly as good as a bull-fight," remarked the elder man whenhe had descended, "and it's about all the wrestle I want. I wish it hadbeen Bulson, though; he would have given that pesky animal all thescrapping he looked for. But that gun of yours came in very handily,Doughty. I guess we'd have been up there until night if it hadn't beenfor that."
"I was wondering," said the boy, "how you were going to pick it up,after I did throw it to you."
"So was I," replied the chief, "but I knew I had to risk it, so when theright time came I let go with one hand and reached for the gun with theother. That old goat was almost too quick for me, though, for he turnedin my grasp and was just gathering his muscles for a butt when I let himhave it right behind the ear."
"It was a nasty encounter, all right," said Roger, shaking his head,"but you're not hurt in any way, are you, Mr. Rivers?"
"Only in my feelings," was the reply.