moved deeper into the wilderness, transportation of the furs (and the products to be traded for furs) became a larger part of the fur trading business process. The authorities began a process of issuing permits. Those travelers associated with the canoe transportation part of the licensed endeavor became known as voyageurs, a term which literally means "traveler" in French. The rocky gorge of the St. Louis River was not navigable to canoes, so Native Americans blazed a portage around it. Later, the voyageurs employed it too and dubbed it the "Grand Portage of the St. Louis." It was a rough trail of steep hills and swamps that began at the foot of the rapids above the present day Fond du Lac ("back of the lake") neighborhood and climbed some to the present-day city of Carlton. Above Carlton travelers proceeded upstream and continued on to Lake Vermilion and the Rainy River. Or they may have traveled southwest up the East Savanna River, portaged the grueling six mile long Savanna Portage (now a state park), and then paddled on to the Mississippi River. The Saint Louis River Grand Portage was divided into 19 pauses (stopping/resting places) spaced one-third to one-half mile apart. To portage the freight, each voyageur carried two or three packs weighing up to 90 pounds each. These were supported by a portage strap, which passed around the voyageur's forehead and reached to the small of his back. Once he reached a pause with his load, the voyageur would jog back to the last stop for more packs. It took an average of three to five days for a crew to complete the Grand Portage, sometimes longer under bad conditions. It was backbreaking labor, and the voyageurs would be plastered with mud and covered with mosquito and fly bites. The Grand Portage was still in use as late as 1870, but a new railroad meant the end of the old passage. Also, fur animals became less plentiful and the amount of North American fur trading declined. A portion of the trail has been renovated for hiking and information is available at the park shelter. Geology Bedrock The oldest bedrock visible in Jay Cooke State Park is the Thomson Formation, dating to the Paleoproterozoic era 1.9 billion years ago. The southernmost unit of the Animikie Group, the Thomson Formation is named for the nearby town of Thomson, as this is its