L. I). HENDERSON TELLS
OF TRIP ACROSS YUKON
KUSKOKWIM PORTAGE
(Alaska School Bulletin.)
'lhe portage between the Yukon'
and Kuskokwim rivers may be Greek
to some Alaskans, but it is an. open
book to those of. us who have ridden,
ni .i. lied, waded, pulled, and packed, it.
1 ortaging is both an art and a
lienee. To Charles Jacobsen, vet
eran mail carrier between Russian
iVi.; sion.—pn. the Yukon, and Bethel,
near the mouth of the Kuskokwim, it
is ail in .the day’s work, and at that
Lie day .begins at 6 a. m. and lasts
moil the wee’ small hours of the fol
low. ng morning. Four such days are
consumed on the trip, so it is no spe
c ui handicap to a mail carrier if he
sands fi feet 2 inches in his water
mmuuks and weighs 220 pounds, as
dues Mr. Jacobsen.
'i he reader should not get the im
pressino that the traveler on the port
age observes such itrenuous hours.
He may. tuck himself in beneath his
r.esqu.to-proof bed net at 9 p. m. if
he so desires and be awakened by the
cuor of bacon and eggs at (1 a. m.
kieantlme Mr. Jacobsen and his crew
of Eskimo boys have been busily en
gaged in packing several tons of
i. .i baggeg., gasoline, food,
freight, and boats across a mile of
spongy tundra to the next lake or
stream in order to be ready for the
tariy morning start. We have no
iota what Uncle Sam pays for this
mad contract, but we are positive
that any amount approching what it.
once cost,to persuade Jack Dempsey
to.don the gloves is actually earned
it is approximately 25 miles from
the left bank of the Yukon to the
right bank of the Kuskokwim as the
trow flies, and 120 miles by the trav
e.ed. portage route. The disparity in
these iigures will give some cmalll
in.a of how the small streams which
are traversed wind and wind. We
left Russian Mission at 8 a. m. on
August. 7 in two boats, one open and
propelled by a Johnson outboard mo
tor, and the other a canvas covered
launch.. The party consisted of four
men. one woman, and seven children,
the youngest six weeks of age. in ad
muon to boat crews. Our cargo was
made up of several hundred pounds
m mail for Kuskokwim river points,
besides baggage and the necessary
food and gasoline to keep passengers
and engines going. The weather was
clear and continued so throughout
the journey, an exceptional occur
rence. We rejoiced at this. It. re
quires no great stretch of the imagine
at ion to picture th ediscomforts of
travel in open boats and on foot
across such a region in a steady
downpour, of rain.
The Tatlawicksack river flows into
the Yukon opposite Russian. Mission.
Y e entered the stream and breasted
its sluggish current a distance of 40
"J
| Diamond
Dick
Roadhouse
Takotna, Alaska
-— — 1
V
j Dick Rhodes (Diamond Dick)
may now be found in his new
quarters
i |
! Former McLean Roadhouse,
!. where he will be pleased to j
• me t all old friends and to j
get acquainted with new ones
_LJL'IELSWn
miles to what is termed the high
portage. This portage ir. about one
half mile across. Its name, the high
portage, is derived from the fact that
the ground between the river landing
and a small lake, the next waterway,
i rises about 100 feet above water level,
thus necessitating a climb, whereas
' the remaining portages are flat and
! marshy and a few feet only above
the level of lakes and streams which
touch them. One or two boats were
abandoned, at the river landing, and
mail, baggage and personal freight
carried across the portage t o small
lake where two open boats propelled
camped for the first night on the
by outhoard motors awaited us. We
shore of this lake, the men of the
party giving over the shelter cabin to
the use of the woman passenger and
! her children and pitching a ten for
| their own use. Yes, there, were
plenty of mosquitoes.
We began the second day by cross
ing a chain of lakes connected hy
small streams, i hat is, all lakes but
two were thus connected. A mile of
tundra, the second portage, connects
these two, and boats, mail, baggage,
etc., weredragged across this portage
by man power. One lake, Grassy
lake, is of particular interest. It is
’several miles wide and, as its name
implies, presents to the view the ap
pearance of a broad grassy plain.
One who attemptts to walk across
this region, however, will need pon
grass grows in water several feet
toons in place of shoes since the tall
deep. A winding lane, kept free
of grass by engine propoller blades, is
followed across the lake, which finally
terminates in Crooked creek, most
aptly named. After winding down
this creek a distance of 3t> miles our
boats entered Johnson river, of
which Crooked creek is a tributary,
i We journeyed lip this river for 15
i miles to the third portage, a mile in
width, arriving at nightfall of the
j second day. By the time mail, boats,
| and baggage had been dragged
| across the mile of tundra separating
i Johnson river from a small lake, our
| next waterway, we were ready for a
night’s repose in shelter cabin and
| tent.
i The third day opened with » boat..:
ride of 100 yards across a small lake,
followed by an overland journey of
the same length, t© Mud creek, a
tributary of the Kuskokwim river.
Again boats and contentts had to be
dragged and carried from the lake to
j the creek. Down this creek our
! trusty Johnson outboard motors pro
pelled us adistance of 12. miles to
the broad expanse of the Kusko
kwim. It is easy going from this
: point to Bethel, 120 miles down river,
| and the end of the mail route.
| Some time in the not distant future
1 the residents of this section of Alaska
i hope to have the distance between
l Alaska’s two great rivers shortened
and the journey made easier through
the' construction of a few short
| j stretches of tram road and the deep
, ening of waterways. The Alaska
j Road Commission already has srr
i.j veyed a route, following in general
the course now traveled, and are
| awaiting fund's necessary to begin
i the work.
FORMER GOVERNOR RIGGS
DISCUSSES BEAR BEHAVIOR
Former Governor Thomas Riggs
contributes an illustrated article in
: October Field and Stream in the dis
j cussion over the question “Will a
j grizzly bear attack a man without
provocation?” Governor Riggs heads
his article “My Vote Is Yes.” His is
the fifth article of the series. He
‘ contends that sometimes a grizzly
; will attack without, provocation.
1 Governor Riggs states his premise
in this way:
“The man who has never seen a
grizzly bear outside the zoo is decid
edly of the opinion that he will not
attack a man’ without provocation.
Many sportsmen who have hunted the
grizzly or brown bear of Alaska say
he will not. It so happened that their
especial grizzlies ran the other way.
u I ..JL. J-JUL1 JJBJB!'—L -.-' - *
I
I have hunted grizzlies and have 1
never been attacked. But I know a!
man who had the whole top of his
scalp torn off by a grizzly while
peacefully walking along a mountain
trail. This man is firmly convinced
that his bear nursed a deep-seated
grouch against mankind in general j
and himself in particular.”
i he Governor then proceeds with |
more than a dozen instances of un
proveked attacks by grizzly and
brown bears that came under his ob
servation while he was Governor of
Alaska, lie gives names, dates and
circumstances. He also refers to the
fact that the Governor’s office in Ju
neau contains the data of many other
cases.
Governor Riggs used the aggres- 1
siveness of both blown and grizzly |
bears to prove his case because the
Biological Survey puts them in the j
same classification.
O course, Governor Riggs is right.
The case against the Alaskan bears. !
browns and grizzlies, has been j
proven so often that it causes one to j
wonder why the discussion now. And. j
probably more than any other one j
man, Governor Riggs gathered the
evidence to cinch the argument.—.Ju
neau Empire.
The Gay Old Trader.
Trader Horn, the aged litterateur,
was congratulated by a New fork
girl reporter on the zest with which
she went the rounds of New York
dinner parties, teas and receptions.
“Well, you see, I enjoy it ail, my
girl,” said the old trader. “I’m not
like the ,scientist.
“A lady reproached the scientist
for refusing to go out into society.
“ ‘It must bore you dreadfully,’ she
said. ‘Work, work, work, nothing
but work all the time.’
“‘I’m only bored, ma’am,’ the sci-.
entist explained, ‘when being en-1
tertainedJ ”
Are you a Kusko Times subscriber ?
Why not?
TABLE OF DISTANCES BE
TWEEN NENANA AND FLAT
Nenana .
Tavern Roadhouse .
Knight’s Roadhouse .
Nineteen-Mile Roadhouse
Diamond Roadhouse ...
Roosevelt .
Lake Minchumina .
Trappers’ Cabin .
Lone Star Roadhouse .
Telida Roadhouse .
Slow Fork Roadhouse
East Fork Roadhouse .
Berry’s Landing Roadhouse
Big River Roadhouse ...
McGrath ..
Takotna .
Bill Goss’ Roadhouse
Ophir ._...
McCaf forty .
Brown Creek shelter cabin
Fritz shelter cabin .
: First Chance shelter cabin
Sehermeyer R. H.. .
Iditarod .
Flat ..V
Bonanzza sheier cabin,
from Flat.
Crooked Creek shelter
miles from Bonanza.
Miles
. 00 1
17%
11%
58
.. 76
89
115
132
150
169 Ms
187 i
206
241
_ 263
. 280 !
291
300
...... 306
.._ 318
. 333
. 34C
. 360 |
. 384
12 miles
cabin, 19
NOTICE TO CREDITORS.
All persons having claims against)
| the estate of Edgar Ryder, de- j
(ceased, are hereby required to pre-:
i sent the same, under oath, to the un
•( dersigned, administrator of the said
estate, at his residence, at Fiat,
I Alaska, or at the office of the Probate
! Judge at Flat, Alaska, on or before
May 31, 1929.
Dated, Flat, Alaska, October 15,
i 1928. .
HARRY DONNELLEY,
Administrator of the estate of i
Edgar Ryder, deceased.
NOTICE TO CREDITORS. j
_
All persons having claims against
the estate of Carl Alfred Johnson, de-1
ceased, are hereby required to pre
j sent the same, under oath, to the un- j
j dersigned, administrator of the said'
estate, at his residence at Flat,:
! Alaska, or at the office of the Probate |
Judge at Flat, Alaska, on or before'
, May 31, 1929.
Dated, Flat, Alaska, October 15, •
1928.
HARRY DONNELLEY,
Administrator of the estate of
Carl Alfred Johnson, de!
ceased.
Babeesch Moosehide Mitts and Boots
Furs Bought and Sold Clothing
All Kinds of Nice Fresh Groceries and Fruits
Canned Goods of All Kinds Beds and Bedding
A. ft Eldridge - McGrath
Best of Meals and Rooms
Where Everything Is Homelike and
Where You Are Cordially Welcomed
GOOD DOG HOUSES BATHS
Ivar Chilstrom - Prop.
mmaumammmmmmBmmmmmmmmmmMmmmmmassaammmamm
i
Rough and Dressed Lum
her of All Kinds
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