This letter doesn't have a date or whom to; I imagine it's a summary report to "Whom it may Concern;" or to Jarvis in 1876.
The country between Quesnelle and Lake St. Ann’s is heavily wooded for the most part. West of the mountains it is much broken and rugged. The streams there are rapid and their banks rocky.
After crossing the mountains things appear in a more settled form, and on a smaller scale, the hills particularly. On the Smoky River there is some fine sandstone, about all we saw on the trip. We had heard of a great canon on the Athabasca but when we reached it we found the rocky sides to be about 20 feet high and fiat on the top. We were disappointed. On the Pembina River there are some coal beds which have been burning for many years. We could smell the smoke about a mile off, and it put us in mind of a city. At one place where the smoke comes out of the side of a perpendicular rock it is particularly striking. The surface of the ground is very hot in many places, hot enough to boil the kettle; and by the way I might mention here that the proper name for "Smoky River" is “Smoking” River, so given from some burning coal beds about 50 miles below where we left it.
The wood about St. Ann’s is small and mostly cotton wood. From that to east it exists only in patches and is very small. East of Edmonton a man knowing the country can generally find enough wood to make a fire, but there are places where wood has to be carried in the carts, such as the Salt Plain, Pheasant Plain, and some others. I am speaking of the trail which we followed from Edmonton. There is a trail south of the Saskatchewan. where the kettle most of the time has to be boiled by the use of buffalo chips. One reason why we did not take it was the season not being far enough advanced and fires being necessary there.
The map, 25 miles to an inch, is a tracing I compiled from my poor data. It will do to give you an idea of the locality we are now in as well as that followed last winter ('75). It is not correct as regards distance. The trail I have dotted in red, as well as the other part of our journey. The line of the C. P. R. I laid down as near as I could from information gathered in letters, &c. " The plan of our Smoky River exploration " is as correct as can be, having been plotted from the original notes. The camps are marked in red and the elevations in blue.
You will see that I haven’t wasted much time on them, but I trust they are plain and will serve their purpose.
I send the " Smoky River plan " in toto, but a very small strip of the other one. 'Cause, not very much time to spare just now.
Hoping you'll excuse all the deficiencies which can’t be helped,
I remain,
Yours sincerely,
C. F. HANINGTON.
DISTANCE TRAVELLED ON SMOKY RIVER EXPLORATION.
Miles.
From Quesnelle Mouth to Fort George.............................. 125
" Fort George to mouth of North Fork.......................... 64
" North Fork to Hanington's Cache............................... 18
" Hanington’s Cache to Salmon Cache (Bear River),
going by Portage and returning via Bear and
Fraser Rivers............................................................. 73 1/2
" Hanington's Cache to the Forks.................................. 18
" The Forks to head of North Branch............................ 63
" Return to the Forks.................................................... 63
" Forks to turn into Pass............................................... 48 1/2
" Turn into Pass to Summit of Mountains........................ 40 3/4
" Summit to Cache on Smoky River............................... 86
" Cache on Smoky River to Next River........................... 9 1/4
" Next river to Fiddle River Depot...............................110
" Fiddle River Depot to Lake St. Ann's....................... 217
" Lake St. Ann’s to Edmonton...................................... 60
Miles............................................................................... 996
Miles.
Distances measured by Pacing between Quesnelle Mouth and
Edmonton on Exploration................................................ 826
Number of paces counted, taking inside figures .............2,188,900
DISTANCES FROM EDMONTON EAST.
Miles.
From Edmonton to Fort Victoria............................................80
" Victoria to Fort Pitt.................................................... 113
" Pitt to Fort Carlton..................................................... 167
" Carlton to Fort Ellice.................................................. 307
" Ellice to Fort Garry.................................................... 220
Total................................................................................... 887
Total distance travelled.....................................................1, 883
No. of camps between Quesnelle Mouth and Fort Garry....... 106
RATION LIST, CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY SURVEY, BRITISH COLUMBIA.
For one man, per day and per month:-
Per day. Per month.
Bacon and hams.................................... 1 1/2 lb. 45 lbs.
Flour.................................................... 1 1/4 " 37 1/2 "
Beans and pease................................. 12 1/2 ozs. 25 "
Oatmeal.................................................1 1/2 " 2 "
Dried apples and plums.......................... 4 " 5 "
Tea...................................................... 1 1/4 " 2 "
Coffee.................................................. 1 1/2 " 3 "
Sugar................................................. 2 1/2 " 4 1/2 "
Rice.................................................... 2 " 4 "
Molasses......................... ............................................1 gall.
Yeast powder........................................ 3 tins to 50 lbs. of flour.
Salt....................................................................................1/2 "
Mustard..............................................................................1/8 "
Pepper................................................................................1/3 "
Pickles................................................Plenty.
Soap................................................... do 4 "
Candles.............................................. do in officers’ mess.
Vinegar.............................................. do
Lime juice........................................... do
Matches.............................................. do
Note.- When fresh beef is used instead of bacon, 60 lbs. must be allowed per month.
These rations are used regularly in B. C. The sugar particularly is very often short.
C. F. HANINGTON.
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