As the other sleds had
the shorter route, they would start a day or two later and wait for us
at the appointed rendezvous, unless they were getting short of food, in
which case they would push on into the reindeer country. Narleyow, the
Ooqueesiksillik guide, would accompany them. We started on the 1st, as
proposed, but did not succeed in getting farther than the shore of the
strait, about three miles from camp, owing to the heavy sleds and the
dogs being so fat that they were lazy. We took Ishnark's sled to help
us for the first day, as we had such a quantity of meat--one sled
loaded entirely with it and the other with about half a load. We had to
keep the extra sled the following day also, as we wanted to get well
over the salt-water ice.
We had fondly hoped to be at the Dangerous Rapids by the 10th or 15th
of November, but we only reached the native camp near the mouth of
Kigmuktoo (Sherman Inlet) on the 12th, owing to our heavily loaded sled
and the much bad weather, fogs, and wind that would blow the snow
around so that we could not see our course. There was quite a large
camp of Netchillik and Ookwolik Esquimaux on a big lake near the mouth
of Sherman Inlet, the largest camp we had yet seen. The sled was
pulling heavily and slowly across the lake, and I went ahead toward the
igloos.
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