I knew that someone would know and I knew it would be one of you. Che-Mun subscribers are an amazing bunch – a collective pool of knowledge that I love to tap.

The question was; where is the Ptarmigan Rapids on the upper Dubawnt River that J.B, Tyrrell took a photo of?  His 1893 photo  appears on Page 12 of Outfit 114. It turns out my guess was very close.

I had surmised it was the long curving rapids coming out of Hinde Lake. Thanks to Brian Gnauck of Marquette, MI it seems I was just off by a few miles. He notes Ptarmigan Rapids as the two double-bar rapids about four miles out of Hinde Lake. He sent a copy of his annotated map and even a photo of them doing the rapids (into a bright morning sun). In my journal they were noted as the first set we scouted then ran but I had no name for them. That was before the days of in-depth historical research. Many thanks, Brian.

The HACC has begun to prepare for another trip after missing last year. It will be a shorter, more southerly route than usual but a key cog in the fur trade route and a trip done in 1958 by Eric Morse.

Our working title is Crown of a Continent: The Methye Portage. The plan is to begin where Eric and three others did in 1958 – Ile-a-la-Crosse, the starting point for the famed Lonely Land Churchill River trip done in 1955 by The Voyageurs. But Eric headed west this time up into the very top of the Churchill River system in order to do the 12-mile Methye Portage into the Clearwater/ Athabasca systems and finish in Fort McMurray.

We’re not sure if this will be another online trip yet and there are a couple of other variables but it sure is nice to be able to start planning for real again. We’ll have more on this in Outfit 116.

And finally, I would like to thank all of you who took the time and consideration to respond and react to the passing of the Labrador canoeists, Daniel Pauzé and Susan Barnes. I was touched by the thoughtfulness of your comments .

                                    Michael Peake