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One Warm Line:
Coppermine River by Raft, from Rocknest Lake to the Arctic Ocean,
July 23rd to August 3rd, 2014
Fifteen intrepid souls embarked on an adventure to raft the wild Coppermine River through Canada's Northwest Territories and Nunavut to the Arctic Ocean. Here is our story set in historical context...
Now the river offered much variety, from slow, deep flowing channels to wide and shallow areas with swift water and expansive boulder fields where determining any kind of a channel was difficult. Greg and I took turns piloting out little craft as this gave both of us opportunity to turn our backs to the north wind and warm up a little.
Leaving Escape Rapids, we made a final rush to Bloody Falls....
[Richardson reports shooting Escape Rapids and landing above Bloody Falls, what he calls Massacre Rapid.]
Sunday July 15th 1821
Leaving Mr Wentzel and the Indians at the encampment we embarked at 8 a.m. a party walking on shore, to lighten the canoes. The river at this place flows between high sandstone cliffs, reddish slate clay rocks, and shelving banks of clay and is full of shoals and dangerous rapids. In one of these, the canoes were filled with water and narrowly escaped foundering. About noon Hepburn appeared on the left bank and by his direction we put ashore in a small sandy bay at the head of the celebrated rapid of Hearne. Pp. 76-77.
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