Adventures Of An Angler In Canada, Nova Scotia And The United States

ADVENTURES OF AN ANGLER IN CANADA, NOVA SCOTIA AND THE UNITED STATES.

BY CHARLES LANMAN. LONDON: RICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET. Publisher in Ordinary to Her Majesty. 1848. LONDON: Printed by Schulze &amp; Co., 13, Poland Street....

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TO SOLOMON T. NICOLL, ESQ.

My dear Sir, To you, in testimony of my friendship, I inscribe this little Volume. On a pleasant morning in May last, I awoke from a piscatorial dream, haunted by the idea, that I must spend a portion of the approaching summer in the indulgence of my passion for angling. Relinquishing my editorial labours for a time, I performed a pilgrimage, which has resulted in the production of this Volume. I hope it may entertain those of my friends and the public, who have heretofore received my literary e

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CHAPTER I.

The Catskill Mountains—South Peak Mountain—A thunder storm—Midnight on the Mountains—Sunrise—Plauterkill Clove—Peter Hummel—Trout fishing—Stony Clove—The Kauterskill Fall—The Mountain House—The Mountain Lake. Plauterkill Clove. May. I commence this chapter in the language of Leather-Stocking: “You know the Catskills, lad, for you must have seen them on your left, as you followed the river up from York, looking as blue as a piece of clear sky, and holding the clouds on their tops, as the smoke cu

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CHAPTER II.

A Spring Day—The Sky—The Mountains—The Streams—The Woods—The Open Fields—Domestic Animals—Poetry—The Poultry-yard. Plauterkill Clove. May. May is near its close, and I am still in the valley of the Hudson. Spring is indeed come again, and this, for the present year, has been its day of triumph. The moment I awoke at dawn, this morning, I knew by intuition that it would be so, and I bounded from my couch like a startled deer, impatient for the cool delicious air. Spring is upon the earth once mor

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CHAPTER III.

A corn-planting Bee. Plauterkill Clove. May. The people who inhabit that section of country lying between the Catskill Mountains and the Hudson River, are undoubtedly the legitimate descendants of the far-famed Rip Van Winkle. Dutch blood floweth in their veins, and their names, appearance, manners, are all Dutch, and Dutch only. The majority of them are engaged in tilling the soil, and as they seem to be satisfied with a bare competency, the peacefulness of their lives is only equalled by their

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CHAPTER IV.

Lake Horicon—Sketches of its scenery—Information for anglers—Sabbath-day Point—War memories—The Turret City—Death of a deer—Roger’s Slide—Diamond Island—The snake-charmer—Snake stories—Night on the Horicon. Lyman’s Tavern. June. If circumstances alone could make one poetical, then might you expect from me on this occasion a paper of rare excellence and beauty. My sketch-book is my desk, my canopy from the sunshine an elm-tree, the carpet under my feet a rich green sprinkled with flowers, the mus

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CHAPTER V.

The Scaroon Country—Scaroon Lake—Pike Fishing by Torch-light—Trout Fishing—Lyndsey’s Tavern—Paradox Lake. Lyndsey’s Tavern. June. Emptying into the Hudson River, about fifteen miles north of Glen’s Falls, is quite a large stream, sometimes called the East Branch of the Hudson, but generally known as Scaroon River. [1] Its extreme length is not far from fifty miles. It is a clear, cold, and rapid stream, winds through a mountainous country, and has rather a deep channel. The valley through which

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CHAPTER VI.

The Adirondac Mountains—Trout Fishing in the Boreas River—A night in the woods—Moose Lake—Lake Delia—Mount Tahawas—Lakes Sanford and Henderson—The McIntyre Iron Works. John Cheney’s Cabin. June. The Adirondac Mountains are situated on the extreme head waters of the Hudson, in the Counties of Essex and Hamilton, and about forty miles west of Lake Champlain. They vary from five hundred to five thousand feet in height, and with few exceptions are covered with dense forests. They lord it over the mo

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CHAPTER VII.

John Cheney, the Adirondac hunter, and some of his exploits. John Cheney’s Cabin. June. John Cheney was born in New Hampshire, but spent his boyhood on the shores of Lake Champlain, and has resided in the Adirondac wilderness about thirteen years. He has a wife and one child, and lives in a comfortable cabin in the wild village of McIntyre. His profession is that of a hunter, and he is in the habit of spending about one half of his time in the woods. He is a remarkably amiable and intelligent ma

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CHAPTER VIII.

Burlington—Lake Champlain—Distinguished Men. Burlington. June. Of all the towns which I have ever seen, Burlington in Vermont is decidedly one of the most beautiful. It stands on the shore of Lake Champlain, and from the water to its eastern extremity is a regular elevation, which rises to the height of some three hundred feet. Its streets are broad and regularly laid out, the generality of its buildings elegant, and its inhabitants well educated, refined, and wealthy. My visit here is now about

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CHAPTER IX.

Stage-coach—The Winooski—The Green Mountains—The ruined Dwelling—The White Mountains—The Flume—A deep Pool—The Old Man of the Mountain—The Basin—Franconia Notch—View of the Mountains—Mount Washington—The Notch Valley. In a Stage-coach. June. Three loud knocks at my bed-room door awakened me from “a deep dream of peace.” “The eastern stage is ready,” said my landlord, as he handed me a light; whereupon, in less than five minutes after the hour of three, I was on my way to the White Mountains, ind

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CHAPTER X.

Montreal. Montreal. June. With some things in Montreal I have been pleased, but with others a good deal dissatisfied. The appearance which it presents from every point of view is imposing in the extreme. Its numerous church towers and extensive blocks of stores, its extensive shipping and noble stone wharves, combine to give one an idea of great wealth and liberality. On first riding to my hotel I was struck with the cleanliness of its streets; and, on being shown to my room, I was convinced tha

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CHAPTER XI.

Quebec. Quebec. June. I came from Montreal to this city in the day time, and consequently had an opportunity of examining this portion of the St. Lawrence. The river opposite Montreal runs at the rate of six miles per hour, and is two miles wide; it preserves this breadth for about sixty miles, and then expands into the beautiful and emerald-looking Lake of St. Peter, after which it varies from one to five in width until it reaches Quebec, which is distant from Montreal one hundred and eighty mi

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CHAPTER XII.

A sail down the St. Lawrence—Sword-Fish—Chasing a Whale. Tadousac. June. I have not visited Canada for the purpose of examining her cities, and studying the character of her people, but solely with a view of hunting up some new scenery, and having a little sport in the way of salmon fishing. I am writing this chapter at the mouth of probably the most remarkable river in North America. But, before entering upon a description of my sojourn here, it is meet, I ween, that I should record an account

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CHAPTER XIII.

The Saguenay River—Chicoutimi—Storm Picture—Hudson’s Bay Company—Eminent Merchant—The Mountaineer Indians—Tadousac—Ruin of a Jesuit Establishment. Tadousac. July. About one hundred and fifty miles north of the St. Lawrence, and on one of the trails leading to Hudson’s Bay, lies a beautiful Lake called St. John. It is about forty miles long, and surrounded with a heavily timbered and rather level country. Its inlets are numerous, and twelve of them are regular rivers. Its waters are clear, and ab

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CHAPTER XIV.

The Salmon—Salmon Adventures. Tadousac. June. I intend to devote the present letter to the acknowledged king of all the finny tribes, the lithe, wild, and beautiful salmon. He pays an annual visit to all the tributaries of the St. Lawrence lying between Quebec and Bic Island, (where commences the Gulf of St. Lawrence), but he is most abundant on the north shore, and in those streams which are beyond the jurisdiction of civilization. He usually makes his first appearance about the twentieth of Ma

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CHAPTER XV.

Seal-hunting on the St. Lawrence—The white Porpoise. Tadousac. July. Before breakfast, this morning, I had the pleasure of taking fifteen common trout, and the remainder of the day I devoted to seal-hunting. This animal is found in great abundance in the St. Lawrence, and by the Indians and a few white people is extensively hunted. There are several varieties found in these waters; and the usual market price for the oil and skin, is five dollars. They vary in size from four to eight feet, and ar

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CHAPTER XVI.

The Esquimaux Indians of Labrador. Tadousac. July. The vast region of country lying on the north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and extending to the eastward of the Saguenay as far as Newfoundland, is generally known under the name of Labrador. It is an exceedingly wild and desolate region, and, excepting an occasional fishing hamlet or a missionary station belonging to the worthy Moravians, its only inhabitants are Indians. Of these the more famous tribes are the Red Indians, (now almost ex

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CHAPTER XVII.

The Habitans of Canada. River du Loup. July. Since my last chapter, written on the banks of the Saguenay, I have completed my pilgrimage through Lower Canada, but before leaving the province, I will give you the result of my observations respecting some of its people. These are divided into three classes—the descendants of the French colonists, (commonly called “Habitans,”) the British settlers, and the Indian tribes. The Habitans, of whom I am now to speak, are the most numerous, and so peculia

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CHAPTER XVIII.

The Grand Portage into New Brunswick—Lake Timiscouta—The Madawaska River. On the Madawaska. July. The traveller, who would go from Quebec to Halifax by the recently established Government route, will have to take a steamer for one hundred and twenty miles down the great river, and cross the Grand Portage road which commences at River Du Loup, and extends to Lake Timiscouta, a distance of thirty-six miles. With the village of Du Loup I was well pleased. It contains about twelve hundred inhabitant

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CHAPTER XIX.

The Acadians. Mouth of the Madawaska. July. At the junction of the rivers Madawaska and St. John, and extending for some miles down the latter, is a settlement of about three hundred Acadians. How these people came by the name they bear, I do not exactly understand; but of their history I remember the following particulars. In the year 1755, during the existence of the Colonial difficulties between England and France, there existed, in a remote section of Nova Scotia, about fifteen thousand Acad

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CHAPTER XX.

Sail down the Madawaska—The Falls of the St. John. Falls of the St. John. July. In coming to this place from the north, the traveller finds it necessary to descend the river St. John in a canoe. The distance from Madawaska is thirty-six miles, and the day that I passed down was delightful in the extreme. My canoe was only about fifteen feet long, but my voyageur was an expert and faithful man, and we performed the trip without the slightest accident. The valley of this portion of the river is mo

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CHAPTER XXI.

The Hermit of Aroostook. Mouth of the Aroostook. July. I was on my way down the river St. John, in New Brunswick, and having heard that the Aroostook, (one of its principal tributaries,) was famous for its salmon and a picturesque waterfall, I had taken up my quarters at a tavern near the mouth of that stream, with a view of throwing the fly for a few days, and adding to my stock of sketches. I arrived at this place in the forenoon, and after depositing my luggage in an upper room, and ordering

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CHAPTER XXII.

The River St. John. Woodstock. July. I have recently performed a pilgrimage along the valley of the Lower St. John, and as I am about to leave the river, it is meet that I should give my reader a record of my observations. The distance from the Falls of St. John to the city of that name, is two hundred and twenty miles. The width varies from a quarter of a mile to nearly two miles, and the depth from two to forty feet. That portion lying north of Frederickton, abounds in rapids and shallows, and

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CHAPTER XXIII.

The Penobscot River. Off the Coast of Maine. July. A week ago I was fighting with mosquitoes and flies, on the head waters of the Penobscot, and now that I am upon the ocean once more, I fancy that my feelings are allied to those of an old moose that I lately saw standing in a mountain lake, with the water up to his chin. The noble river which I have mentioned, “is all my fancy painted it,” and in spite of its insect inhabitants, I shall ever remember it with pleasure. The length of this stream,

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CHAPTER XXIV.

Moosehead Lake.—The River Kennebeck. Portland. August. Moosehead Lake is the largest and the wildest in New England. It lies in the central portion of the State of Maine, and distant from the ocean near one hundred and fifty miles. Its length is fifty miles, and its width from five to fifteen. It is embosomed among a brotherhood of mountains, whose highest peak has been christened with the beautiful name of Katahden. All of them, from base to summit, are covered with a dense forest, in which the

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CHAPTER XXV.

A Fishing Party on the Thames—Watch Hill—Night Adventures. Norwich. August. A few mornings ago, just as the sun had risen above the eastern hills, which look down upon the Thames at Norwich, the prettiest sail-boat of the place left her moorings, and with a pleasant northerly breeze started for the Sound. Her passengers consisted of six gentlemen, all equipped in their sporting jackets, and furnished with fishing tackle, and their place of destination was Watch Hill, a point of land in Rhode Isl

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CHAPTER XXVI.

A week in a Fishing Smack—Fisherman—A beautiful morning at sea—A day at Nantucket—Wreck of a ship—Night on the Sound. Norwich. August. On a pleasant Monday morning I started from Norwich, bound to New London, and from thence to any other portion of the world where I might have some sport in the way of salt-water fishing. In less than an hour after landing from the steam-boat, I had boarded the handsome smack Orleans, Captain Keeney, and by dint of much persuasion, secured a berth on board, to ac

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