C Ihe Ladies c cu. V'VVAN - History and Classics, Department of

ForewordIXwhere there was a narrow beach to walk on, they had to plunge through the tangleof spruce, poplar, willow, and alder, arousing more mosquitoes in clouds. Thefooting was difficult and tussocky, whereas we in the water were at least cool, andthe business of working upstream holds its own fascination-a form of intellectualexercise akin to that experienced by mountain climbers. Snap decisions hadto be made about which shore to follow, where and when to cross the river, andwhich of several channels to take. There was plenty of discomfort, and sometimesconsiderable alarm. More than once, I was swept off my feet. Even so, rather thatthan a laborious tramp on shore, which for me would have lacked the compensatingdelight that Clara and Gwen, both accomplished naturalists, could take inspotting plant life.Our trip shared a misfortune with Clara and Gwen's: we too had rain in thefirst few days, resulting in a two-foot rise in the water level. We were able to makesome progress each day, but it was slow and arduous, as the beaches needed fortracking the canoes were submerged. We took desperate measures then, polingand pulling ourselves upstream by grabbing branches leaning from the bank. Wewere often flirting with danger.The Rat River has, I imagine, inflicted a "low" on most who have attempted totravel up it. For us, having been misdirected to start up the river's southernbranch, the nadir came on the very first day. Words cannot describe the misery ofour eighteen-hour paddle through a maze of muddy ditches and pools, thecurrent at times undetectable, and the river no longer conforming to the map. Itwas a frightening experience. For Clara and Gwen, the low point came when theythought they were without guides (and food), having become separated fromLazarus and Jim by the braiding, swollen river. Vyvyan's narrative conveys a senseof the real fear and shock that can strike when an apparently safe situationsuddenly turns to one of menace, out of control. It must have required greatself-discipline for the two women to stay put, hoping for the guides to find them,rather than flounder around in the bush and swamp.There were joyful times as well. Reaching the summit of McDougall Pass hasinspired euphoria in every party I know of on this route. And more joy lay aheadfor the women-four days when they were really on their own after Lazarus andJim left them and returned to Fort McPherson and Aklavik. The two women hadpicked up enough competence with the canoe to be able to manage, and Gwen'sboating experience was an asset. Their unhurried journey downstream with a fastcurrent became a time of bliss that shines as the emotional pinnacle of the entire