PROSPECTING IN CANADA

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 829, 25 November 1929, Page 11

PROSPECTING IN CANADA

MINERS' STRUGGLES WITH GALES POLAR BEAR OUTCROP Tag with Polar bears on the shores of Hudson Bay and open air camping under a 00-mile blizzard were included in the adventures of a part of four prospectors who have returned to Winnipeg after a summer spent in searching for minerals in the Barren Lands of Northern Canada, says a Canadian exchange correspondent at Winnipeg. They flow from Eskimo point, about 150 miles north or Churchill, to The Pas. making the rest of the journey to Winnipeg by train. Carl Melvin, graduate mining enpi neer. of Illinois University, told how the party travelled from Winnipeg to Eskimo Point, and then on May 1 started on their long trek to Rank- a Inlet. 150 miles farther north on Hud son Bay The trip to Rauken Inlet was made with dog teams as there was still snow on the ground May was a wicked month for blizzards. At one time the winds blew with such velocity that the little party thought their camp would be blown away. It was necessary to rustle big boulders to hold down the flaps of their tents. The velocity of the wind was measured after it had passed its peak and showed approximately 60 miles an hour The shore of Hudson Bay was prospected from Eskimo Point to Ranken Inlet, and while none would disclose any information regarding the result* of their expedition, it was admitted that the geology was favourable to mineral occurrences. The Eskimos are fast taking to the white man’s ways, according to Mr. Melvin. The majority of them possess gramophones and can often be heard humming popular tunes from their newest records. Airplanes do not scare nor surprise them now as aircraft are becoming common modes of travel nowadays. The Eskimos have a craze for speedboats and the kayak will soon be as obsolete as the pony carriage now is in fast society, Mr. Melvin says. D. C. R. Rumsey. another member of the party, told how one of the prospectors penetrated a muskeg near Dawson Inlet. 50 miles north of Eskimo Point, in order to examine a rocky ledge. Noting what he though! was a white quartz vein he decided to go over and sample it. On near approach the “mineral outcrop” resolved itself into a group of thre** polar bears who showed resentment at having their rest interrupted. The prospector promptly took to his heels. At Tavene Bay, 100 miles north of Eskimo Point, Dominion Explorers have established a prospecting base. A repair shop has been equipped and their airplanes work out of here. <». S. Blanchette, attached to the Department of the Interior, has established a small experimental farm here and the party noticed vegetables growing early in July.

Demonstrating how near the Arctic Circle has been brought to Winnipeg, by the airplane, the party left Eskimo Point at three o’clock in the afternoon and made the 660-mile hop to Cranberry Portage in seven hours.