His Exploration, Under Gov.
Stevens, Was Made In The Summer Of 1853; And He Has Evidently Given An
Impartial Account Of The Country.
I begin with it where he crosses the
Mississippi in the vicinity of St. Cloud.
The part quoted embraces the
route for a distance of two hundred and ninety-five miles; the first
seventy miles of which was due west the rest of the route being a
little north of west.
"June 9. Ferried across the Mississippi River, here some six hundred
to eight hundred feet wide boating the camp equipage, provisions,
&c., and swimming the animals; through rich and fertile prairies,
variegated with the wooded banks of Sauk River, a short distance on
the left, with the wooded hills on either side, the clustered growth
of elm, poplar, and oak, which the road occasionally touches;
following the 'Red River trail,' we camp at Cold Spring Brook, with
clear, cool water, good grass, and wood.
"June 10. Cold Spring Brook is a small brook about ten feet across,
flowing through a miry slough, which is very soft and deep, and
previous to the passage of the wagons, had, for about two hundred feet
distance, been bridged in advance by a causeway of round or split logs
of the poplar growth near by; between this and the crossing of Sauk
River are two other bad sloughs, over one of which are laid logs of
poplar, and over the other the wagons were hauled by hand, after first
removing the loads. Sauk River is crossed obliquely with a length of
ford some three hundred feet depth of water four-and-a-half to five
feet; goods must be boated or rafted over, the river woods affording
the means of building a raft; camped immediately after crossing; wood,
water, and grass good and abundant.
"June 11. Over rolling prairies, without wood on the trail, although
generally in sight on the right or left, with occasional small ponds
and several bad sloughs, across which the wagons were hauled over by
hand to Lake Henry a handsome, wooded lake; good wood and grass;
water from small pond; not very good.
"June 13. Passing over rolling prairies to a branch of Crow River, the
channel of which is only some twenty feet wide and four or five feet
deep; but the water makes back into the grass one hundred feet or more
from the channel as early in the season as when crossed by the train.
Goods boated over; wagons by hand and with ropes; no wood on the
stream; several small lakes, not wooded, are on either side of the
trail, with many ducks, geese, and plovers on them: encamp at
Lightning Lake, a small and pretty lake, sufficiently well wooded on
the borders for camping purposes; good water, wood, and grass, and
abounding with fish.
"June 18. Over rolling prairie with small pools and marshes, to a
swift running stream about twenty feet wide, three feet deep, a branch
of Chippewa River; heavily rolling ground with stony knolls and
granite boulders, to White Bear Lake, a large handsome lake, with
mingled open and woodland.
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