by Adam Shoalts
ADDENDUM
IN 2015, WITH Chuck Brill, Adam Shoalts returned to the Hudson Bay Lowlands to explore the western fork in the Brant River, one of the two rivers he was originally interested in exploring in 2011 for the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
THIS BOOK would not have been possible without the help, expertise, and encouragement of many people who shared an interest in seeing the story of my adventures published. Most important of all was my literary agent, Rick Broadhead, who first approached me in the summer of 2013 about the idea of writing a book, and then deftly guided me through what to me was the uncharted territory of the publishing industry. Rick was everything a writer could want in a literary agent, and never once led me astray over any unexpected waterfalls or into any hidden rocks.
I was also fortunate to benefit from the expertise and professionalism of a great team at Penguin Canada. My editor, Nick Garrison, brought a keen eye and insightful mind to the narrative, and a sympathetic appreciation for what it is that I do. Nick also made sure to keep me on the right track when I was getting lost in the literary woods. Nicole Winstanley, Penguin Canada’s president and publisher, was supportive throughout this process and made me feel at home with Penguin. I am indebted to Scott Richardson, the book’s graphic designer, for the book’s layout and cover. Scott also created the book’s maps based off my originals. Mary Ann Blair, the managing editor for the project, kept everything on schedule and running smoothly, despite having to deal with my absence for weeks in the wilderness without contact. The copyeditor, Claudia Forgas, carefully scrutinized the manuscript and helped correct errors. I also want to thank Tricia van der Grient, who handled the publicity for the book, and Justin Stoller for his work on a number of fronts. I must also thank the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, especially for their support of my expeditions in 2011 and 2013.
I was fortunate in finding a number of friends and family kind enough to read earlier stages of the manuscript and offer comments and suggestions. In particular I want to thank Diane Moore, Sandra and Charles Durant, Frank Hummell, Alice Yi, and Elizabeth Hudson. My friends Brent Kozuh and Wesley Crowe were also supportive of this book, and I wish to thank both of them for sharing in some of the adventures retold here and for remaining my good friends throughout it all. Finally, I must thank my parents, both of whom not only encouraged and nurtured my love of literature and the outdoors, but put up with the stress of my many solo expeditions.
INDEX
A
aboriginal people
in Canadian subarctic, 16
disease and, 19
exploration by, 12–13
in Hudson Bay Lowlands, 18–19
Again River. See also waterfalls; weather
author’s desire to explore, 47–49, 51, 187, 188–89
author’s discovery on map, 23
author’s goals in finding, 27–28
author’s research on, 24–27
beauty of, 224
character of, 214–15, 232
claims about, 279–80
as destination, 31
discovery of headwaters, 209
elusiveness of, 43–44, 50
first attempts to reach, 29–38
funding for 2013 expedition, 252, 258, 259
hold on author, 249
location of, 27
origins of name, 253, 254
planning for 2013 expedition, 250–51
portaging on 2012 expedition, 199–202, 207–8, 225–26, 229–31
portaging on 2013 expedition, 268
preparations for 2012 expedition, 189–90
Sinclair’s comments on, 246
water levels in 2012 expedition, 193–94, 197
water levels in 2013 expedition, 270
Albany River, 27
Algonquin Park, 58
Allouez, Claude-Jean, 177
Amazon rainforest, 51, 56–57
Amazon River, 156
Antarctic, 15, 68, 114, 125–26, 168
Aquatuk River, 134, 142–43, 146, 154
Arctic, 282–83
Arctic Circle, 282
Attawapiskat River, 73
Avalon (canoe), 159, 193, 257–58, 270, 278
B
bald eagle, significance of dead, 149
bald eagle nest, 83
Ballantyne, R.M., 74
Bateman, Robert, 13
Bayly, Charles, 103–4
bear deterrents, 35–36, 193
bears. See black bears; grizzly bears; Kermode bear; polar bears; spirit bear
beavers, 41, 157–58, 198, 210, 215
Bella Coola, 181–82
Berger, Jonathan, 23
Bigfoot. See sasquatch
Bird, Louis, 151, 154
black bears, 30, 36, 93, 106, 136, 137, 139–40, 170–71, 181, 193, 195, 245
Bostock, H.H., 142
Brant River, 65, 66, 94
Brill, Chuck, 287
Burton, Sir Richard, 47, 157, 266
C
Cabot, John, 10
Camsell, Charles, 52, 212
Canada
early population of, 14–16
exploration of, 10, 13, 16–17
population density of north, 9
surveying of north, 10–11
Canada AM (TV show), 262
Canadian Geographic (magazine), 51, 52, 54, 56, 177, 188, 282
Canadian Hunter’s Handbook (Knap), 116
Canoe Atlas of the Little North (Berger and Thomas), 24
Canoeing North into the Unknown (Hodgins and Hoyle), 23, 233
canoe(s)
accidents with, 216–17, 270–71, 272
Avalon, 159, 193, 257–58, 270, 278
birchbark, 55, 270
canvas, 270
cedar strip, 33, 38–39
damaged, 39, 219–20, 221
fibreglass, 35, 38, 39, 44–45
repairs and alterations to, 257–58
seaworthiness of, 235–36
sturdiness of, 159
for 2012 expedition, 76–77
for 2013 expedition, 193
unsuitability for Arctic use, 282–83
caribou encounter, 100–101
Champlain, Samuel de, 10
Chookomolin family, 76
Clark, William, 182
Columbus, Christopher, 47, 67, 206
Conan Doyle, Sir Arthur, 48
Conrad, Joseph, 6
Corner River, 246
Corrigal, William, 234
Cree, northern, 76
Cree, Swampy, 97–98
Crowe, Wesley, 87, 89
author’s preference for in expedition, 123, 256
considers new expedition, 188
family camping trip with author, 278
help with 2012 expedition, 69
high school antics, 115
inability to undertake new expedition, 48–50, 57–58, 66, 189
short expeditions with author, 51–52, 260
and supernatural tales, 147, 148–49, 150–51
and 2012 expedition, 55
unknown river expedition, 34–42, 44–45, 199, 207
Cruikshank, Derek, 30
Cruikshank, Zanna Marie, 30
D
Darrell, Hubert, 266
De Beers, 73
Discovery (ship), 102
Discovery Channel, 8
Dowling, D.B., 76, 80, 97, 122, 142
E
El Dorado (ship), 238
Elson, George, 13, 98–99
Endurance (ship), 125
Eskimo curlew, 27–28
exploration
by aboriginal people, 12–13
of Canada, 10, 16–17
and failure, 47
financial challenges of, 67–69
of Hudson Bay Lowlands, 18–19
lifestyle, 265
process of, 12
F
Fawcett, Percy, 68, 69, 266
Florida Everglades, 51–52
food
in emergency, 111
fishing, 92, 107–8
storage of on expeditions, 106–7
for 2011 expedition, 69
wild berries, 136
forest fires, 67, 192, 195–96
Forgey, William “Doc,” 211–12
Foxe, Luke, 122
Franklin, Sir John, 114, 129
G
Geographical Names Board of Canada, 164, 259
Geographical Names Data Base, 24
Geological Notes on Aquatuk River Map-Area (Bostock), 142
Geological Survey of Canada, 10–11, 25
Glass, Hugh, 131–33
Globalstar Communications, 258
goshawk, 163–64
Great Bear Rainforest, 180–81
Grey Owl, 147, 203–4
grizzly bears, 132, 178, 179, 181, 186–87
Guardian, The (newspaper), 260
Guinard, Joseph, 152
H
Hallowell, Alfred Irving, 151
Harricanaw River, 25, 232, 233, 234, 274, 276
Hawley, James Edwin, 72, 73, 142
Hawley Lake, 72, 74, 75, 76, 77, 83, 85
Hearne, Samuel, 129
Heart of a Continent, The (Younghusband), 54
Hedin, Sven, 165
Hennepin, Louis, 251
Heyerdahl, Thor, 182
Hobbes, Thomas, 104
Hodgins, Bruce, 23
Hopper Creek, 30–31, 33, 35
Hoyle, Gwyneth, 23
Hubbard, Leonidas, 98–99
Hubbard, Mina, 99
Hudson, Henry, 102–3
Hudson Bay
challenges of crossing, 1–2, 121, 122
dangers of, 116, 120
early explorers in, 102–3
expedition arrival at, 120
fur trade and, 19
geography of coast, 122
as part of 2012 expedition route, 94
rivers in watershed, 22, 97
Hudson Bay Lowlands
and Again River, 27
Again River in, 27
arrival of Europeans, 18–19
and early explorers, 102–4
exploration of, 18–19, 73
fauna of, 19, 51, 72, 99, 113, 167–69
flora of, 19, 20, 72, 99, 156, 195, 201–2
geography of, 18
insects in, 19, 75–76, 81, 82, 83–84, 101, 104, 137, 145, 272
landscape of, 72, 74–75, 145, 202
tundra in, 113, 115
Hudson’s Bay Company, 233–34, 247
Hunt, William (the Great Farini), 212–13
hypothermia, 1, 4, 93, 102, 109, 110, 135, 165
I
Inuit, 282–83
Isham, James, 84
J
Jacobson, Cliff, 117–18, 140
jaeger, 167
James Bay, 237–45
Jeff (friend of Mark and Tyler), 243, 244
Jenness, Diamond, 15, 97–98
Johnston, David, 281
K
Kane, Paul, 180
Kattawagami River, 29–31, 33, 35, 37, 197, 198, 267
Keltie, Sir John, 68–69
Kermode bear, 181
King, Shirley, 253–56
Knap, Jerome, 116
Kobalenko, Jerry, 118–19
Kozuh, Brent
agrees to alternative plan (2012), 94
athletic abilities, 60, 61–62
author’s hopes for change of mind, 97
background, 60–61
character and personality, 61–62, 64, 78, 81–82, 105, 115
clothing for 2012 expedition, 69
concerns about portaging, 87–88
conditions set by, 66
desire to quit expedition, 1–5, 88–89, 91, 123
firelighting skills, 81
forgetfulness, 64
friendship with author, 114–15, 176–77
high school antics, 115
illness, 101
interest in exploring, 61
leaves expedition, 127–28
morale, 87
optimism of, 116
paddling skills, 79, 101
photography skills, 102
trail blazing skills, 86–87
wilderness skills, 104–5, 107–8, 120
work ethic, 61, 66, 114, 115
L
Labrador, 98–99, 117
Lalemant, Father Jérôme, 151–52
Lewis, Meriwether, 165, 182, 265–66, 272–73
Little Ice Age, 104
Little Owl River (unnamed river), 164
Livingstone, David, 68, 233
London, Jack, 98
M
Mackenzie, Sir Alexander, 16, 47, 160, 181–82
Mark (Moose Cree First Nation), 236–37, 240–44
Mason, Bill, 130
Matonabbee, 13
Matt (camp counsellor), 275–76
Mears, Ray, 13
mining
for diamonds, 73–74
for gold, 43
in Hudson Bay Lowlands, 43, 285
Missinaibi River, 270
Mociño, José Mariano, 177–78
moose, 41
Moose Factory, 234, 236, 239, 243, 245, 246–47, 255, 277
Mount Everest, 54
Muir, John, 233
Munk, Jens, 103, 111–12
N
National Geographic (magazine), 251
Neskantaga, 147–48
Nils (Nuxalk guide), 182–85
O
Odysseus, 165
Omushkego, 76, 97–98
O’Neil, Terry, 28, 29–33, 40, 41, 146, 191–93, 262–63, 267
Otoskwin River, 147
Outdoors Oriented, 258
owls, 164
P
Peawanuck, 76, 115
permafrost, 113
petroglyphs, 28, 177, 180, 181, 182, 183–84, 185
Polar Bear Express, 235, 277
Polar Bear Provincial Park, 65
polar bears, 51, 62–63, 116–19, 135, 136, 169–72, 174
Preston, Richard, 152–53
R
Rawls, Wilson, 166
Remick, Jerome, 280
Richardson, Dr. John, 114
Riley (dog), 21, 58–59, 166
Riley, John, 156
Roosevelt, Theodore, 92, 105
Roy, J.M., 253
Royal Canadian Geographical Society, 7, 54–55, 65, 66, 67, 83, 100, 118–19, 131, 175, 177, 188, 212, 252, 258, 261
Royal Geographical Society, 52, 53, 54, 68, 213, 266
S
sandhill cranes, 196–97
sasquatch, 177–80, 184
Shackleton, Sir Ernest, 47, 68, 114, 125–26, 259
Shoalts, Adam, 188–89. See also Again River
B.C. expedition, 177
Bella Coola expedition, 181–87
budget for 2012 expedition, 69
conflict with Kozuh, 88–89
desire to explore, 6–7, 8
development of survival skills, 7
discovers headwaters of Again River, 209
discovery of unnamed river, 154–56
elected as Fellow of RCGS, 280
fascination with Again River, 249–50
feeling of accomplishment, 232–33
financial challenges facing, 67
finds headwaters of unnamed river, 160
firelighting/building skills, 81, 110, 112
friendship with Kozuh, 114–15
goals in finding Again River, 27–28
illness, 101, 124, 169
injuries sustained, 57, 79–80, 82, 123, 136, 230
love of exploring and adventure, 59, 213
media coverage of, 260–62, 278
names river, 164
planning for second Again River trip, 250–51
prepares to continue 2012 expedition alone, 126
previous solo wilderness trips, 133
safety measures, 220–21
searches for replacement
for Wes, 59–60
supplies for 2012 expedition, 69–70, 76–77
views on hunting, 113–14
Shoalts, Ben, 7, 260
Sinclair (retired trapper), 245–46
Society of Canadian Ornithologists, 83
Speke, John Hanning, 160, 266
spirit bear, 181
spruce tea, 111
Stancomb-Wills, Janet, 259
Stanley, Sir Henry Morton, 67–68, 129
strip-mining, 43
Sutton Gorge, 80
Sutton Lake, 76, 83, 85
Sutton Ridges, 74, 80
Sutton River, 76, 94, 97, 99–100, 115, 134
Swampy Cree, 97–98
T
Tamarack Creek (unnamed river), 197–98
Terry, Thomas, 23
Thomas (friend of Mark and Tyler), 243, 244
Thompson, David, 178–79
Tibet, 54
Trudeau, Pierre, 25, 235
tundra, 113, 115
Tyler (Moose Cree First Nation), 236–37, 239, 240–44
U
Umfreville, Edward, 147
Ungava Peninsula (Quebec), 13
W
Wallace, Dillon, 98–99
Washow Lodge, 234, 235, 241
waterfalls. See also Again River
on Again River, 216–18, 220, 222–23, 228, 229, 232, 249–50, 251–52, 255, 257, 273–74
classification of, 273
deaths in, 269–70
measuring, 272, 273
weapons, 62–63, 78
weather
on Aquatuk expedition, 154
on James Bay, 236, 237, 239–40
on Otoskwin River expedition, 147
on 2012 expedition, 79, 80, 108–9, 120–21, 122, 123–24, 127, 135, 140–41, 173, 192, 207, 210, 215
on 2013 expedition, 267, 270
on unnamed river venture (2011), 155–56, 160, 166
wendigo (Witiko), 147, 151–54, 161
Where the Red Fern Grows (Rawls), 166
whimbrel, 167
wildlife
on Aquatuk River, 146
of Hudson Bay Lowlands, 19, 51, 72, 99, 113, 167–69
on Kattawagami River, 197
on unnamed river (2011), 157–58
wolverine, 93, 134, 160
wolves, 93, 133, 148–49, 269
Wright, J.V., 18
Y
Younghusband, Sir Francis, 53–54, 283
VIKING
an imprint of Penguin Canada Books Inc., a Penguin Random House Company
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Canada Books Inc., 320 Front Street West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5V 3B6
Penguin Group (USA) LLC, 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England