The scenery consisted of barren rocks and high hills covered with lofty pine, birch, and larch trees.
October 26.
We continued our journey, sometimes on frozen lakes and at other times on high craggy rocks.

When we were on the lakes we were much impeded in our journey by different parts which were unfrozen.

There was a visible increase of wood, consisting of birch and larch, as we inclined to the southward.

About ten A.M.we passed Icy Portage where we saw various tracks of the moose, bear and otter and, after a most harassing march through thick woods and over fallen trees, we halted a mile to the westward of Fishing Lake; our provisions were now almost expended; the weather was cloudy with snow.
On the 27th we crossed two lakes and performed a circuitous route, frequently crossing high hills to avoid those lakes which were not frozen; during the day one of the women made a hole through the ice and caught a fine pike which she gave to us; the Indians would not partake of it from the idea (as we afterwards learnt) that we should not have sufficient for ourselves: "We are accustomed to starvation," said they, "but you are not." In the evening we halted near Rocky Lake.

I accompanied one of the Indians to the summit of a hill where he showed me a dark horizontal cloud extending to a considerable distance along the mountains in the perspective, which he said was occasioned by the Great Slave Lake and was considered as a good guide to all the hunters in the vicinity.