John Macdonnell’s brigade is working their way upstream since May 25, 1793. It takes them about 3 weeks to reach the Mattawa River, a tributary off the Ottawa River, which they call the Grand River. Eventually they reach the height-of-land, and, with a big ceremony, toss out the long setting poles of the steersmen. The occasion is one for high wines. But the going is slow–narrow swampy passages. This is Part 3 of 5. Part 1 is May 10 and 25, 1793; Part 2: June 1-9
[On waters with no current to fight, voyageurs can paddle about 4 miles per hour, up to a stroke per second, with 10-minute breaks to smoke their pipes every hour. But portaging, they can barely make a half-mile per hour. At a portage, they each make 3 trips, carrying 2 or even 3 packs of 90 pounds and additional loose pieces that don’t fit in a pack.
Oh, and they dog-trot. Their “rest” is that they don’t carry loads on their return trips. On some very short and very steep portages, they might use a “bucket brigade” system. No wonder they despised portaging. The décharges were probably not as hated as much.]
Portages along the Ottawa River. They are at Des Joachims Rapids.
Tuesday 11th June ~ We made the two Joachims which are reckoned equal to the Grand
Callumet. …My bowman had the misfortune of breaking his Canoe to-day and stowing in tjree of her ribs. … The Roche Capitaine is the next portage we come to, a rough turbulent Rapid. A league above it I saw the grave of poor Lalondes, the Body had to be taken out of, to be buried at St. Anns. Detained half a day on account of Titiche Lafrênieres having broken the bow of his Canoe by running it against the Shore.
The brigade faces much cascading water over rocks
June 15 ~ Left the Grand River [Ottawa] at Mattawin in which we made 18 portages and as many décharges. … Entered the little river … so narrow that a good gun would carry Shot from side to side. Mattawin means ‘a fork’ in the Algonquin or Nipising tongue. A league upriver, we made the portage du plain Champs, a considerable one where we passed the night. Here the brigade was separated so only 2 canoes travelled together, owing to the portages being frequent and only affoarding room for 2 canoes to unload at a time.
Saturday, 16th June ~ We are going into a deep glen of still water 3 leagues long, very straight and from 300-400 paces wide, between 2 ridges of Rocky Mountains.
Monday 18th ~ We passed a cave called by the men Porte de l’enfer [Hell’s Gate]; it is a cave in the face of the Rocky mountain … that appears to be about 6-8 feet high and arched; they Say it receives light from the top and is spacious within; a mile farthur we found the paresseu Portage, a pretty long one: the rapid that occasions it has a perpendicular fall of 10 feet; It is the fifth portage since entering the little River [Mattawa]. At some portages a tree would bridge the river across. In 8 or 9 leagues we come to l’anse au Perches, where the setting poles are thrown away … The ceremony of throwing away our men performed with a loud huzza. [Reserving 2 setting poles per canoe, they will travel the rest of the way with paddles.]
Beyond the Mattawa, the waterway narrows through swamps
~ The next impediment our navigation met with was the portage of Talon, a fall of nearly 40 feet high and has 2 cascades. The portage is long and difficult and we encamped and passed the night. About 3 leagues beyond we left the Mattawa and made 2 portages called Les Musiques, one of them is horrid, nothing but ups and downs among broken and rugged rocks. After passing the last of the musiques we proceeded a quarter of a mile in a ditch not much wider than the canoe through the centre of a cedar swamp for the convenience of North west Trade;
~ then we embarked on a small lake 2 leagues long which brought us to the Portage la Tortue. and Lac du Tortue. This lake is the source of the Little River [Mattawa], the whole of which is computed by the men to be 30 leagues. Lac du Tortue is much clearer water than the little River.
near Lake Nipissing
~ Leaving Lac la Tortue, we have three portages running, called the vases [meaning ‘muddy portages] the hight of land dividing the waters which fall into the Ottawa from those which fall into Lake Huron [a continental divide]. … It is curious to see the North West and mackinac trade carried on through a small creek that a man can in many places jump over. After following this brook for half a league we came to the second Portage of the vases, after which the brook is joined by another as big, which made it sufficiently deep to float a loaded Canoe. At the entrance of this little River into Lake Nipising, we encamped 4 nights without even shifting the place of our tent.
(After that effort, it’s no wonder they need 4 days to rest up. They need to be fresh for the roller-coaster ride on the French River, 75 miles downstream. His account continues in Part 4 of 5.)
Source:
John Macdonell’s journal of the entire voyage is included in “Five Fur Traders of the Northwest” (Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul, 1965). This diary and another which continues his recollections through 1795 are owned by McGill University of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
The featured image is “Canoes Manned by Voyageurs Passing a Waterfall,” painted by Francis Anne Hopkins in 1869.
Final Thoughts
Read about the journey through the eyes of another newbie, Andre, in Book 1, “Waters Like the Sky”
Book 2, “Treacherous Waters” and
Book 3 “Uncharted Waters”
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