Turtle Lake.
About two hundred yards of this portage lies over a dry pine ridge, the
remainder bog. On crossing this little sheet, we encountered another
portage of one thousand and seventy-five yards, terminating at a second
lake named Clary's Lake. This portage lies over an open pine ridge, from
which the timber has been chiefly burned. The shrubs and plants are
young bush poplars, whortleberries, shad-bush, brake and sweet fern.
Both ends of it are skirted with bog. The highest grounds exhibit
boulders. About five o'clock the canoes came up, and we embarked on the
lake and crossed it, and, striking the portage path, went four hundred
and seventy-five yards to a third lake, called Polyganum, from the
abundance of plant. We crossed this and encamped on its border.

This frequent shifting and changing of baggage and canoes exhausted the
men, who have not yet recovered from the toils of the long portage.
Three of them were disabled from wounds or bruises. Laporte, the eldest
man of our party, fell with a heavy load, on the great Wunnegum portage,
and drove a small knot into his scalp. The doctor bandaged it, and
wondered why he had not fractured his skull. Yet the old man's voyageur
pride would not permit him to lie idle. If he died under the
carrying-strap, he was determined to die game.

NAMAKAGUN RIVER.--Early on the 27th we were astir, and followed the path
1050 yards, which we made in two _pauses_ to the banks of the Namakagun
River, the most southerly fork of the St. Croix. We were now on the
waters tributary to the Mississippi, and sat down to our breakfast of
fried pork and tea with exultation.

Dead pines cover the ground between Lake Polyganum and the Namakagun. A
great fire appears to have raged here formerly, destroying thousands of
acres of the most thrifty and tall pines. Nobody can estimate the extent
of this destruction. The plain is now grown up with poplar, hazle-bush,
scrub-oak, and whortleberry. The river, where the portage strikes it,
is about seventy-five feet wide, and shallow, the deepest parts not
exceeding eighteen inches. It is bordered on the opposite side with
large pines, hardwood, and spruce. Observed amygdaloid under foot among
the granite, and sandstone boulders.

About one o'clock the baggage and canoes had all come up, and we
embarked on the waters of the Namakagun. Rapids soon obstructed our
descent. At these it was necessary for the men to get out and lift the
canoes. It was soon