June 6, 1793. Making Paddles.

June 6, 1793. 227 Years Ago, To-day.

 Excerpts from the journals of Alexander MacKenzie’s Voyage of Discovery to the Pacific Ocean.  

     “At half-past four this morning we continued our voyage, (3 ¾ miles) the whole of this distance we proceeded by hauling the canoe from branch to branch. The current was so strong, that it was impossible to stem it with the paddles; the depth was too great to receive any assistance from the poles, and the bank of the river was so closely lined with willows and other trees, that it was impossible to employ the line.”

      It is very slow progress, pulling on overhanging willow branches one at a time in order to propel a fully laden canoe against the powerful current. It’s not an easy task in a 25 foot canoe, with 10 men and a dog on board, and 3000 lbs of baggage.

Picture 1. Similar voyageur canoe showing positions of all 10 men.

      “As it was past twelve before we could find a place that would allow of our landing, I could not get a meridian altitude.”

      As he couldn’t take his latitude today, and considering that his last reckoning may have been out by a few miles, I’m not able to pinpoint his location for this day, but based on the slow going, he is likely still about 20-25 miles NW of McLeod Lake. 

      “We occupied the rest of our day in repairing the canoe, drying our cloaths (sic), and making paddles and poles to replace those which had been broken or lost.”

      All paddles were made by the paddlers and were not supplied by the Company. Each was unique as they were hand made by the individual, to suit themselves. The blades were narrower than popular canoe paddles of today. They were designed with less resistance, so they could be put to work for 12-16 hours per day, at the voyageur rate of 50 strokes per minute. They used whatever wood was available, and were carved from a single piece of wood. Pictures 2, and 3 show various types.