We were elated with our good fortune and although Mother was not just as enthusiastic, she acquiesced to our desire in this regard... Having successfully completed our second year in our Medical course. it was with considerable anticipation and excitement that we left Edmonton for the north and we travelled along with eight or ten others who were all strangers to us, in an empty box car by way of the Alberta and Great Northern Railway en route to Fort McMurray. I well recall that our progress was slow, particularly from Lac La Biche north, because of the state of the railroad bed. As the train traversed the treacherous muskeg country, the hazard of derailment was always great. Indeed, we did meet with this situation about eight to ten miles short of our destination which necessitated that we walk this distance in a downpour of rain. We arrived very damp in most respects but not in spirits.

After our arrival at Fort McMurray we proceeded to Waterways and we were utilized there in getting the Hudson's Bay stern wheeler steam ship stationed there, out of dry dock so that it could commence it's initial run between Waterways, down the Athabaska River, across Lake Athabaska to Fort Chipewyan and along the Slave River at it's source as far as Fort Fitzgerald near Alberta's northern boundary.

Soon after leaving Waterways on our journey down north, we were impressed by the black oily-looking river banks. I have been surprised through the years that these Athabaska tar sands with their obvious rich deposit of oil, have taken so many years to be commercially utilized.

Upon our arrival at Lake Athabaska, we were held up for three or four days before proceeding across the lake to Fort Chipewyan because of the presence of considerable ice there.

After conditions improved so that we could make the crossing without hazard, we young men, from what the northerners called the "outside" got a great thrill as we approached the Fort in preparation for docking. Lined up on the lakeshore was a large flock of people, for the arrival of this first river boat of the season was an exciting event for the isolated northerners. This group, in their multi-coloured apparel consisted mostly of Indians and Metis with a sprinkling of white folk. A red coated Mountie or two were present, as was a priest and a nun or two in their characteristic garb. There were many children too and barking husky dogs. This sight was a forerunner of almost identical ones which we were to see during the weeks ahead at the various forts at which we were to dock along our route down to the delta of the great Mackenzie River.

When one considers that our boat's arrival was the first contact with the outside that these people would have had since the preceding summer, except for the odd traveller by dog team during the winter months, one could appreciate the excitement which it's arrival would engender. Soon the exploits of the bush pilots would lessen to a considerable extent the long period of isolation for those in the northern outposts of our land.

Due to rapids, river transportation on the Slave River between Fort Fitzgerald in Alberta and Fort Smith in the North West Territories was not feasible. Consequently, all the supplies for further down north had to be unloaded and transported by vehicles, while we employees of the S.S. Mackenzie River hiked the twelve to fifteen miles portage.

In due course we began our journey down stream on Slave River toward Great Slave Lake. This was toward the end of June. Again ice conditions prevented our immediate passage across the lake en route to Hay River. It was July 1st before we were able to proceed.

A disturbing experience occurred after we docked at the Hay River Post. There was a trained nurse associated with the Anglican Mission there, and by some means, she had been informed that medical students were aboard the S.S. Mackenzie River, so she was on the shore anxious to seek our aid in seeing a critically ill Indian boy under her care. When we informed her that we had only been exposed to premedical studies and would be of no help to her in this regard, she still insisted that I accompany her to see the lad, as the family would be disappointed if no one arrived. The little boy was in extremis with general peritonitis, undoubtedly the result of appendicitis with perforation of the organ. It is doubtful if, under the best of circumstances, he could have been saved, but it was a frustrating experience to be called in at that stage of my career when the only living organisms that I had studied was an earthworm, a bull frog and I had dissected a dead fish.

After unloading supplies at Hay River, we proceeded to Fort Resolution and then crossed the lake to the source of the Mackenzie River and travelled down stream unloading supplies for the Hudson's Bay Posts at Fort Providence and Fort Simpson. At Fort Simpson, which is situated on the Mackenzie River at the junction where the Liard River flows into the Mackenzie, I was impressed by a very myopic gentleman, past middle age, named Flynn Harris who was the Indian agent. We were invited over to his home where we visited with him in his well stocked library. He was married to an Indian woman and had several very attractive daughters. His story was interesting. He had studied law at Dalhousie University, Halifax, and had been a classmate, indeed, a roommate of Sir Robert Borden in his student days. He had graduated with distinction, and after practicing law for a period, he had joined the Royal North West Mounted Police. He developed an alcoholic problem and was eventually let out of the force. He then worked for the Hudson's Bay Company for a time but again his problem caused him to be discharged. When we met him, he was employed as an Indian Agent and appeared to be free from his drinking problem but his eyesight had failed to a degree where he had to get his face within six to eight inches of a paper to read it or even to sign his official documents.

At Fort Simpson one of our interesting passengers disembarked to begin his stint as assistant to the Hudson's Bay factor at that post. He was a young Scot who had signed up with the Hudson's Bay Company in Scotland. He was intensely interested in photography and I recall that he had the equipment to develop his films and he used one of the ship's cabins as a dark room. From Fort Simpson we proceeded down stream to Fort Wrigley and then on to Fort Norman. We were impressed by the fact that there was a film of oil on the river water in the vicinity of the Fort Norman post. The Imperial Oil Company, even at that date, had done considerable exploration for oil, apparently with success, but was not utilizing their oil potential fully due to the cost of transportation.

Back to part 3 - Our Mackenzie River Adventures

J.D. Higinbotham's 1928 Mackenzie River Journey

Alberta's First Pharmacist Index