Description

pp. 320, b/w and color illustrations, “The author begins this engrossing account with a brief history of Alexander Mackenzie’s early years in the Canadian fur trade, then he focuses on the explorer’s navigation of what came to be called the Mackenzie River to the Arctic Ocean in 1789, and his expedition by boat and overland to the Pacific Ocean in 1793. Hayes draws on the journals of the Scottish-born explorer and those of other voyagers, having spent years researching the history of the Northwest and collecting historical maps of the region. Mackenzie’s journals describe the hardships, dangers, weather, food, and the indigenous population and their villages. “In the distance of two miles we were obliged to unload four times and carry everything but the canoe,” he records. “Our stock was reduced to 20 pounds of pemmican, 15 pounds of rice, and six pounds of flour, among 10 half-starved men in a leaky vessel, and on a barbarous coast.” This book, illustrated with photographs, prints, and maps, is a vivid portrait of an intrepid adventurer.” heavy book additional postage will apply