By the side of the path there were
several large, flat stones covered with thousands of small pebbles.
These marks had been gradually built up by passengers going to and fro
from the copper mines in the far north. The weather all this time,
although the month was July, was very bad--constant snow, sleet, and
rain. Hearne seldom had a dry garment of any kind, and in the caves
where they lodged at night the water was constantly dropping from the
roof. Their food all this time was raw venison. One snowstorm which
fell on them was heavier than was customary even in the winter, but at
last the weather cleared up and sunshine made the journey far more
tolerable.
As they descended the northern side of the Stony Mountains they
crossed a large lake, passing over its unmelted ice, and called it
Musk-ox Lake, from the number of these creatures which they found
grazing on the margin of it.
This was not the first time that Hearne had seen the musk ox. These
animals were wont to come down as far south as the shores of Hudson
Bay.
On the northern side of the Stony Mountains Hearne was taken by the
Indians to see a place which he called Grizzly-bear Hill, which took
its name from the numbers of those animals (presumably what we call
grizzly bears) which resorted here for the purpose of bringing forth
their young in a cave in this hill.
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