Telegraph Trail Preservation Society NEWSLETTERS Home | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993

Sept. 15, 1994

From the Executive Chair:

Hi,

Work has progressed on the trail system in the past year. We located, cleared and marked all of the existing Telegraph trail along Bobtail lake. This is some five miles of excellent trail through untouched forest, including some big fir. In places, the view overlooks the lake. In addition, the yearly once-over has been done on the entire cleared portion of the Tel. trail.

In August, a pack-train of four horses came through and camped at the trail-head at Whittier-creek. It was Steven Wolfe and his young wife, Merica. They had ridden all the way from Colville, Washington and were on their way to Telegraph Creek. I recommended several sections of the T. trail to them, including from Blackwater river to Bobtail lake. They planned to detour to Fort St. James and then on to Dease Lake. I received a card from them from Vanderhoof saying the trail was great. They wished they could have taken it all the way

Betty Motherwell and I continued to, locate, clear and mark the 20 miles, or so, of Native trail that continues down the Blackwater to the Fraser. This trail is separate from, but connected to, Mackenzie's route and crosses the Tel. trail.

Mackenzie and his party came by Punchaw lake. The trail that we are calling Lhtakoh Weti (old Fraser river trail), as suggested by Mrs. Lashaway Alec of Trout Lake reserve, continues eastward down river to the old Netse'ucha village on the Fraser.

We have conducted several all day hikes along portions of this old Native trail. On June 1 and 2, Betty and I accompanied Dave Butil, from Archeology Department in Victoria, over most of this trail. He gave a good report and recommends that it be treated as a Heritage trail.

Franklin Pope Not Forgotten

One evening in early May, I received a phone call from a gentleman who introduced himself as George Price, great-grandson of Franklin Pope. One of the early explorers on the Collins Telegraph was Pope. The Prices had traveled all the way from their home in New Jersey on an odyssey to retrace their relative's steps.

I invited them out and we talked at length about the Telegraph and the part his great-grandfather played in it. His wife took a picture of George standing on the actual trail. They said it was a highlight of their trip. I received, from them, a copy of Pope's Journal for 1865. It is a most interesting account of early exploration in northern B.C.

Trail Connections

On Aug. 22, I drove up to Fort Fraser and explored on the north side of the lake for a possible route for the Telegraph trail to continue northward without following the main highway. I followed the natural gas pipeline for several miles as far as Deserters lake. It seems to be a very good alternate route for the T. trail, if need be.

Jim McCrae of the B.C. Outdoors Council informs us that a trail now exists through Manning Park from Tulameen on the old Kettle valley railline to the Pacific Crest trail. Our next step is to check out a possible route from Kingsvale to Boston Bar.

Over the Past Year

On Sept. 2, 1993, we finally located Eric McPherson in Kispiox. He is a sub-chief of the Kispiox band. We were there to view a portion of the Yukon Telegraph trail that had been cleared several years earlier by the band.

After we snacked on some deliciously smoked salmon that Eric gave us, he took us out to the beautiful tail north of the village. A thick layer of green moss spread under giant hemlock tees and over the deeply worn trail as it wound it's way through the forest and ever northward. The moss covered everything. It was a hallowed place. We found some of the large Japanese pine mushrooms growing alongside the trail. In just a few minutes, Eric gathered $20 worth.

We drove to the end of the Forestry road at Kuldo river and found where the old trail crossed the canyon. Eric showed us where Second cabin had been at the confluence of the Kuldo and Skeena rivers. As far as we could tell, the trail beyond Kuldo is a tangle of devilsclub and windfalls waiting to be cleared.

Also, late last fall, Craig Hooper of the Vanderhoof-Fort Fraser Forest District cleared a seven mile section of T. trail south of Vanderhoof along Hogsback lake. He has even had a bridge built over a beaver-dammed creek.

Sign Grant

We received a $400 grant from the Quesnel Heritage Society to go toward a large sign to be erected at the Blackwater recreation area. It would detail all the trails in the area perhaps by color code. We are awaiting further development on this. Will keep you posted.