Viewing page 69 of 97

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

28

[[underline]] Okanagan To [[/underline]]

The valley of the Okanagan River is perhaps the most extensive and fertile of any observed, and the water has a brown tinge rarely seen in the  waters of this country and which indicates considerable stagnant & marshy tracts along its course.  It also seemed to run slower than most other rivers and to be deeper.  At about the 49th° it becomes surrounded by  rugged & densely wooded mountains leaving scarcely any valley along its banks, and expands into a series of shallow marshy lakes.

[[left margin]]  Lakes
                 Shells [[/left margin]]

In these only I obtained several species of Lymnaeidae & Naiadae shells which are scarce towards the south & west.
 Crossing the divide east of this river an easy rolling mountain covered with grass we struck a small river near its sources & followed it down to the Columbia. The same diversified scenery prevails here and the forests are somewhat more confined to the river banks than the hills,an arrangement not observed on the mountains, but caused probably by the same influence, the  want of water. Here the Aspen is a prevalent 

[[left margin]] Populus [[/left margin]]

tree among the Larchs and Pines.

[[end page]]
[[start page]]

29

[[underline]] Fort Colville [[/underline]]

The Columbia at Fort Colville forms a more extensive & fertile valley than at any point seen below and has more of the character of the small branches hitherto passed through, but it soon enters the Canõn again in descending.
Here I observed for the first time a few Junipers resembling
 
[[left margin]] Juniperus [[/left margin]] 

the common eastern species, and which were seen in small & scattered groups at a few other spots, appearing to be sporadic outposts of the species. 

 From this Fort the fertile and picturesque appearance of the country continues to the Spokan River and the species of trees appears the same as in all the regions north of Lat. 47°.
  We learn from  the explorations of parties eastward that all its sources south of lat 49° have extensive & fertile valleys upon them somewhat similar to these.
  And it is remarkable that they all narrow into canõns before joining with the Columbia, so that their alluvial deposits are in great degree kept back within their own valleys and deposited there during their annual over flows, while but little is carried down in the great outlet of this Basin. and its banks are more & more barren as we descend  towards the south.     

Transcription Notes:
The running two-page title is "Akanagan to " on the left page and "Fort Colville" on the right page. (@AntelopeWest) I'm pretty sure it's the Okanogan River