The international photographer (Jan-Dec 1931)

November, 1931 The INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER Nineteen down at 9:10 at Northwest River, a beautiful place. "The red and white buildings of the Hudson Bay Company and the neat building's of the Grenfell mission, with fences, sidewalks and all in orderly fashion, made the prettiest place in Labrador. As we taxied up to the wharf dozens of persons, all well dressed, were there to help us. "We loaded a barrel of gas from the sixty-eight barrels in the company's reserve. After visiting the mission I went to the Hudson Bay store to get some deer sinew for sewing and get a map of the river country. When I looked in at the plane I found Mac wanted to go. That was terrible — because the ladies were preparing lunch for us. I guess, though, we were making pictures and not eating this day. As I had missed breakfast I might as well let dinner go also. "We started the motor at 10:30 and we were heavy this time. Charlie rocked her while Mac and I jumped up a little to take off our weight. As Mac said the North Devil is after us. We had had bad weather all summer, and now a few big clouds were coming toward us. "On leaving Northwest River we followed the Inlet some twenty miles before coming to the Northwest River mouth. Then we turned to our right and followed the stream. "It is possible that had we known the real thrills that awaited us we would not have been so anxious to follow that path of dark boiling water. At 10:55 we passed over Muskrat Falls. At 11:00 we were right up under the clouds with a ceiling of 2900 feet and rain all around us. "There were many miles yet to go and we had gone too far to turn back, so we had to take the chance we might run out of the storm. "At 11:07 clouds were skimmingpast us. We could look down 2900 feet on a lot of trees with big leaves seemingly, possibly birch. At 11:25 we were over heavy timber and many lakes all too small to permit a landing for our pontoons because we couldn't get out of them. Now it is raining again and Charlie has to open his little windows. Rain and More Rain "At 11:40 we have reached a gorge that must be a thousand feet deep. Altitude is 2400. Rain has stopped or we have gone through it, I guess. Air speed is 115, compass reads 340 degrees, magnetic 35 degrees, so we are flying 305 degrees and air is getting very bumpy. "We are out of the canyon at 11:45. The river takes a very sharp turn to left. At 11:50 there are all sizes of little falls on both sides. The mist is very thick. Parts of the sky ahead of us are clear, which puts us in better spirits. We may get sunlight yet. "At 11:52 the rain is all over us again. Elevation is 1900 feet, 100 air speed. At 11:55 we are over a big lake or at least the river is wider and not so fast. It is very dark and so bumpy it's a crime. The waves on the water are running the same way we are. Elevation 2000, air speed 105. This means air speed, but not the speed of the plane. Some times when Mac and I are bouncing around or trying not to sit on each other's laps and doing acrobatics we may be going very slowly or very fast. "At 12 o'clock noon our course is true west. The timber is very heavy and tall. A river of good size comes in on our left, I judge a half mile wide. At 12:10 to our right are long, sloping valleys, and the tops look like fire has burned off great areas of timber, because there are thousands of tall, dead trees. Altitude is 2100, air speed 100. "There's a lot of more new timber and thousands of small lakes, but in such funny shapes, like sausages laid side by side, each major lake composed of several little ones. Then all around the lakes is this caribou moss, very light and beautiful. "At 12:23 elevation is 2400, with air speed 110, and as we are only about 800 over the trees we can now see the mist from the falls dead ahead of us. We can't see so well because it is so dark and the plane wobbles so. The air is terrible. Charlie is having a hell of a time to keep the ship from jumping and falling. Mac and I are wondering what he is doing up there in front. Thousand-Foot Hole "At 12:25 we circled over the falls. The first time around we could see it would be impossible to get pictures at all angles from the ground, because the object is buried below the surface. We saw the lake some five miles away which we could land on and walk back, but Charlie had no intentions of getting down there and being unable to get up. "You could see the river enter a long rapids somewhere under five miles in length as it came to the falls, gradually sloping more and more. Then it made a 45 degree fall for a half mile and went tumbling down into a great hole over a thousand feet below the crest. "Directly at right angles with the falls was a whirlpool, from which the water went away for miles in a mad turmoil of boiling white. Out of this came a column of white mist that rose to the clouds. The falls are not in any way to be compared to Niagara, either in volume or width, but possibly are much higher. "We circled three times and let the camera run. It was so stormy and bumpy we hardly wanted to move in that cramped up space. So I could get a couple of maps of the country I practically stood on Mac's back to do it. I would not advise any one to get foolish and walk in from the coast to see the falls. As for me I'll be glad when we get out, for it will take us two hours of hard wind bucking. "We made our circles at an altitude of 2600 feet down to 2100. In heading back there is only one way to write, and that is by holding my pen so tight to the paper. The heavy stub is almost bending. "MacMillan and Charlie and I are the first to make motion pictures of these falls. "At 1 p.m. in a heavy rain that pounded with the effect of lead shot we had lunch. We split a bar of chocolate. I want to mention all the time we were over the falls and shooting we had the window out, yet not a drop of water came in. Bobbing and Bucking "At 1:10 p.m. we are at 1600 feet elevation making 115 air speed. It is raining hard. We dropped to 1200 feet to get under the edge of a ridge and get the uplifting current to help us, for we are bobbing up and down like a bucking broncho. At times the plane is crabbing so hard I know Rocheville has his right foot on the rudder jammed as far as he can, and believe he is getting a workout. "We are now back where the river comes in on our right side outbound. At 1:25 we are out of the rain into thick white haze. Guess it is snow because it is streaked and not like fog. Elevation 1800, air speed 110. "At 2 p.m. we are all shut in again with rain and clouds and are back up to 2000 feet. We just caught a glimpse of a lake to our right. Mac has broke his De Vry and we mend it with adhesive tape. We tried cutting up a film can with a hunting knife and a set of 45 diagonal pliers, but with no success. The tape made it work all right. "At 2:15 we are back in a lower and wider valley and we are now taking longer breaths. At 2:30 we are over Muskrat Falls again. Big logs are bobbing around down there, but they are like little slivers. At 2:45 we circled and photographed Northwest River. The gang is all down there to meet us — much surprised that we returned. "As we put in gas the ladies prepare us some sandwiches of crackers and cheese and a pitcher of real cow's milk. It surely tasted good — the first milk since we left Rockland last June." The expedition of 1931 showed in striking fashion the inestimable value of the aii-plane in exploration work. As one example the trip to the Grand Falls covered an air distance of 440 miles round trip from the coast. The last expedition on ground to the falls is reported to have occupied seven months in the trip in and back owing to the rough terrain and the many detours of great length necessary. The plane made the journey in extremely rough and bumpy weather and circled the falls three times and was back on the coast in 4 hours and 40 minutes. On the return from Battle Harbor to Rockland the Bowdoin was nine davs on the passage. The commander and Pilot Rocheville made the distance in eight and a half hours. From Los Angeles the plane and pilot traveled 10,000 miles before returning. Cameraman Kershner was aboard during 7000 miles of this total. The MacMillan party maintained its usual record of returning without casualty. The members ascribe this uniform result to the commander's years of experience — he has been going into the north since he accompanied Peary on his polar trip in 1908-9 — and his exceeding thoroughness in preparation.