n as our scooter canoe was completed we prepared for the
long-planned winter expedition to Willow Clump Island. The weather
conditions were ideal. We had had ten days of steady cold weather, which
had followed a heavy fall of snow, so that we could tramp up the island
on snow shoes, or we could use our scooter canoe and scooter scow on the
river. It was out of the question to use our skate sails or the ice boat
on the river, and the canal would be serviceable only in case the wind
should blow from a southerly quarter. But we stowed them on the sledge
for use on Lake Placid.

On the Tuesday morning following Christmas we made the start. Bill in
the scooter canoe and Dutchy in the scooter scow sailed up the river,
and the rest of us, on snow shoes, took the tow path of the canal,
hauling the sledge along. We carried provisions for a week and a good
supply of blankets. The island was reached without mishap, except that
Dutchy had to be helped several times in dragging the heavy scow around
the rapids. Bill reached the island long before we did, and after
unloading the canoe came racing back under a stiff breeze for a second
load. Then he took his turn at hauling the sledge, while Reddy sailed
the reloaded scooter canoe up to the island.

WILLOW CLUMP ISLAND IN WINTER.

We brought no tent with us, as we expected to take up our quarters in
the straw hut. When we reached the hut we hardly recognized it. It was
almost completely covered with snow and looked like an Eskimo house. The
snow had drifted well up over the north side, completely closing the
entrance. We had to set to work at once with a shovel and open up a
passageway, and then we had to shovel out a large pile of snow that had
drifted into the hut from the open doorway.

KINDLING A CAMP FIRE.

In the meantime Jack scoured the island for some dry wood. In this he
was not very successful, because everything was covered with snow, and
when he tried to kindle a fire in the open space in front of our hut he
found the task an exceedingly difficult one. Unfortunately we forgot to
bring the oil stove with us, and the prospect of something warm to eat
was exceedingly remote. We hadn't yet learned the trick of building a
camp fire in wet weather. After exhausting our stock of paper Fred and I
started over to Lumberville for several newspapers and a can of
kerosene. We went to old Jim Halliday's, who had befriended us on one or
two occasions the previous summer, and m