Travels in Kamtschatka, during the years 1787 and 1788, Volume 2

by baron de Jean-Baptiste-Barthélemy Lesseps

I came out of the town on foot, escorted by almost all the inhabitants, who were desirous, they said, of doing honour to the only Frenchman that had ever visited them. M. Gaguen, and the officers of the garrison, insisted upon conducting me to the gates, where, having repeated my thanks for their civilities, we separated.

Of the four soldiers who composed my suite when I left Kaminoi, two only remained with me, Golikoff and Nedarezoff; I had left the others at Ingiga, which was the place of their residence. Upon the recommendation however of M. Gaguen, I accepted the services of a young merchant, who asked leave to accompany me as far as Okotsk. During my abode at Ingiga, I had had frequent opportunities of conversing with him, and knowing the value of his society, and considered myself as fortunate in meeting with so agreeable a companion.

It was to no purpose that I had prepared to guide my own sledge; every one opposed me, from the fear that the want of knowledge and skill as to my new steeds, might occasion me some fatal accident; they had beside been expressly injoined not to permit me, during the first day at least. When I came to my vehicle, I found my guide already seated in front, and I took my place, without paying any attention to him; but upon his looking round, I recognized in his features a Koriac prince, named Eviava. He was eager to express his joy in having the honour to conduct me, and then prepared to join the file.

I have long owed the reader a description of a Koriac sledge, and am now able to satisfy his curiosity. The picture, I hope, will be sufficiently interesting to obtain his pardon for the delay.

Upon two skates, placed parallel to each other, that is, upon two branches of a tree, six feet and an half long, three inches wide, and very roughly finished, the extremities of which in front are bent upwards in the form of a demi-crescent, is placed the body of the sledge, which is really nothing more than a frame of open work, five feet long and eighteen inches wide, raised two feet and a few inches above the ground. Two small poles, about five inches in circumference, constitute the frame of this vehicle, the minuter parts of which are formed of thick laths, inserted the one in the other. A cross bar, more substantial than these poles, unites their forward extremities, which are prolonged to the arches of the skates, and fastened to them with leathern thongs. The lower part of this open work rests upon a sort of curvilinear feet, the lower ends of which, spreading out, are inserted in the skates, and the back is constructed in the form of an open calash, being sixteen inches high and twenty-four deep, disposed in a semi-circular form, with short poles ranged at the top, in the perforations of a demi-hoop, nearly like the backs of our arm chairs in a garden. In this narrow inclosure, the traveller commonly places his provisions, or whatever else is destined for continual use. For myself, I employed it to receive my box of dispatches, and seated myself upon it till the moment that I took the place of my guide. His seat is towards the middle of the open work, not far from the cross bar; here he places himself astride, with his feet resting upon the skates of the sledge.

The team consists of two rein deer placed abreast, with no other harness than a leathern collar, which passes across the breast and between the fore legs of the animal, and is fastened to his flank by a thong, in the manner of a trace, so that that which belongs to the deer on the right, is fastened to the cross bar of the sledge, and that which belongs to the deer on the left, to the bottom of one of the bent supporters of the carriage, and on the same side. As reins, they have two slender thongs, one end of which is twisted about the root of the horns of the deer[35]. When they want to go to the right, they pull the rein gently in this direction, giving at the same time a sort of back handed lash to the animal on the left. When they want to go to the left, they give two or three smart shakes to the right rein, touching at the same time the deer to which it belongs. The left rein has no other use than as a curb to the deer to which it is fastened. The driver has also a stick, one end of which is armed with a sort of hammer. The head of the instrument consists of an horizontal bone, one of whose extremities is very sharp, and is principally used to disengage the traces of the deer, while they are going on, if they happen to become entangled about their feet; and this is considered as one of the nicest accomplishments of a driver. The other end of the bone is round and blunted, and serves the purpose of a whip; but the blows that are given with it are much more severe; and are beside distributed so liberally, that the poor animals are sometimes covered with streams of blood. These sticks are very apt to break, and they therefore take care to provide themselves with a number of them, which are fastened lengthwise to the sledge.

We travelled very slowly till the evening. The only inconvenience I felt was the not being able, for want of an interpreter, to enjoy the conversation of my princely guide. It doubtless deprived me of a fund of information which it was in his power to have furnished, and our mutual taciturnity did not render my journey the more pleasant.

We stopped at seven o’clock. It was necessary to gain a mountain well known to our Koriacs, and which had been marked in our itinerary as our first stage. I should in vain have wished to seek shelter in a wood, as had been my custom when drawn by dogs. The convenience of the traveller is left out of the account in the choice of a resting place; that of the rein deer only is consulted, and the spot that most abounds with moss is invariably preferred. Half way up the mountain our steeds were unharnessed, and no other care taken of them than that of tying them with leathern thongs. I saw them instantly scrape away the snow, under which they well knew how to come at their food. At a short distance we made a fire, and set on our kettle, and the length of our supper answered to its frugality. I admitted my Koriac prince to my mess, who appeared to be highly flattered with the honour. I then laid myself down on the snow, and was permitted to sleep a few hours; but when the time was expired, they awoke me without compunction to proceed on our journey.

It is necessary to observe that the Koriacs will travel four, five, or six days incessantly without taking scarcely any repose. The rein deer are habituated to run day and night. In every two or three hours they are unharnessed, and allowed the interval of an hour to feed, after which they set off again with equal ardour; and this mode is repeated till they arrive at the end of the journey. It may be supposed from this account, that I considered myself as fortunate, when the night came, to be indulged with two hours uninterrupted sleep. The favour however was not long accorded to me, and by degrees I was obliged to accustom myself to the practice of my inflexible conductors, though it was not without extreme difficulty.