The rapids, however, which had been surveyed beforehand by the Captain, were passed, under his skilful pilotage, in much less time than had been allotted for the operation, and then, with one consent, the flies were thrown upon the water.
Above the rapids, the river forms what is technically called a “flat;” a spot carefully to be sought out by the exploring fisherman, as the likeliest to reward his search. A flat is where the water rolls on with its acquired velocity and the pressure of that which is behind it, rather than on account of any declivity in the bed through which it flows. In the present instance, indeed, the bed of the river actually rose instead of sinking, for the ridge of rocks which form the head of the rapids, had retained the stones and loose earth washed down in the winter floods. This gradually shallowed the whole river, spreading it out, at the same time, like a lake, so as to fill the level of the valley from mountain to mountain. These rose abruptly on either hand, in bare, inaccessible cliffs, as if they had been forced asunder by some convulsion of Nature, to make room for the rush of waters, and exhibited a bare splintered face of rock.
At the end of an hour—for the Parson would allow no more—all fears were at an end for that night’s supper; no other salmon, indeed, had risen, but trout after trout had been handed into the boats, some of them, too, of a very respectable size: even Birger had not been without his share of success.
But the stream was strong, the day was waning, many miles intervened between them and their camping-ground, the Parson was inexorable; so the casting-lines were exchanged for harling-tackle, and the squadron formed in order of sailing.
The difference between a common casting-line and the harling-tackle which one rod in each boat should carry in every exploring expedition, consists principally in the length of the gut. The harling line carries five or six flies, in order to show, at once, as great a variety as possible of size and colour, and is joined to the reel-line by a swivel, in order to prevent it from kinking—while two, or, at the most, three, flies will be found quite sufficient for casting.
The order of march was this:—Birger led, with his gun in his hand, ready for a stray duck or teal, many of which would whistle over their heads, as evening drew on. He was directed to keep, as near as possible, to the middle of the stream; while, on either flank, and about twenty yards behind him, came his two friends, with one rod in each boat for harling, while, with the other, they whipped into the likely ripples. Shooting and fishing, however, were made altogether a secondary condition to progress: they might catch what they could, and shoot what they could, but the rowers were to pull steadily forward.
And thus they opened reach after reach of the beautiful river, for the most part pent in by inaccessible cliffs, on which the birch trees seemed to grow on each other’s heads, and to support above them all a serrated crest of spruce and fir. But, now and then, they would come to little semicircular coombs, where the mountain wall would recede for a space, leaving flats of twenty or thirty acres, which were carefully cultivated to the very water’s brink, and planted at the roots of the mountains with white poplar, the dried leaves of which were to serve for beds in the summer and hay in the winter. Here would be dark-red wooden houses with overhanging eaves, and tidy, compact, little farmsteadings, with their granaries, and store-rooms, and cattle-sheds, all complete in themselves: and they had need be, for they were completely isolated from the rest of the world. There was no road, not even a footpath; no possibility of ingress or egress, except that which the river afforded. The mountains, except here and there, were inaccessible; and at every turn of the river, seemed to beetle over it, shutting out each little amphitheatre from its neighbour. The winter is the Torjedahler’s time of liberty: then it is that their vehicles are put into requisition; then it is that their corn and cattle, if they produce any beyond their own consumption, are brought to market; for the river, which has hitherto been their boundary, forms now their railroad and frost-constructed channel of communication.
The shadows were darkening on the clear river, and the arms of even Norwegian rowers were beginning to ache, when the last point was rounded; and the Parson’s joyous shout gave notice that their camping-ground was at last reached; and at the welcome signal, the lines were reeled up with alacrity, and the boats’ heads were directed to the shore.
The spot had been selected by him and Ullitz the year before, partly as lying conveniently near to Mosse Eurd, their proposed head-quarters, which it was considered expedient to reach before noon on the morrow, in order to afford time for their men hutting themselves and foraging out the resources of the place; but principally from its own beauty and convenience.
So precious is level land by the banks of the river, that it is rare to find any portion of it uncultivated of sufficient extent for such an encampment as they required. But here, at the foot of a winter torrent, whose dry bed gave access to the uplands in summer, and brought down rocks and uprooted trees in the winter, was a rough plain, formed, no doubt, originally from the debris brought down by the torrent, but now covered with short turf and cranberry-bushes, with a few thick, bushy, white poplars, the leaves of which had not yet been stripped for hay; while here and there a graceful birch-tree formed a natural tent with its weeping branches.