They traveled in twenty-four canoes and soon entered Lake Champlain, and, as they now were approaching the Iroquois country, they traveled by night and hid in the woods by day.
Champlain’s own description of his discovery and the battle at Ticonderoga from his “Voyages and Discoveries” published in Paris, 1613 ... reads as follows:
“We left next day, continuing our route along the river as far as the mouth of the Lake. Here are a number of beautiful, but low islands filled with very fine woods and prairies, a quantity of game and wild animals, such as stags, deer, fawns, roe-bucks, bears and other sorts of animals that come from the main land to the said islands. We caught a quantity of them. There is also quite a number of beavers, as well in the river as in several other streams which fall into it. These parts, though agreeable, are not inhabited by any Indians, in consequence of their wars. They retire from the rivers as far as possible, deep into the country, in order not to be so soon discovered.
“Next day we entered the lake, which is of considerable extent; some 50 or 60 leagues in length, where I saw 4 beautiful islands, 10, 12 and 15 leagues in length formerly inhabited, as well as the Iroquois river, by Indians, but abandoned since they have been at war the one with the other.
“Several rivers, also, discharge into the lake, surrounded by a number of fine trees similar to those we have in France, with a quantity of vines handsomer than any I ever saw; a great many chestnuts, and I have not yet seen except the margin of the lake, where there is a large abundance of fish of divers species. Among the rest there is one called by the Indians of the country Chaousarou, the divers lengths. The largest I was informed by the people, are of eight to ten feet. I saw one of 5, as thick as a thigh, with a head as big as two fists, with jaws two feet and a half long, and a double set of very sharp and dangerous teeth. The form of the body resembles that of the pike, and it is armed with scales that a thrust of a poniard cannot pierce; and is of a silver grey colour. The point of the snout is like that of a hog. This fish makes war on all others in the lakes and rivers and possesses, as those people assure me, a wonderful instinct; which is, that when it wants to catch any birds, it goes among the rushes or reeds, bordering the lake in many places, keeping the beak out of the water without budging, so that when the birds perch on his beak, imagining it a limb of a tree, it is so subtle that closing the jaws which it keeps half open, it draws the birds under water by the feet. The Indians gave me a head of it, which they prize highly, saying, when they have a headache they let blood with the teeth of this fish at the seat of the pain which immediately goes away.
“Continuing our route along the west side of the lake, contemplating the country, I saw on the east side very high mountains capped with snow. I asked the Indians if those parts were inhabited? They answered me, Yes, and that they were Iroquois, and that there were in those parts beautiful valleys, and fields fertile in corn as good as I had ever eaten in the country, with an infinitude of other fruits, and that the lake extended close to the mountains, which were, according to my judgment, 15 leagues from us. I saw others, to the South, not less high than the former; only, that they were without snow. The Indians told me it was there we were to go to meet their enemies, and that they were thickly inhabited, and that we must pass by a waterfall which I afterwards saw, and thence enter another lake three or four leagues, long, and having arrived at its head, there were 4 leagues overland to be traveled to pass to a river which flows toward the coast of the Almouchiquois, tending towards that of the Almouchiquois, and that they were only two days going there in their canoes, as I understood since from some prisoners we took, who, by means of some Algonquin interpreters, who were acquainted with the Iroquois language, conversed freely with me about all they had noticed.
“Now, on coming within about two or three days journey of the enemy’s quarters, we traveled only by night and rested by day. Nevertheless, they never omitted their usual superstitions to ascertain whether their enterprise would be successful, and often asked me whether I had dreamed and seen their enemies. I answered no; and encouraged them and gave them good hopes. Night fell, and we continued our journey until morning when we withdrew into the picket fort to pass the remainder of the day there. About ten or eleven o’clock I lay down after having walked some time around our quarters, and falling asleep, I thought I beheld our enemies, the Iroquois, drowning within sight of us in the Lake near a mountain; and being desirous to save them, that our savage allies told me that I must let them all perish as they were good for nothing. On awakening, they did not omit, as usual to ask me, if I had any dream, I did tell them, in fact, what I had dreamed. It gained such credit among them that they no longer doubted but they should meet with success.
Marquis de Lotbiniere
“At nightfall we embarked in our canoes to continue our journey, and as we advanced very softly and noiselessly, we encountered a war party of Iroquois, on the twenty-ninth of the month, about ten o’clock, at night, at the point of a cape which juts into the lake on the west side. They and we began to shout, each seizing his arms. We withdrew towards the water and the Iroquois repaired on shore, and arranged all their canoes, the one beside the other, and began to hew down trees with villainous axes, which they sometimes got in war, and others of stone, and fortified themselves very securely.