Mollie Adams Diary of her Journey in the Canadian Rockies, July 11, 1908

Unwin Camp Saturday, July 11 The double, snowy mt. not in sight from camp --- hidden by a thin slab of a low peak. “Mt. Unwin” just opposite across the lake (U. was on a shoulder of it July7) also double peaked and snowy, and a fine glacier coming low down toward the lake. There was considerable doubt as how to conduct the campaign today --- whether to move camp or not, and what mountain M. wanted to climb to get a look at the Brazeau ice field and try to locate Mt. Brazeau with regard to this lake. It was finally decided that the end of the lake not being far off, we might as well just take lunch with us and row up there, and then the climbers could attack whatever seemed the handiest. So we got off at 8:30. After about an hour we were about to round the last point and cast anchor at the foot of the long valley we could see leading up into the mountains, when beheld beyond the point jutting out from the n.e. shore was another from the s.w. shore, and beyond that the lake opened out again miles long and still more beautiful than before. So on we went. It was very pleasant for those of us who were not doing the hard work, -- another fine day and more mountains showing up all the time. After a little more than 4 hours, of rowing we reached a point where we actually did see the end of the lake, and it was very satisfactory, as such. The last mile lies in a valley running east and west between “Mt. Warren” to the south and “The Thumb” to the north, at the head a creek from a s.e. to a n.e. valley from east of the cliffs of Mt. Warren. At the west of Mt. Warren another creek from a very large snow field (Brazeau?), a mountan some miles away. Mt. Warren was in sight from the time we first embarked yesterday, be we had no idea the lake ran up that far. It has the usual double peaked summit. Of course there was no use of anyone thinking of climbing at that time of day as it would take until 6 or 7 P.M. just to get back to camp. If we could only have stayed a week there it would have been greatly to our pleasure and profit. We landed for lunch on an old alluvial fan formed by the stream from west of Mt. Warren, and as at Camp Unwin, which is also on river deposits the ground was covered with flowers, especially vetches, large crimson ones between clover and locust blossoms. The Thumb, across the lake from us, was a long line of very high cliffs from that point of view – rusty, weathering rock, probably limestone or dolomite. A waterfall bursts out through a hole at one place and falls such a distance that it is spray waving back and forth in the wind long before it touches the rocks below and gathers together again in a stream. We had a favorable wind part of the way back and set a pack mantle sail, but took about the same time as going up. M. kept time and they rowed in ten minute stints. Named the narrow place “Sampson’s Narrows” and the slab sided peak rising from the lake to the east of the valley leading to the very snowy mountain, “Sampson Peak.” Beautiful pink, almost crimson glow on the mountains at sunset.