[Squirrel and Cranberries] After this some time every morning was usually occupied in mending shoes.  All sorts of devices were resorted to to get the last bit of wear out of them, even to shifting from right to left, but finally Cole had to make a pair of the nondescripts from the leather lining of his pack, which lasted him to the vessel.  Cranberries were found during the day and at intervals during the tramp, and were always drawn upon for a meal.  About two quarts were added to the stock of provision, and many a supper was made off a red squirrel and a pint of stewed cranberries.

Wednesday, the 19th, another raft was made, which took the party into the lake.  This was more comfortable than tracking, yet they were in the water for several hours while on the raft, which was made by lashing two cross-pieces about four feet long on the ends of five or six logs laid beside each other and from twenty to thirty feet long, all fastened with roots, and having a small pile of brush to keep the baggage dry.  The still water of the lake made the raft useless, even in a fresh, fair breeze, and so this one was abandoned two miles down, and the weary tramping again resumed.  Fortunately the water was so low that advantage could be taken of the closely overgrown shore by walking on the lake bed, and far better progress was made owing to the firmer footing.  Three days were used in getting down the lake, during which time but one fish, a pickerel, was caught, where they had expected to find an abundance.

At the foot of the lake, tracks were seen, which it was thought might be those of hunters.  It was learned later that they were more probably tracks of Bryant’s and Kenaston’s party, who were following them up and probably had been passed on the opposite side of the lake, unnoticed in the heavy rain of the preceeding day.  Some bits of meat that had been thrown away were picked up and helped to fill the gap, now becoming quite long, between square meals.  Supper on this day is noted in Cary’s journal because they “feasted on three squirrels.”  Having gotten out of the lake into rapid water, trout was once more caught, and as on the following day, Sunday, the 23d, a bear’s heart, liver, etc., was found, and later several fish caught.  The starvation period was over.

In the afternoon another raft was built and the next day carried them five miles down to the last cache.  Though so terribly used up that the odd jobs connected with making and breaking camp dragged fearfully, and each day’s advance had to be made by pure force of will, the men felt that the worst was over and their final getting out of the woods was a matter of time merely.  At this cache, also, a note from Young and Smith was found announcing their passage to that point all right and in less time than expected, so they had drawn no supplies from the stock there.