Our Vacation of 1972 Finally the day arrived when we were
to begin our vacation. On July 14th,
Bill, myself, Tony, our boys Mike, age 15,
Rick, age 14, and our daughter Tracy 10,
loaded all our gear into two pickups and
_ written by Eileen Zemenehtk headed for Telearaph Creek with the
 elted by her fomtl Gleasons comina alona to help. The next

LU] 4 morning we ferried everythina across the
river and borrowed Norman Day's Station
wagon to transport.the supplies from there
to the Lava Beds - 15 miles from Telearaph
Creek at the Tahltan River - which was to
be our departure point. Mel Calbreath
also helped us by taking some supplies in
his pickup. It was quite late when the
last load was brought in, so we called it
a day.

on the Telegraph Trail

Last winter my husband Bill got the
brilliant idea that our family should spend
our summer vacation by takina a horseback
trip along the old Telearaph Trail as no
one had travelled the trail by horseback
since 1952. The idea soon caught on and
the rest of the winter was spent preparing
for the approximately 400 mile round trip
from Telearaph Creek to Atlin.

\le had the horses but had to purchase
more saddles, 5 pack saddles and riaqging
to ao with them. Bill, Tony (his brother
who accomnanied us on the trip) and our
two boys, Mike and Rick made 10 panniers
to carry the supplies. Bill read an ex-
cellent book written by a man who had
packed for many years which helped us in
choosina food and clothing for the trip
as well as how to pack which neither of
the men had done before. \e planned our
food supply for two weeks on the trail as
that was the lenath of time we thought it
would take us to aet to Atlin and there
we would purchase supplies again for the . : < . :
return trip. Ferrying goods across Tuya River.

Up to this time only a few of us had
what we called "tour own horses'' so we
had to choose a horse that we would ride

The next day was sunny and hot. All the
horses were brought down from the hills by

the whole trip. Bill would ride Thunder, the boys and Tony while Bill and | cooked,
Tony - Dusty, Mike - Commanche, Rick - sorted out camp supplies and packed the
Lobo, Tracy - Tuya and myself - Goldie. panniers. Ve very diligently marked each
The pack horses were Blackjack, Paleface, pannirer and listed the contents of each.
Apollo, Spud and Chestnut. Missy, a (This lasted for one day as each day they
24 year old we had just started to break are resorted for even weight). People
would be a spare horse and Appollo's dropped in to wish us well and arrange-
2‘month old colt Apache, would run along. ments were made with the Gleasons to meet

In the spring unfortunately the hiah us 2 weeks later when we rode into Atlin.
waters. took out the Tuya Bridqe which By about nine that evening we had all the
was our link with the horses so we horses in the corral and decided to ao to
borrowed Frances Gleason's boat and every bed ourselves so we could qet an early
weekend we could get away we camped on start in the morning. The horses kept us
this side of the Tuya and ferried gear awake all niaht fiahting in the corral and
‘across in order to shoe horses and get: . about 5 a.m. the sky opened up and it
them ready for the trip. With the help poured rain until 7, then it cleared and
of Frances Gleason, Joe Fitzsimmons and "was a lovely morning. We had breakfast

Lugi Robichaud this task was completed and while Tracy and |! broke camp the men
over the July Ist weekend, saddled the horses, tied them up and then

Started packina the pack horses. It was