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Show Record middle of the channel; that is, the water would divide, and unless we were careful and understood something about the way the river handled the sand, we were very liable to run our boat up on the sand. When we did get on a sand bar it took us about 15 minutes to back the boat in the water and go around. That did not happen 4467 very often. I have never seen the time when I did not find a channel somewhere in the canyon. In getting off the sand bars we very often got out of the boat to pull it off. I did not estimate the depth of the river in that way. We have waded the river frequently in working the boats off. When three of us were together, one of us would run on to a sand bar, the other two would stop and hunt out the channel. One of us would usually wade out and find out where there was a channel. That spring the river was extremely low, the lowest I have ever seen it. The lowest that I ever saw the river when I got over board 4468 was three feet. In using my pole I had opportunity to gage depths. In going up the river I always could make better progress with a pole than I could with oars. There is some swift water in the San Juan. We were able to negotiate those rapids with our boats. The greatest distance of rapid water at those places that I encountered was probably 100 yards. Frank H. Karnell testified on cross examination as fol-lows: 4469 When I first went in there to do placer mining I went in overland with a team and wagon. I kept them down there all the time and used them to haul supplies occasionally. Most of our sup-plies were brought in overland. When Philpot and that other man and myself went out to 4470 build our boats we went overland on horses because it was faster. After I sprained my ankle I went to Bluff with my horses. When we got through with all our work down there we |