noon
It was difficult for them to see where they were going , and the craft , made from a hollowed log , was by no means so well fitted for the work as the bark or canvas canoe of the more eastern wilds . She was comparatively heavy , and their heads and shoulders were inside of her . Once or twice the portager fell ; and the fall is an awkward one , as it is impossible to break it with one 's hands , which are occupied in holding the canoe . Still , they made progress , and , launching again above the rapid , they reached a lake at noon , by hard paddling . Here they landed , and Nasmyth dropped down upon a boulder to look about him . It was a cheerless prospect he saw through the haze of rain . Back into the distance ran a stretch of slate-gray water , flecked and seamed by the white tops of little splashing waves , for a nipping wind blew down the lake .