Evidence on the Adequacy of First Nations Consultation - BC Hydro ...

Kinbaskit, the Chief, who is nearly always encamped about the head waters of the Columbia has made a
horse trail from the mouth of Toby Creek, which continues along its bottom for 2 days journey, then he
follows a foot trail which passes over the summit traversed by Mr. Howman and reaches the Kootenay
Lakes in 2 days more, thus taking 4 days to complete the journey.
But as referenced by Affleck, 48 the Lower Ktunaxan guides of James Turnbull, who was Moberly’s
colleague on the expedition, could not explore this trail after travelling up Kootenay Lake, essentially
because of its succumbing to disuse.
When Moberly travelled down the Upper Columbia in the summer of 1866, he wrote of meeting
Kinbasket whom he described as having led his band to the Upper Columbia area where they settled
“about 20 years ago.” 49 Kinbasket accompanied Moberly’s party for several days, and is described as
having:
a thorough knowledge of the country from Wild Horse Creek to the Boat Encampment, and thence to
Colville…He also says he has taken horses up the valley of Toby Creek, No. 2, nearly to its source, and
then leaving them has passed on foot over a high divide to the head of Kootenay Lake…
Perhaps reflecting this extended contact, the team referred to the first passage as “Kinbaskit’s Trail”.
For example, when Surveyor Turnbull’s party was exploring the “Upper Kootenay Lake” [now
Duncan Lake] area at this same time he wrote in his report that he had “reached the foot of
Kinbaskit’s Trail. Found no Indians there.” At any rate, Moberly’s team felt that it would not serve
as a supply route because of the high elevation of its westward section.
This appears to be the same trail that was described by Palliser a few years earlier: 50
There once was a good trail from the Columbia Lakes to the west but no one has traveled it for many
years and [Alick] thinks it must now be blocked up with fallen trees.
It would thus appear that the length of the trip and its unsuitability for horses led to the trail’s disuse
by Kinbasket’s people after only a relatively short period of usage. This appears to be in contrast to
conclusions by Keefer et al 51 concerning the apparent long standing use of the Toby Creek – Jumbo
Pass trail by the Columbia Lake Ktunaxa, long before contact.
Government of Canada Documentation
Indian Superintendent Israel W. Powell visited the Kootenays in 1873 to discuss the creation of
reserve land with both the Upper and Lower Kootenay and returned in 1886 to discuss their
grievances and demands for larger reserves. While he does include impressions of a general
ethnographic nature, his descriptions of territorial lands are very limited for our purposes. 52
48 Affleck, p. 10
49 Moberly, 1866 This suggests a date for the resettlement of Kinbasket’s Band to the Columbia Lakes area of about 1846.
If Kinbasket was familiar with the Columbia down to Colville it is reasonable to expect that the Ktunaxa were too.
50 Palliser, p. 155
51 Keefer, Choquette, McCoy and Williams (2004), pp. 30, 31.
52 Reports of November 3, 1873 [RG 10, Vol. 3738, file 28013-1] and November 18, 1886 [RG 10, Vol. 3738, file 28013-
1A]
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