White birch = paper birch.

Both are common names for Betula papyrifera

For two or three summers, I did portage, or haulage as you will, humpin' anything the camper couldn't or wouldn't. Skiffs, dorys, canoes and home built, though they were some heavy clunkers, I wanted to lecture them on the virtues of birch and cedar over oak and hemlock. But at the end of most trips, I must say they all tried to shoulder out their craft. I miss them, because now I camp alone on Benson Lake.

What's being hauled is an Adirondack guide boat, itself a hybrid - not a canoe, not a rowboat, but the best of both. It's been around since the early 19th century. In the photo, it's probably moving between lakes or ponds over a "carry," many of which connect the Fulton Chain of Lakes in the eastern side of the Adirondacks.

What's with the tree on the left it appears to have its bark peeled away in several bands. One at its base somewhat large, then two smaller above that one both about the same size, then one much larger above those.

[Horizontal peeling is typical of the white and paper birch. -tterrace]