Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 3.djvu/104

94 rich. We continued up the creek to the west, and found plenty of dry grass well liked by animals. The hills on either side were of stratified basaltic rock and white marble. There were many berries which formed a good sauce to go with our dried meat, and the water was good.

August 17—We continued our journey over mica slate ridges; snow was seen north and south on the mountains.

August 20—There was frost in the forenoon, but in the afternoon very hot, with some clouds and thunder, but no rain. We experienced many days of this kind. We passed several large hot springs. Not knowing they were hot, I was much startled when I stooped to drink from one of them and found the water very hot. probably 100 or more.

August 21—We met some Shoshone Indians, or Diggers, as they are often called. They appeared leaner and poorer, even in their clothes, than those we had seen before. They were armed only with bows and arrows. They had earthen pots and baskets in which they carried their water, and boiled their fish in the baskets by putting in hot stones, which, with the camas and white roots, formed their diet.

August 22—We started northwest, leaving the Cassia on the right, passed several limestone ridges, with high mountains in the west, covered with snow, and came into a barren plain and encamped on a small creek. None of our company knew where we were. The next day we traveled over the barren plain fifteen miles, came to a large creek from the south, which joined one coming from the northeast, passing through "Cat Creek."

August 24—We went up the creek to the south fifteen miles; then west five miles and encamped. There was volcanic rock all about us, and beyond high conical mountains, the range running east and west. The coal like rock looked like burnt granite, with some sandstone. There was no timber on the stream but the willow.

August 26—We traveled southwest over the barren plains, open to the south as far as the eye could reach. We encamped on a small creek running southeast, which we afterwards learned was the Humboldt River. We continued up the creek to the northwest six miles and took an Indian trail in a southwest direction, reaching the creek at its source, which ran to the northwest.

Here we parted with Messrs. Sublette and Frap, who were going west to trap. We twelve continued down this creek eighteen miles. This first night that we twelve adventurers were alone was full of curiosity and anxiety for the future for all of us in that unknown country. Our aim was to get back to Lewis River. We had traveled to the southwest since we had first crossed it; to get back to it and follow it to the junction with the Columbia was our plan.