Page:Route of Meek Cut-off, 1845.djvu/8

8 into a disc on a wagontire. The father of the writer, who was then 18 years of age, told of witnessing this. No excitement or much interest was exhibited, as concerns of more import were in the minds of all. The golden pebbles, however, were brought to the Willamette Valley, but whether preserved is not known.

September 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st, they were still on or near the Crooked River and morning of 22nd about five miles below present Prineville, when they ascended to the plateau before reaching the great gorge. The next 32 miles brought them to the breaks of the Deschutes River about 11 miles northwest of present Madras, above present Mecca. Either the crossing appearing impracticable or the country beyond difficult of negotiation, they turned northeast three miles and encamped at Sagebrush Spring "with 200 wagons," this being about one mile west of the present highway and four miles from its crossing of Hay Creek. The next encampment was on the now line between Jefferson and Wasco counties, at the Bolter place. The "huge" mountain, on the morning of the 29th, was the ascent to the plateau to the west, and a few miles south of the junction of the Dalles-California and Sherman highways. The following three days were to the Deschutes at the mouth of Buck Hollow Creek, by way of the upper branches of Bakeoven Creek.

The descent of the train down the precipitous incline of Kerr Point, between Kerr Canyon and Buck Hollow, and the crossing of the Deschutes River here, were perhaps the most adventurous work of these travelers of plains and mountains, across the state. The scars of the wheels, deepened and widened by the winds and snows of intervening years, still are to be seen, as are they at other places. The level flat on the east side of Buck Hollow from the bed of this stream at Kerr Canyon to the Deschutes, a distance of a mile, terminated with a perpendicular wall of basalt 20 to 30 feet high at the latter stream. The crossing was solved by the wagons entering the bed of Buck Hollow Creek where first met, and following this stream down to the water level of the Deschutes. The wagon boxes were calked and the crossing made by the improvised boats, which were either pulled by line from the opposite shore or behind the swimming oxen. Here the unusually rapid stream has consider-