New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-11-09
CLIMBING PIXIES PEAK.-No. III.

DtNfLh vi bNPb' ~ iS'N'
Pixies Peak received its name in honor of Lieu
tenant, afterward General, q. N. Pike, gallant
officer. who discovered and ascended it in 1905,
while at the head Of an eSplor ng expedition sent
out by Mr. Jefforsons Administration. Occupying
the same latitude with St. Louis and San Fran
cisco. al d about LOCO miles FROM each, in the
WORDS Of Frank Blair, il stands Is the standard
bearer beckoring the nation" Accounts differ
10 regard to its elevation; but Col William Gilpln
of Independence, Missouri, whose name carries
authority in all matters of physical geography,
places its altitude at fourteen thousand nve hundred
feet.
The summit lis Of an irregular, obong shape, nearly
level. uIbIacing about sixty acres, and composed
entirely of angular slabs and blocks OF coarse dsn-
teqrating granite. The fresh snow was two or
three inches deep in the ntestces among the rocks,
but had nearly all melted from tteir surfaces. We
found the names of twenty or thirty persons cut IN
stones and carved aud written upon bilets OF wood
carried up for the purpose. Among them was that
IF a gentleman who claims to have made the ascent
and r,turned TO Colorado in single day, but tho
assertion is not generally accepted, aud does seem
incredible.
The day was clear, and the view indescribably
grand and impressive. To the eastward, for hun
dred miles, our eyes wandered over the dim, dreamy
praries spotted by the dark shadows OF the clouds
and the deeper green Of the pneries lntersected Dy
the faint gray lines of the roads and emerald threads
of timber which mark The meanderipg OF the
dreams. and banded on the far horizon with
gir6le of gold. At our very feet, below the now
insignificant mountains up which we had tolled 80
YEARLY was Colorado, TO the naked eye confused
CITY of Lillputs but through the glasses exhibiting
its buildings in perfect dshnctness, and beside one
ST them our own carriage with man standing near
IT,
Further south swept the green timbers Of the
Fontaine au Bouile, the Arkansas and the Huer-
fano and then rose the blue Spanish Peaks OF New
Mexico hundred miles away Eight or ten miles
from our point two little gems of lakes nestled
among the rugged mountains, revealing even the
shadows of the rocks and pines III their transparent
waters. Far beyond, group of tiny lakelets glIt-
tered and sparkled in their dark surroundings Ike
cluster OF stars.
To the west. the South Park, 40 miles in length,
the BAYOU Salado, and other ampitheaters OF rich
floral neutrality-suspicious. of nature amid the utter
iesolation of the mountains-were spread thou
sanda Of feet below u; and beyond, peak after
pt ak until the pure white wall of the Snowy Range
merged into tue infinite blue Of the sky. Toward
the northt ast we could trace the timbers OF the
Platte. fer more than seventy miles; but though
the junction of Cherry Creek even to the unssslsted
eye showed the exact location OF Denver our glasses
1lO not tfhDlt us 10 utttCl tuC
These of course were only the more prominent
features Of the landscape. To the north, south
and west the intervening e1panse was one vast
wilderness Of mountains Of diverse forms and
minpliup coors with clouds of feecy white sailing
sjrily among their SCARED and wrinkled submits.
BY walking few hundred yards, from one slight
elevation to another, We looked upon four Terri
tories of the UniOn-Kansas Nebraska, Utah and
New Mexico Almost from the same standpoint We
4 4. 60 10 frfx-a
of the continent the Platte, Arkansas, Rio Grande
and Colorado tributaries respectively OF the Mis-
souri the Mississippi, the Gulf OF Mexico and the
Gulf of California.
A gorge upon the north side is still more gigantic
than that on the southeast. A colossal pl0wshare
seems 10 have been driven fercely down from the
summit almost to the base, leaving gaping furrOw,
visible even from Denver (seveDty miles) and deep
enough in itself to bury mountain OF considerable
pretensons Such enormous chasms must the ar
mics Of the Almighty have left in heaven, when to
overwhelm Luciter and has companions
From their foundations loo. ming and fro,
TneJ plucted the seated hills with all ,h'ir load
Rock waters, woods ana By the shaggy tops
Uplifting bore them IN their bands
1t seemed impossible to grow weary Of the won
dedul pictures but my companions, though wrapped
ia heavy blankets, were shvering with cold so
We investigated our only refreshment-a bottle OF
champagne which a Colorado acquaintance had
thrust into one of the packs-iced IT, and drank To
the health Of absent butsunfOrgotten frends Alter
the manner Of more ambitious expeditions a record
was then placed in the empty bottle which was
carefully recorked and buried under cairn.
There are traditions that when Lieutenant Pike
assembled the mountoin sixty years ago, he cached
fye-gaDon keg of Risky among the rocks upon
the summit We had some vague hopes OF finding
it-purely, Of course, from antiquarian motives
but were unsuccessful.
After rollirg rocks for few minutes down the
tremendous gulf CAT the head of which some enter
prisDg agent Of the Hannibal aud st. Joseph Rail
road has posted hand bill of the line, with
fnger pointing directly down the cleft, from the
garing capitals, " Shortest and Best Route to tho
Last" ~ aud iIdulGng briefly 10 the school-day
pass inc OF snow ballIng we reluctantly commenced
tie descent having spent two bOIrs upon the sun
nit. Before We had gone three hundred feet, Mr..
Beach, weak from lorg exposure and loss OF sleep,
missed his fOOthOd, and fell more than bis length,
striking upon Jagged rock. 1t must inevitably
have broken two or three OF his limbs but for a
large spy glass in his cOat-pOcket, whose heavy
metallic case was deeply indented by the collision.
Az it was, be was unable to rise for three or four
minutes Had the accident disabled him to walk,
his situation would have been desperate one In
our exhausted condition, il would have been m
possible to carry him; assistance could not have
been obtained from Colorado under iOrty-eight
hours there was no hre-wOOd 40 far above vegcta-
ton. and no adequate supply of provisions IN our
camp below. But fortunately he soon rallied, and
came limping down with the rest.
The cspouf ,rader will please consider ott la
regard this dae wn. With authorities soos..ios on
osp Wg'r nabddsed Shakespeare and Robinson Crusoe
skhS< Of which sesus 70 bruv h rht The subject