Daily national Democrat., 1861-03-15
Travelling Correspondence.


EDITOR DEMoosr Having promised you
a sketch # the Yuba Gap route. l avail my
self of this opI ortunity to fulfill my promise,
the last | will have for some time, as on Sun
day will commence a camp life, down on
the Truckee, and may not be within the pale
of civilization again for some weeks
We started from Dow wuieville at 2 in the
afternoon; our party, seven in number, IN
cluding the conductor who rejoiees in the
familiar, but not very euphoneous cognomen
of Shorty and slept that night in Sierra
City, at a hotel kept 10y Thompson, with a
p" an uncle of the veritable G. X, Philan-
der and at 5 next morning was on the road
again. travelling by star light, so as to take
advantage of the crust in crossing the deep
snow of the summit; but the snow had fallen
% recently that there was no crust, and we
had to make our way through instead of
over il, which was no hard task, except in a
few places, where it had drfted very deeply
upon the trail; there we dismounted and
following in the footsteps of our illustrious
predecessor" Shorty, drove our mules before
us, mounting again upon the opposite side of
the drift; one of our party, however, an Isra-
elite, hailing from the "Faderland," and act
ing on the principle that he had paid his
"monish" would stick on his mules back,
and at times both man and mule would be
lost to sight, then emerging ngan from the
deep snow, looking like "A locomotive ice
berg, the words Gunner and Blixen" would
escape his lips, and all would be right again.
At three in the afternoon we arrived at
Houcks ranch, in the upper end of Sierra
Valley, under whose hosptable roof we rest
ed for the night, several of our party repair
ing to the hot sulphur spring, enjoyed the
luxury of bath. After her domestic duties
were over for the evening, | dropped in and
made call upon "Alice," and passed a
couple of hours with her, in pleasant and
agreeable communion upon literary and 9th
er topics, which was like an oasis in the des-
ert of common place conversations to which
one is gcnerrlly confined while rambling
among the mountains And here let me ad-
wise you, if you ever visit this part of crea-
ton; stop at Houcks where you will be well
cared for, and Hospitality entertained.
We stopped next day for dinner at the
Fifteen Girl House, called from the fact
of their being that number of children in the
family, but they are not all girls, | saw but
two about the house, although there was
goodly number sitting around the sunny side
of the hay stack l was glad that Shorty
stopped there for dinner, although we had
only made six miles after breakfast The
boys should patronize a man who has done
so well for California. That night we stop
ped, q will not say slept) at the Antelope,
a house advise all weary travellers to avoid,
as they would the pestilenoe, and push on to
Fuller's, at the crossing of the Truckee, where
they will find quiet, neat, clean house, and
the best appointed meals, outside the cities,
and such attention as deserves, and will be-
speak their patronage. | had expected to
remain at HutIacre's Ranch, but not meeting
"A friend there, | pushed on to Virginia.
where | have been so busy running around,
that l could find no time for writing, which
accounts for the tardiness of this.
The Yuba Gap road, may be made the
best across the Sierra Nevada; the summit is
somewhat higher than that by Woodson's
Pass on the Jamson route, but it has an ad-
vantage over that, in an easy regular grade
and a southern exposure, it having the bene-
fit of the suns rays during the entire day,
even when running lowest at the winter
solstce. The grade as it ascends the Yuba,
is merely nominal, and running most of the
distance upon flats will be protected from
avalanches in the winter season.
Yours, ALIoTH.