Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1876-01-06
An Adventure In the Mountains

The following extracts are from a ,n.,
to his home paper. Two of them ~
:. doing" Colorado and started up (,r.v.
Peak on a windy morning-greenho..
without a guide: We commenced y.
three mile trip to the peak, understands,
that we could ride our horses ali Tie wsS
We had only travelled half the distaS:,
when we missed the trail, but taking uks
seemed TO be mere COW path we KEEP, q
till we satisfied ourselves tLat we were y
the right track A portion of the last hsIs
mile was fearful. The trail was nowber.
more than two feet in width; it zigzagrtd
along the side of the mountain. often rn.,
ming up steep pitches that the horss
could barely climb, and while watchi1,
10 keep one foot from being iamme3
against rock the other would be hangin,
over a precipice 1000 feet deep. Ts
horses seemed to know more about Is
business than we did Finally b,s
stopped in the snow and would not budgp
an inch further toward the summit. W.
dismounted and held a council of wa,
peace, or whatever you may call it, Asl
looked down and saw the abyss yawnn,
2 900 feet below / gave up. Mr.. Gle
said Let US get our horses dow
where we can hitch them and then tn
and climb" To this / agreed. But .
ride down that path through the ice and
snow i would not have done for all Tie
gold and silver mines in Colorado. I
would go first, and ii he wanted to ride
my horse would f.llow his mate without
rider. Down through the ice and snow
| scrambled, but am free to say my De.
scent for portion OF the way was neither
upright nor dignified. In fact l "cooned
il, " provided coon can walk with his back
downward When l got to where could
dare to look up could see the hone.
mine looking down and Giles looking up,
their ears stretched out, ami cash man.
Testing the greatest establishment at Tie
positions assumed by their respeciiye
riders. Mr.. Giles seemed to have deta
mined to GO up anyhow, and says he did
/ believe him. The appearance he pre-
sented when / last saw him indicated thg
he was on the upward track. When yoa
see the stern Of a ship square before YOU
you may generally believe she is not con-
ing toward you. Giles said he reached
the summit-there is no one to DISPUTE
his word without the aid Of a horse. |
got down to Mrs. Lanes nearly two hours
before he did. l think he was the worst
used-up man of the two He brought
back both horses. | would not have gone
for mine had he been worth $4,000. |
suppose there was something ludicrous,
after all, in the way Giles got up and got
down. / have, in conclusion of this adj.
venture, to advise-tirst that no amateur
mountaineer attempt the ascent of Gray's
Peak under the circumstances we did. If
he is foolhardy enough to do 50, and finds
il necessary to descend as did, go first TO
some cobbler and have the seat OF his
pantaloons half-soled with good thict
leather. He had better also wear a bob
tailed coat, provided he expects TO have
anything but mere fringe left when he
gets through with old Gray. From Grays
Peak can perhaps be seen more land than
from any other natural elevation in The
world. | did not succeed in getting to
the topmost pinnacle, but got up pretty
high, and suppose l saw all that could Be
seen east of the peak.--Rocky Mountain
Neaos