Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1878-07-19

Mrs. Asa Blood and two daughters; Mr..
Geo. What and family, Mr.. Geo. King,
Chas. Boggs, and last but not least, our
former joker, G. W. Sturtevant. Mr..
Sturtevant informed US that he had
been here now two weeks and had not
seen the Garden of the Gods. or Mani
tou with it's springs, or Glen Eyre. He
had seen Pixies Peak. He had seen it
because there it stood, it's proud head
lifted above the timber line, capped
with snow, Il, 400 feet above tide water
and you could not look west without
seeing it. Charles Boggs had been to
to Manitou and the Garden Of the Gods,
so l proposed that we take team in
the morning and go over these places.
This was agreed to.
On the morning of July 4, with Chas.
as guide and driver, and Sturtevant and
myself in the back seat, we left Colora-
do Springs, and taking the north road
went out on to the plateau or table land
of the foot hills. From this point the
peak showed to better advantage, and
we had to stop, take our field-glass and
examine it. l will not attempt de-
scription of it. 1t cannot be described
in words; it cannot be taken on photo
graph plate; no painter can delineate it,
The morning sun shining full upon it's
face, and as revealed to us by the power
of field-glass, it is useless to attempt
to describe it. Colorado Springs is about
5,4O0 feet above tide, and this 5000 feet
above that, standing out above all the
surrounding peaks, grand with it's bright
face rejecting back the sunlight; it's
mighty head crowned with snow; it's
granite walls in many places showing a
perpendicular front of thousand feet,
with bank Of snow at the foot of the
/ wall fifty feet in depth and thousand
feet in length; all lighted up by the
bright rays of the sun on the morning
Of the 4th of July, was sight worth
the whole trip to see.
Our road lay On the top of this table
LAM. Tor some four miles, as firm road
as ever team passed over. AS we were
going in direction parallel to the face
of the peak, the shape and appearance
changed with every mile, and we had to
stop about as often, take out our glass
and examine the grand old mountain.
1t is said that familiarity breeds con-
tempt, but | pity the man with soul so
dead that he could ever look upon this
grand old mountain with contempt. At
last we came to the point in the road
where we descended to Glen Eyre.
Here we look down into the Garden OF
the Gods 1t is about 300 feet below us;
our road runs along the side of the hill
making steep, though not dangerous
descent into the valley. | confess that
when we started down the cliff it made
the blood tingle in the ends of my fin
gers and toes But short time suffced
to restore the equilibrium OF my circu
lation, and I began to take observa-
tons.
This whole hill over which we had
been travelling is composed Of gravel,
sand and very small amount of loam
The perpendicular height cannot be less
than 200 feet; we had come over it some
four miles, and it's extent was several
miles the other way. These pebbles all
appear to have been worn, either by wa
ter or glaciers. In the valley we were
confronted by wall of stone, standing
almost perpendicular, some 200 feet
high and about 20 feet thick. This wall
leans a little to the west, and is of a
gray color. West of that, few rods, is
wall of rock Of brick color, about as
high but thicker. Near these is the en-
trance to Glen Eyre A notice at the
grounds, and that we must not destroy
or allow our teams to destroy the shrub
berry. This property belongs to General
Palmer. He has a very fine residence
here, which he occupies only during
portion OF the summer season. We gath
cred some specimens of rock from the
brick colored peaks. In this glen, that
is, these two walls, the gray and the red,
are the famous echo rocks South of
them are two peaks, standing out like
sentinels, each over 100 feet high; all
around them the rock has been worn
away. They stand up like two tall
chimneys.
From the west side of Glen Eyre we
saw gulch or canon opening into the
mountain. We followed up about mile
and came to fall in the stream, over
which we could not climb. The water
had worn a basin, or bowl, into the
rocks; from this we took drink of wa
ter,-clear, cold, pure water,-and from
its edges | knocked off some pieces of
granite and brought away with me. At
forwards we learned that this was the
famous Devils Punch Bowl, and that
from it was supplied all the drink to be
had in the Garden of the Gods. Sturte-
want said that he had made better punch
than that many time, and could again
if he had the ingredients.
After examining Glen Eyre to our
satisfaction, we returned and went into
the Garden of the Gods, through the
east gate, between Cathedral rock and
some other whose name we did not
learn. This garden shows how wonder
fully water will wear stone, and in what
fantastic shapes it will frequently leave
them. Our ride through this place was
one of continual surprise. 1t is truly
wonderful to see how these rocks have
been worn; in what curious shapes they
have been left. We passed out of the
garden at the south gate, between Bal
ance rock and another on the east side
Of the road as high, but not poised on
so small base.
The next place we visited was the big
soda spring at Manitou This is curl
osity. On the south bank of the creek,
coming down through 1.-THE Canyon, and
I about fifteen feet above the bed of the
creek, boils up spring of cold, spark
| glin water, clear as crystal, but so
strongly impregnated with soda and
other minerals as to foam and sparkle
in your glass like water from soda
| fountain, when drawn without syrup in
the glass. Its taste is very much the
same as soda water, only it is stronger
than that universally used. People say
that if bottled at the spring it will re-
tain its properties for several days, and
if shaken much it will break the bottle,
if corked SO tight that the cork will not
give way. The main travelled road is
right by this spring, and all stop to take
a drink of its waters. Another spring,
not so large but as strong of soda, is
about 20 rods distant from this one.
About half mile southwest, and up
another canon is another spring, of
iron and soda combined, called the Iron
1.-THE. We had to drink at each of these
to see which we liked the best.
Following up 1.-THE Canyon about one
mile from the big soda spring, we enter
what is known as 1.-THE Pass. Here the
mountains come down to the stream, so
that there is not room for road. But
the mining interests of South Park have
ooucod m ho ant o,,f of Tho .oaLx 49,