The daily intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Territory [i.e. Wash.]) 1876-1881, 1879-11-01

From an INTELLIGENCE Core: p)ndentl
OLYMPIA, Oct. 81, 1879.
Circumstances irduced me to forego
for few e. my cont IL plated trip
to Walla Wal!a aud vicinity, and return
to the Sound jus. after completing an
examination Of the Kittitas valley and
procuring an outfit to travel with on
horseback to that section of country.
On the afternoon Of Tuesday. Oct 14th
bale adieu to The Kitittas and started
over tn mountains along the stage road
for the Yakima valley.
The word Kittitas means white earth,
and the locality is 50 named from.a spe-
cies of white ca, tn found west of the
Yaki IA river and u',d by the Indians
to paint their faces and ruo on their
buffalo skins in tanning TO max. lem
whit.
Ga Wednesday night l stopped at the
stage station on Wenass creek, at the
head of Yakima valley. This station
is kept by c A Pressey. 1t is some %
miles from Z lensb,rs and % from va
kima City. When FIRST reached there
intended to so to Yakima City before
crossing tbs Nach,ss Pass; but On
learn ng that it was me- 20 miles
nearer to 90 over the Pass from his
place than from Yakims City, l deter.
mined to start from there, although the
dangers Of the trip at this season Of the
year were depicted in strong colors.
Having SO, every thing re .dy for the
trip. in the afternoo l welt on the cut.
of tr il nearly to tie banks OF the
Nachess river. had an excellent camp,
and early on Thursday morning passed
Hanging Rock, nearly 80 miles from
Yakima City aud only some lG miles
from Pressey's stage station.
A few miles above here, il going
through trushy part Of The trail, my
blankets were yanke1 cut from under
the saddle by some projecting piece of
brush without my perceiving tho loss
until nearly evening. when it was alto
gether too late & go Lack fer them. So
decided to go over the summit without
blankets. notwithstanding the snow /
f,,,,a hat, . "a
Hanging Rock. on the foothills After
reaching the Nachess valley | met no
snow until within some five miles Of the
summit. /. continued for about three
miles west, or eight miles in all. and
was about Is inches deep. Some three
feet of snow had fallen since the Is, II
October. bnt half of it had dissolved
1t was melting very rapidly when
passed the summit.
On Thursday nigh. camped in the
bottom about half way between Hang
ing Rock and tue summit % Friday
foreuooa l stopped at the corrsl eight
miles east Of the summit 10 let the pony
feed. "a be would find no more good
feed FIR nearly two days. the prairies
on the summit being covered with snow
The summit was safely passed on Friday
afternoon. AID | camped on the banks
OF the Greenwater. tributary OF White
river. that evening. Owing to the deep
mud snd bad condition of the trail l
WAS two days in reaching Mr. Wander
heck's, the frat house on White river.
q. the bead Of Por,er's Prairie. dis
tsnee OF only 40 miles This was the
hardest part Of tbs trip. The ground
was very wet and the mud very drep.
There i. one mountain called Mud
NJ 4un,ain. which il nearly l-v,l o. lis
summit and some two miles across. on
which the mud nearly averaged two
feet deep. with places foot deeper. In
the summer time this part Of the road
is sii right, but in wintsr the rich, deep,
black mucky soil, with no chance for
drainage. is cut up by the travel until
Il becomes o thick. sticky. black mass
OF mud and water tia. is slmos: i'm
pAssable.
From Po-te.'s Prairie l crossed the
ford on White river, thence BY Neon.