Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-01-01

The Black Canyon i'm the Very Sum-
init of the Big Horn Mountains.

Inc BLACK Canyon In the Very Sum-
init of the Big Horn Mountains.
Black Canyon is cleft in the very
summit of the Big Horn mountains
and yawns for a somewhat tortuous
length of thirty miles, stretching
from its junction with the canyon,
through which the waters of the Big
Horn river force their way southeast
ward into Wyoming aud almost to
the boundaries of the National park.
writes a correspondent to the st. Paul
Pioneer Press. 1t has never been
thoroughly explored, but, except at
the sOdthernmost extremity, main
talns nearly uniform depth of 1000
feet. AS westerners well know, noun
tains In these parts are treeless, and
reach to the snow line or beyond in
gradual and rounded slopes. There
is not the slightest indication of the
Black canyon until one reaches Its
very verge, ana the effect Of the con-
trast between its density wooded
pines, ike funeral plumes,"
wave to and fro and sing ceaselessly,
and the treeless acclevities behind. is
as unique as can be imagined. Well
is it named Black" for these same
pines, massed as they are with naught
but the denser foliage displayed, give
an air Of Erebus itself to the whole
huge assure. Bringing into more
marked effect the somberness of the
greater portion of the canyon are
huge white cliffs, perfectly perpen-
dicular, and with their sheer height
of more than third of mile tower
pels silence on the part of the on
locker, be he garrulous as Fallstaf
or querulous as Holman.
He would be queer American
who, looking down into the chasm,
did not feel an immediate and ire
sistible desire to penetrate the depths
and look up. To accomplish this is
arduous, but neither difficult nor
dangerous. Two or three miles south
of the debeuching of the Big
Horn canyon a bride path
leads to the bottom of the
Black. It is partly the bed of
stream which depends upon the rainy
season for its Row and partly a track
made by bears, elk, or deer, terraced
as it were in the very side Of the
steepness. From the entrance to the
deep wood to the bottom plateau is
about mile, and three quarters by
this path and over all but half mile
it is possible t. ride. Steep as the
side of a house in almost every part,
but winding sufficiently to allow the
line of direction to be maintained
within ones base, careful horse can
make good progress till more than
half way down. Then must his rider
dismount, for what was steep before
becomes precipitous now, and the foot
way instead of being hard and even
is covered with sand, earth, loose
stones, and other detrititus from
the towering sides above Both
horse and rider must slide; and, as in
the middle of the steepest part the
path bends round large rock, at an
acute angle, while to the right yawns
a p-ecipice hundreds of feet in depth,
one has the elation which comes of
semi danger after be has passed this
evil half mile and remounted for
the last and comparatively easy half
mile of descent, with the complacency
of him who has encountered and
overcome obstacles. Yet 1t isn't
really very dangerous, since the loose
earth helps to hold one back, and a
number Of army ladies have made the
descent in perfect safety, but with
more or less damage to habiliments.
Once landed on the perfectly level
surface at the bottom of the big can
L
do not meet, as they seem to do wheL
looked at from above, but are separ
ated by from few hundred feet to
quarter of a mile. The huge bare
walls Of rock are even more impress
siYe when seen from below, and seem
like the battlements of some huge
castle erected by Titans, and worthy
of defense by the Olympian gods.
Shut out from the world and singing
its merry, dashing song through the
center Of the lower level, runs Canyon
creek, here deep and narrow. there
wide and wadeable, and always as
cold as ice and as clear as crystal.
Why not? It is fed by the snow and
ice. and on its waves the
sun can pour its beams but four
or five hours out of every twenty
four. And in that creek, what troutl
Lovely salms colored fellows; the
trout of Montana and Idaho;
gamey as the Oldest and bravest of
their Allegheny brethren; delicious
to the palate as Ward could desire,
and stable In that many attain tEss
noble size of three or four FOUNDERS,
and few which the angler cares to
save weigh less than pound. They
will bite at anything from a piece OF
red flannel coatlining to grasshop-
per, and to see one snatch the bait Ia
the midst of a headlong rush up
stream, and then to feel the thrill in
wrist and shoulder as he resents the
barb, is to ''have fun !" in as true and
full sense as the heart of the fisher
man ever imagined. -