The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-06-15
BEAUTIES OF
FOREST GROVE.
A Picturesque Canyon in the
Santa Cruz Mountains.
Fragrant Wildaowers, Shady hooks, Rustic
Bridges and Miniature Cas-
cades.
Written for THE SUNDAY CALL.

in the Santa Cruz Mountains. IL is reached
In about two hours time from the city of
Alameda. After crossing the drawbridge
over San Leandro Bay, the road extends
for several miles through marshy country.
Almost imperceptibly these reedy morasses
blend into low-lying OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
fully stocked with horses and cattle-and
barley fields. The train stops OF bu.
few stations. OF these is Alvarado,
quite place now, whose large public
school and sugar refinery, with its
great black chimneys, are the most
conspicuous objects observed from
the car-windows; Newark, pretty place
which can boast of a horse-car line, and
Alviso, mere haml ct of scattered houses.
AS Santa Clara County is neared the land
scape gains in beauty and variety. Waving
lines of sycamores, alders and pussy-wil-
lows mark the trend of water-courses;
grain-felds turning yellow and dotted over
with wide-sprcading oak trees-the first
met-and orchards of peach, plum, apple,
cherry and apricot greet the eyes. AS the
outskirts of Santa Clara and San Jose are
passed glimpses of shady streets, bordered
with maple and honey-locusts, become
visible, and charming homes shining out of
dense shrubbery and roses. Los Gatos is
about the prettiest village on the route. 1t
has very ridiculous and unpoetic name
tits true, but the place is most romantic in
situation. The scenery is varied, for so
small an area. The mountains at the back
of the town are exceedingly Steep and the
soil is ferruginouS. These slopes are planted
with grapeylnes.
GRAND SCENERY.
The rich green of these healthy plants and
the strikingly red soil present peculiar
mo 90 yrIn nc Aotn hn 1arf ~
scape becomes grander and more rugged.
The mountains Increase in height and in
many places the track passes between high
bluffs of clayey soil and conglom-
crate. There are many assures IN
these bluffs, made by last winters
storms; out of them we noticed growing
masses of gold and orange eschscholtzia.
The road crosses many deep ravines, the
sides of which are literally garlanded with
wild conYolvulus and blackberry vines.
The foliage of these canyons is so dense that
only occasional glimpses of mountain
brooks are discernible through openings
made by fallen trees. There is very little
of stern mountain scenery here-the slopes
and sides of this range are covered with
verdure from base to summit of almost
every conceivable shade of green.
Forest Grove" is not mSnOmer 1t
lies in deep canyon, the railroad track be-
ing far above it. Ii is reached by several
graded roads The grove at its entrance is
fitted up with conveniences for visitors, but
beyond that it is left in its natural state.
The entire bottom of this canyon is the
wide, irregular stony bed of a mountain
brook. This brook at this time of the year
has a well-defned course, but in winter it be-
comes torrent, spreading the entire width
of its bed, and quite destructive to many
lovely hooks and picturesque situations.
At present it is quite deep and has strong
current. The water is cold and very trans
parent. In some places there are cascades.
The bed of this brook is full Of trees, of
which the alder pred0mnates, though syca-
moreS aud bay trees are met with. The
shade is so dense in places that one literally
verities the words of Keats:
Embalmed darkness verduous gloom and
winding messy ways.
FOR LOVERS OF NATURE.
Forest Grove" is just the place for the
lover of nature to revel in. 1t is paradise
for the amateur photographer for views
worth preserving are
Thick as autumnal leaves that strew the brooks in
Valombrosa.
A party of six, including myself,
spent pleasant day lately at the
proper abounds in brook scenes of the
most varied description, which must
be seen to be appreciated, such as shady
hooks where wax berries, hazel bushes and
wild roses make indescribably lovely
tanRleSr picturesque VIStits, revealing grace
full bends in the stream, old trees forming
rustic bridges and miniature cascades
To ascend the grade TO the railroad track is
no easy task, unless one chooses the road,
for the slope is very abrupt. The canyon
is so densely wooded that little can be seen
of the beauties from the track. Following
1t for some distance, one comes TO wagon
road, along which are charming sites.
In prospecting for views, we met q
resident of the Grove, named Perciva
| "a Grand Army veteran and formerly a
| photographer in San Jose. We mutually
| introduced ourselves, and he offered to pilot
| us about the grove. He led US to some un.
discovered hooks of great beauty. He took
| us to one place where the road was Dor.
| dered for several hundred feet with tai
young redwood trees. The path was Sc
narrow that the branches met at the tor
almost. About this locality we came to
small area peculiarly rich in flowers. One
of my companions, an enthusiastic lover OF
| botany, and myself found quite large
number of species. A wild flower of vivid
| scarlet. the shape OF an artists blender anC
soft to the touch as plush. was particularly
| noticeable. Among others were flower:
with delicate star-shaped petals of pink ant
white, with tremulous hair-like stems. while
| mountain violets marked like panSies, wild
roses in great profusion, waX-berries. a vel
| low flower resembling the harebell, thin.
| BILE berries" with large white blossoms and
|
the California lilac, with its deep glossy
| foliage and bluish-purple flowers. "Yerbs
| Buena," an aromatic and medicinal herb
hourishes here 1t has a deliciou
balsamic perfume. 1t grows among
| the stones and is a vine with heart
aud we met with none of those splendit
varieties which are so abundant in Sonomi
| County. The only species we found were
"golden-b backs" and "braken." We were
told that fine specimens of maidenhai
| were common here Till picnic parties al
most rooted them out"
| AN OLD RICKETY BRIDGE.
| In one place the road lies over an OLE
| rickety bridge about seventy-five feet lops
the bed OF the brook, full of large stones
and very wide, is about fifty feet below
The shade here is dense, owing to larg,
numbers OF redwoods. Many great stump!
of giant trees are to be seen among them
charred and moldering, evidences of hunt
ers' vandalism. Looking over from thi
primitive bridge one can see the high trestl
| over which trains pass to and from SAINT;
Cruz. 1t is an immense structure. Mr.
Percival took us by this road to his noun
tain home He has lived here for min,
ing pre-empted the claim. His hous
faces the east and bears evidence O
refined taste. 1t is painted a dark Indiai
red, the windows bright and hung will
dainty white curtains and a glowing mas
of bloom surrounds the house. The littl
garden is a very democracy of flowers ant
vegetables, growing in harmony sid,
by side-use with beauty, watered by TIN
same spring and shone upon by tn
same sun. We admired large Ii
Marque which shaded the front door
it was growing over a trellis and was fairl
weighted down with fragrant, white tea
scented roses. TIE garden is irrigate
by mountain stream, quite littl
volume Of water, which is diverted fr0r
its course by primitive aqueduct, whic
| answers the purpose admirably. Th