The Newtown bee., 1897-08-13
Town Topics.
A. G. Baker in Colorado.
TO A HAwLEYVILLE FRIEND HE WRITES
INTERESTINGLY OF HIS EXPERIENCES.

letter to Hawleyville friend. Mr.
Baker writes:
LA PLATA CO., CoL., IN CAMP ON EAST
FORK OF THE LOS PINos, SATURDAY,
JULY q DON'T KNOW WHAT.
Friend -: Wea in camp row away
up in the mountains about 40 miles above
my old ranch. Two of my old boys, Seth
and Sam, are with me, also Mr. and Mrs
johnson of Durango, friends of Seth's
and Seth's wife, are with US. We were
able to bring our camp outfit in a wagon
part of the way and there we packed two
horses. l sadoled my horses this morn
ing and started out before breakfast 'to
try and get deer and it is now 4 o. NJ,
and [ have been In but a short time.
followed up the canon number of miles
and not striking anything 1 followed a
trail leading to lake away up among
the snow mountains. | found two fell
lows camped there and we caught some
trout for dinner. Two of them made
quite little more than the three of us
could eat, and mind you my dinner was
a long delayed breakfast. | wish you
could have seen the trout in that lake. l
could stand on the rocky shore almost
anywhere and count from five to 25 trout
that would weigh anywhere from one to
10 pounds each. The water is as clear as
crystal and snow water is running into it
from great gulches of snow on all sides.
After the river leaves the lake it is a sue
cession of falls, falling some 20O0 feet in
all, down to within about two miles of
our camp. You can imagine about what
kind of country it is to climb up into,
but We are going to try and move our
camp up to within about two and one
half miles of the lake tomorrow. There
is nice little park in niche in the
mountains with grass to the horses sides.
1t will be impossible to get our pack
horses any farther up so we shall camp
here aud make trips to the lake on our
ponies. The boys went up the river and
have just come in with &c trout, so we
are all right for meat tonight if [ did OF
get deer. The flies have driven them
about all farther down the mountains.
Seth and l ran on to one yesterday
but we were not hunting and before we
could get our guns from the scabbards
he had disappeared. We are now further
up in these mountains than | ever went
before. Clouds are forming right here
around US all the time and we are liable
to have bright sunshine and fifteen min
utes later rain hard. These showers are
of short duration, however, and a person
dries off very quickly. was 80 cold rid
ing this forenoon, however, after one of
these showers that 1 stopped and built a
fire and warmed up. saw by the papers
before [ came up here that it has been
fearfully hot in the East. l came in via
Cripple Creek, Telmide, Rico and Ophir
and on the 4th and 9TH snow fell at those
points from two to six inches in depth.
[ spent few days at the old ranch and
visiting different points of the old range.
Went to the agency the day before we
started for the mountains. Our bunk
was little bit hard last night and the
boys have just been boughing it down
with lot of spruce boughs. The ladies
have little tent. 1t is necessary TO have
some kind of cover for camping as fa1
up in the mountains as this on account OF
the frequent showers. We are in a canon
of the river here, the walls of which are
from 800 to 1000 feet high. We are near.
ly up to the rivers source, the lake OF
which l speak being the source of the
West Fork. Bear are very plenty uI
mere. see lots of signs and the work Of
bears, yet L don't expect to get any, fol
in five minutes run they can get where
it Is impossible for man or horse to fol
low them. Tuesday, 6 80 p. m. We hav
lust had supper. We cooked seven o
those big trout and five of US ate all bu
lust about what cat could finish. The
taste just exactly like our eastern broo
trout. 1t seems to me that / never ate g
much in my life as 1 have on this triI
but have been doing some pretty har
riding. My time being so short hay
improved 1t and visited whole lot of th
old scenes. We picket two of. horse
and hobble the balance every night an
we usually find them not far from cam
in the morning. One of them, however
broke his picket rope this morning a.
made break for the lower country, b,
we missed him and caught him before
was far away. have just saddled N
horse and hauled in a lot of pine stuml
for our evening camp fire. We keep Il
. camp fire burning all night and alwa.
have good bed Of Goals to get breakfa
by. I just can't help thinking of &
trout in the lake where we we aresgoil
tomorrow. It beats anything ever 50