The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-11-23
Wild TRIP 10
THUNDER G3NP
Story of a Party Of Gold
Hunters in Idaho,
OVER A HARD TRAIL
Meeting the Knockers on
Their Way Back,
OVER A HARD TRAIL

Our party. had gone into camp for the
night The campfire showed six men
sprawled about it, in wide hats and nigh
boots. eating supper Of venison, .conee
and frying-pan bread. Beyond the imme-
date circle the light aicke-ed confusedly
over a hodge odge Of riding saddles. and
pack saddles. aparejos. boxes. ridos,
casks. holsters and revolvers, ropes,
sacks, ana alfor3as
Twenty yards to the left clamorcd q
stream. while hundred yards away in
ali directions rose the mountains. So
high and direct did they rise, these Idaho
mountains, that they formed Garsan-
tuan cup. The perpendicular sides OF this
cup left but oue small circle Il sky Wis
ible. and this directly overhead From
there the stars dazzled down on US with
q peculiar sharpness through the air
On that night OF May 1902. we were
SIX. Of many hundreds of men. singly,
BY twos. and in parties. who were camped
along the numerous trails leading 10 the
new Manoa. During many preceding
months the gold-mining district Of Thun-
der Mountain, in Idaho has been written
up. ard discussed. and doomed. and ex-
aggerated until the mining country from
Mexico TO British Columbia was agog
over it.
When there is such a large shifting
population as exists in the mining coun-
try there are always many men who are
delighted when news of another boom
reaches them. Men who have little
capital. men who csn raise a little capi-
tai prospectors. gamblers, miners. adven-
turers Of all species. dissatisfied employ
ees Of various kinds. all join in the STAN
pede.
Our party was fairly typical. There
vas Arizona Jim. who had prospected
and mined in Peru. Mexico, Alaska. and
British Columbia, as well as every one
Of the western states. There was Old
Bill who had been a sheriff in a tough"
New Mexico camp. a faro dealer in Grip
pie Creek. a dance hall proprietor in
Dawson and what not besides Jim and
Bin had put their last dollar into the
outfits, and were going in as prospec-
Tors to stake out claims.
The others of the party were taiSiug IN
a saloon. They had a large tent. glasses
and bar necessities. cards. poker chips
and plenty of whisky. Their money for
the venture had been raised on promisory
notes.
1t may be said that all the routes lead
ing TO Thunder Mountain presented much
the same difficulties rs the route OF ours.
The mountain lies two hundred miles
from a railroad in any direction. beyond
mountains In uer aGer tier, whether ap-
preached by the trails from The south.
by way Of Boise City or Ketchum. from
the north by way of Spokane and Lewis
ton from the west by way Of Council.
or from the west by way of Red Rock.
The gold seekers last spring had the
choice of about dozen trails, all equal
" formidable.
our trip for more than a hundred miles
had been compare lively easy. From Red
Rock. Mont. on the oregon Short Line
we had ridden seventy-two miles TO SAL
mon City. idaho. over wagon road
crossing the main range OF the Rockies.
From salmon. always travelling west,
another wagon road had taken US forty
miles more TO Forney. the last post-ohice.
This road had given up a foretaste of the
quality Of the Idaho mountains by lead
ing Us over the LeesburE summit an
unbroken ascent of ten miles
With Jim helping here and Bill coach
ing there. packing was done NJ ara aver
age speed OF Eve minutes a horse. Re
volvers were strapped on. saddle glrths
frightened. ard then
Hey butch Hike there, Get ia he
traI Hit the trail there. nowi Hey.
butch Hey butch And the horses
were back at their work OF climbing.
1t was a sheer ascent. directly in The
face OF a seven-thousand foot mountain.
The snow began short distance up and
grew deeper as we went on. We had to
20 very slowly. letting the horses blow
ever. few minutes
Half way UP the snow was five feet
deep beside the trail and three feet I'm
#. The sun grew hotter, the footiug soft
er while the horses plunged and Stun
bled. steamed and pu0ed. The saddle
horses alone had an easy time every
body having disnounted
Another half-hour and we came 10 the
scene Of q recent snoNslide. Ii had clear
ed the mountain side Of everything stand /
ing in It's path. and q lane City yards
wide. strewn with green trunks. marked
Its course Tho trail led directly across /
L and was much cut up
The first lorses got over well enough. /
but each made il worse for the enc fol- I
lowing The LAST pack horse was an
animal known rs "tbe old gray mare. (
she had been foundoring great desl .
and was "a badly tired horse. When il 4
came her turn The trau had been worn +
almost TO nothing So that he variation
o. an inch was fatal Thc OLD gray nsrs.
uniuollily. varied this inch III The most
critical place ard down she shot alors
the track Of the snowslide over ana
over she rolled and would probably have
reached our creek of the night before
had chance lot headed her Tor The one
snowesnk in sishL This stopped her. We
went down. found her shaken Up bur ua-
hurt, unpacked her carried The packs I'D
to the tran. guided her up 10 IL. reuack-
ed her. working in snow up "a the arm
pits beside the tran. and then on again
went the train. our rrst roIled-horse epi-
code behind MS
On NJ went. meeting less snow. Fewer
trees, less snow. Then. an in a moment.
exc broke out of The woocs comrletelv
On sudden the snow. the winter and
the darkness were behind US. we reined
1p. silent at the western edge OF the
summit
Each precipitate foot Of those eight
thousand danced below our eyes in yellow