The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1904-09-16

horses and two good saddle horses be-
sides, one for myself and one for my
wife, and the wagon was loaded with
provisions of all kinds, save meats,
which we would supply along the route
in the way of game. tent, ten by
twelve. and plenty of ammunition for
two elk shooters. two twenty-five
csliber rifles, two larger Winchesters
and a shot gun, and 30 we journeyed
away from historic Casper for the
mountains, ''to say nothing of the
dog" shat accompanied us faithfully
through all our travels. and kept the
coyotes and wolves away from camp
during the night season.
HATSIX CANON. +
Toward night fall we drew into the
sha low of the Casper mountains and
up the banks of little trout stream
towards Hatsix Canon, wnere with
towering rock on either side OF rs we
pitched our tent for nearly a weeks 8
stay.
As night drew on Ii grew cold and
we snivered around our camp fire,
though it was only the third week in
August Have you ever slept between
slankets and under tarpsulin out on
the bare hard groundf If not you can
hardly appreciate the number Of bumps
and knots collected by mother earth in
the small space Of ground covered by a
''rznge bed"
Here we killed our first rattle snake
and clambered up the mountain side
some Z. 900 or 8. 900 feet above sea level,
and lived of speckled trout caught from
the bubbling brook down in the canon.
All these canons are of peculiar form.
alton. seeming TO be great cracks in
the very mountain itself through
which the water leaps and falls and
runs with a roar now. and then only a
playful gurgle.
Up Hatsix Canon We rode as far az
horses could travel with safety then
took to our own legs My wife proved
the more fearless climber as il filled me
with fear and trembling to walk along
the side Of precipice far above the tops
of the pine trees and look off into
sheer space, when a single missteI
meant instant destruction to q mortal
One day we lunched under the ledge
of rock. called 1.-The DEVILS Wash
Basin"-over which pours a stream ol
water, that leaps down the mountain
several hundred feet like the pass un
der the falls at Niagara. As we sa
there we espied at the west a bald
eagle far above MS on the canon wall,
and circIing around the old eagle her
self but our Winchester would moi
carry TO either.
AT the end of q week being some
what weary Of sage chickens and trou
we pulled camp, and started further
up the mountain.
DEER CREEK CANON.
The Deer Creek mountains lie bacl
in the range, and exceed in heigh
both the Casper and Laramie, and on
climb to get into them was long ant
arduous. For two days our four hors
team tugged and pulled, while W
grew somewhat light headed becsus
of the increasing altitude.
: Around and around the mountain
2 side we followed the trail that grey
rougher and sleeper with every turi
till was ready to almost abandon tn
3 wagon. but finally some 5000 feet abov
sea level we emerged ON platea
1 called deer Creek Park" and it
4 well named. Here surrounded b
r mountain peaxs stretches an extensiv
q plain covered by native grass in abur
= dance, and through which flows De
d Greek, so named because it is a IA
e nous feeding ground for deer and el
q during the winter. The creek We
g full of trout aud sage chickens hid b
hind every bush, while at night Coy
o utes barked, and now and then a gre
e wolf gave vent to one of his unearthl
It screams that made your blood have
/ tendency TO CONCEAL in your veil
without further ceremony.
d Over near the head of the creek
n the edge of the park. is the fronti
d ranch of this part of the country. He
a retired COW boy has taken up
homestead, and built a house fro
ls mountain pine and settled down
g married life with staunch little Oh
J. wife. Imagine our surprise to iii
D. Trumbull county woman here wi
it her family, where they have fro
< every month in the year and so hi
ie above sea level that chickens of 4
he tame variety can not thrive well.
w We pushed on past the ranch of Tho
T. King into the Canon of Deer Gre
D. some ten or twelve miles. and pitch
g. our tents. Here we were in the wild
ht and SO much part of the country h
rd we all become tnat my frow wore d
W vided skirts and rode mans sadd
ar and shot grouse with a rifle.
1g A day at hunting deer and elk on
an developed the fact that it was too es
y. ly in the season to get them unless
went far deeper into the pine fores
ng but from one of the mountains
ed climbed we caught an elegant view
m the distant Laramie Plains, and W
ks beyond them loomed the snow capr
fit peaks of Colorado. nearly two hundl
of miles distant. Here We ran acrt
ur many claim of a prospector ant