The Ordway new era., 1910-08-12
Vacation Notes

N Ountaineer. This road instead nf
following some canon or shut In
ravine, skirts along the top ridges,
boring through "hog-backS" and the
traveller looks from his window down
the dizzy abysscS and chasms below,
thousands Of feet. When 60 miles
from Denver you have passed through
30 tunnels, and the last - miles you
have only made one mile westward.
At TulIand some Of our passengers
left the train and walked, or rather
climbed to the top at C0r"nn-"nIy
engine wlccZrd and strained every
joint to pull our short train up IA 3
and 1 per cent grade. 1t IS needless
to say that we found them waiting
for us.
This road is well built and
well equipped and claims it has yet
to in jurc it's first passenger, but time
only waits to record its tragedy. The
train ahead of us came near to its
doom. At the "Loop,"4 miles from
the apex on Il curve around Il thou
sand foot precipice where the track
is feet from the edge, an overlang-
ing boulder OF 20 tons had been lOOs-
ened by the rain and dropped on the
rods distant. Down brakes with the
double headers could only avert part
OF the shock. AS the train was only
sliding down the steep grade at 8
miles per hour no one was injured.
but the rock was moved II feet and
both engines dcrailcd-one was tipped
partially On its side, and ready to roll
down the chasm. Had 1t gone IL Is
needless to say, that 200 passengers
would have followed. These engines
stood here three days before they
could he removed. We we're obliged
to transfer by walKinga quarter OF II
mile in IL mountain "dOwnpour" Of
rain. a physician, anxious to get out
of the rain and ais" to insure a good
seat, scrambled around us. running
over shnrp rocks. and finally was
lifted on Il strctchcr in the. baggage
car, only to be famed and rubbed for
two hours to keep life In him. This
altitude / : something over 1900
feet and is not well adapted to foot
races.
He was not the only man who
showed his gaIlantry to 25 or 30 ladies,
some with babies in their arms, by
crnwding ahead and securing every
available seat in the few cars prOvid-
ed for transfer. It's the same old
dcspicablc scliishncss that comes to
the front in all disasters when life is
in peril. .cXcmplifying not the survival
of the tlttcst, but the strongest.
Fraser is down at the head OF Mid
die Park, and is surrounded by some
fine meadow land from which from
one to two tons per acre OF wild hay
is cut in August. Altitude a little
less than 5000 feet. A town Of prob
ably 100 people with its store, meat
shop. hotel, saloon, etc. The fisher
men, tourist and ranchmen give It a
fair trade. The scenery is good be-
yond description and it's ranches have
Il supcrabundancc Of water as it Is
nestled at timbcrlinc among the
great peaks OF the continental di-
vide. These ranchmcn are not home.
sick for Goods country" for they
thoroughly believe they possess it.
The ample barns in every field and
collection of bob sleds tell the swim
tcr's tale" for the snow is expected
to begin flying about the middle Of
August, and three feet on Il level for
months is not unusual. We must ac-
cord them one blessing our Ordway
friends would be glad to have fall
upon thcm-pure ice cold drinking
water. These ranchmen all are look
ing for the summer bOarder. and rs
the season is short the years profit
must be crowded into the GO days OF
July and August. In spite of this
found them not more unreasonable in
accommodating than other places in
Colorado.
One must visit these various fish
resorts before he can understand the
daily accounts published in our Den
yer papers of the "CatcheS." Harold
and whipped the streams around
Fraser for several days and returned
dishcartcncd with one little lone
trout. Others were getting the same
results. The man with rubber honts
and a knowledge of the creeks who
begins at early dawn can by night own
his string of a dozen or so of StO 10.
pound trout, and will he hungry
enough to eat them all himself for
supper. This is true here on the