Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1915-08-12
Writes Of Lake Of
The Woods Trip

az AOAAON iheo OIOly vi
the trip to the Lake of the Woods
through the Dead Indian plateau,
which everyone who has ever passed
through proclaims to be the most
beautiful mountain country adjacent
to and easily accessible from Ash
land, is particularly appropriate at
this time when the Commercial Club
is taking up the matter of making
the lake assessible for autos
The Lake of the Woods.
Recently the writer and a band of
Ashland boys hiked to the Lake of
the Woods and there camped for six
days. He now wishes that he were
both a poet and a painter that he
might picture for his readers the
beauties of the lake, the mountains
and the woods.
We left Ashland at about o'clock
in the morning. 1t was a perfect
morning. The mountain tops were
ablaze with the altar fires of the new
day. AS we began the climb of the
Dead Indian road Pompadour rose
at our immediate left, backed by Old
Grizzly. To our right far up to the
head of the valley Pilot Rock pointed
the way out over the SislIiyous. Be-
hind us over against the foothills
nestled waking Ashland. And be-
hind the foothills, ever keeping
watch over the City Beautiful, stood
Mount Wagner and Ashland Butte
with its snow chaplet. All through
the early morning the broad sides
of Grizzly sloped up from our left.
These were covered with evergreens
and poison oak, the leaves OF which
were turning crimson as though
kissed by autumns frost. Great
waves of green and crimson from
every way greeted the eye. For four
teen miles we climbed up and up,
passing ranch after ranch. One was
a turkey ranch. Here we saw tur-
keys enough If they all live to pro-
vide one each for a Thanksgiving
dinner for every family in Ashland.
At Hoopers we lunched and then
made it to the summit by about
1890. This summit is about 1000
feet above the sea. We had made
fourteen miles and climbed about
5000 feet. The season at the sum-
NIT is about six weeks behind that in
Ashland. There one would have
thought it was about the last of May
or the first of June, for wild flowers
of every conceivable color and va
riety were in bloom. How We wished
that we could tell them all by name.
Once over the summit we entered
one of Uncle Sans great reserve for
ests. Majestic Cathedral pines arose
to 125 and $50 feet on both sides of
the road. For about two miles down
gradual slope we enjoyed these
woods. Here we found an opening.
a ranch and a flowing stream. Fol-
lowing the road along this stream we
saw on both sides fat, sleek cattle
grazing, and for many miles we were
scarcely ever out of sound of the tin
kle, tinkle and the clang, clang of
the bells on the grazing range cattle.
Two miles beyond this ranch, Spen-
GERS, we cape to an open prairie. In
the distance we could hear the clat-
ter of the moving machine, and the
breezes brouht to our nostrils the
scent of new-mown hay. Four miles
beyond this open prairie we came to
another clearing called Deadwood,
Here we bivouaced for the night.
Here, too, we had our first view of
Mt. Mclaughlin (Mt. Pitt). The
hills and woods between had shrunk
back and we had a fine view far
down to its base. The wooded base
was topped by barren rocky pyra-
mid peak. AS | looked | wondered
that some one had not named this
mountain Pyramid mountain because
of its shape. From our fir bough
couches well supported by the ground
we gazed that evening up into a per-
fectly clear sky twinkling with the
eyes of heaven. But the beauties OF
nature we're soon forgotten in the
beauty sleep of tired boys.
BY about o'clock the next morn
ing we had passed the county line
between Jackson and klamath and
had come to the last inhabited cabin
seven miles this side of the lake.
Right near this log cabin in its clear
ing we came to the highest point in
our travels, $500 feet sbove the
sea. This morning we had noticed
two interesting forms of vegetation