The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1922-07-20


name from the giant.deposits of sand
on its east side. Here slides have
searredsthe canyon like the clawing of
somesdevil huger than the mind of man
can conjure up. Off up toward the
snow peak several ribbony waterfalls
leap over sheer precipices. Occasion
ally the wind currents catch the water
ribbon and spray it far out down into
the abyss.
The wild flowers blooming on the
base of Mount Hood sprinkle vast
areas with wonderful coloring. On
emerging from the Upper Valley orch
ard districts into the willow lands, a
characteristic of the burned over dis
tricts on the northeast side of the
peak, the recreatIonists became ecstatic
over the millions of Indian paint
brushes, their carmine blossoms inter-
mingling with myriads of purple lupin
flowers. Squaw grass plants reared
their fragrant heads at intervals and
Mount Hood lilies and other.species Of
mountain lilies were found occasional
ly. Higher up the dells exposed to
sunlight fairly glowed with mountain
flowers in scores of species.
The relief of plunging full length on
a carpet of pine needles at camp after
that 2a-mile walk and there looking
aloft at the pure blue of the sky which
seemed a little closer than you ever
saw it before, and maybe catching as
your eyes shifted toward the overhang
ing mountain pinnacles the circuit of a
bald eagle. drifting lazily but grace
fully at fearful heights, this relief and
relaxation filled you with comfort as
great as ever you knew. But the pow
ers of recupertioan are nothing less
than miraculous in the rarified atmos-
phere, and soon you felt the call of the
singing cascades of the Tilly Jane just
below you. In moment you and your
fellows were there quaffing the icy
waters from an old tin cup. And was
ever beverage better? The inner man
satisfied. you plunged your hands down
and dashed the cold stream over your
face. You forgot the WEAKNESS and
the dust of that trail.
1t is a beautiful spot, this campsite
chosen by the Legion there on the
banks of the Tilly Jane. 1t has a
plentiful canopy of mountain conifers,
and to the weary mixers at their first
lunch in camp Saturday it seemed de-
lightfully restful. lunch that day
was not characterized by any excessive
| Ldlhliks w uCI OliC EDOhC NuC NOiN1
usually conveyed a sincere meaning.
Many, perhaps, had begun exclaiming
ecstatically on their first close view of
the mountain few hours before. All
were now munching sandwiches and
gulping big cups of coffee while they
thought eloquently.
; The heat of the lowlands, even in the
early. morning had been severe. But
here at a mile-high elevation and the
glaciers of Mount Hood but stone 3
, throw away, a Stimulating chill was
noticed early in the afternoon, and by
the time twilight gained, sweaters and
coats we're in demand. Before dark,
the warmth of the huge bonfire was
appealing to all. The eventide pink of
, the mountain changed to a purple and
then to a funeral gray. 1t made one
think of death and eternity. 1t was
the solemn time of the day on the
mountain, and there was a kind of
/, spooky stiffness around the camp for a
time.
1 Indeed, someone declared that the
! moods of the mountain made him think
of the various stages of life. And per-
I haps he was close to right. Ii took a
J iazzy tune from the knights of Pythi-
as band to shake the gloom left by the
late twilight and the slate color it inn
posed on the snowhelds and the rock
! pinnacles.
The band concert was a unique fea-
! ture of the mountain OuBng. The
players for their extra exertion of lug
ging up their heavy instruments and
the hard work of blowing on wind in
struments at mile high elevation, won
the hearty appreciation of the recrea-
; tionists. A mans blowing organs are
something like the carburetor of an
automobile. and they are not attuned
I to bringing music from the bowels of
J their big horns up where the atmos-
fphere is so much lighter than on the
lower levels. Theispeeehes. in the in
teresting setting, the orators faces
: lighted up by the leapiug flames of the
bonfire. the songs in which all joined
Justify under the urging Of Mike Bren-
nan, all formed an unforgettable fea-
. ture of the mountain party.
And when after taps, you fell asleep
before your blankets, placed on soft
bed of hemlOck bOughs. were snugly
drawn about you. You would have
sworn you had been asleep only an
hour when you heard bugle call at
$3.50 a. m. But the enthusiasm of the
= moment and the tingling desire to
hasten on up the mountain aroused you
to wide-awakeness like dash OF cold
e water. Instantly the camp was crowd
: ed with ehattering men and women.
ONLY the most laggard could sleep un-
P der such conditions. Army pans of
steamingi egg omelettes, crisp bacon
and savory slices of ham were all pre-
pared by the cooks, all ex army men.
: And vet the enthusiasm over prospects
, of the climb dulled many an appetite.
At O'Clock the 100 and more climb
= ers were out in lines stringing across
3 the rocky defiles of COOpers Spur.
While many amateur mountaineers
drop out at COopers Sour. the seasoned
climber always bTeathes a sigh Of re-
lief ,on reaching the summit Of this
northeast bare prOmOntOfy. Those
who have climbed the mountain re-
peatedly say that the trudge up the
slope, much of which IS over loose
rocks, is the most grueling Of all the
mountain trip.
At Tie-ln rock some hundreds Of
yards Up a gentle slope from the spur,
the climbers are segregated into lines
Of some IS each, and here It is that the
grease paint artists get busy, prepar-
ing the facial skin against the ravages
! of reflected suns rays ana the wintry
: wind. Some climbers prefer solid
black. Others, when they start, have
; faces as painted as a COmmanche chief
! on the swarpath. Others turn them
selves into clowns, and a few Mephis-
z topheles have been seen to start the
= mountain hike. But the banter Of
painting time is soon lost, as the hik-
ers start on tbe zig-zag trails over the
!, sIoping snoWfelds. This steady ascent