Last winter in the United States

by F. Barham Zincke

Though it was February when I was in the mountains, the climate was so bright and warm, that it did not appear strange to see the gold-washers at work in slush and water. And yet there had been so severe a frost in the previous month, that the gulch was still thickly frozen over, and these hardy men had to break through the ice to get water for washing the dirt in which the gold is found. But though there is here a great deal of open fine weather in winter, yet at this season very severe frost, though generally of short duration, may be expected, and also extremely violent storms of wind, often accompanied with snow. A storm of this kind drove me out of the mountains, as I was afraid, which actually did happen, that it would bring enough snow to block the roads for some days. I made a run for the plains, and when I reached them, I found the storm still raging, and saw the dust it raised looking like a dark haze several yards high. As the wind blew from the mountains, I did not suffer much inconvenience in running before it for twelve miles, till I reached shelter. But the next day, when it was over, I saw teamsters who told me that they had found it impossible to move on across it, and that they had been obliged to anchor their waggons to moorings driven firmly into the ground, sheltering their cattle and themselves on the lee-side. These wind storms on the plains are not so bad for man as for beast, for the nostrils, mouths, and eyes of the horses and bullocks suffer much from the sharp sand.

Three species of the crow tribe are, I found, common by the road side in the mountains in winter: the blue jay, which is seen frequently in flocks; the magpie, which is marked very similarly to our own—it appears, however, to be a somewhat larger bird, and to have a larger tail; and the raven. In the summer, as there is then an inexhaustible supply of small fruit of different kinds in the valleys, and on the hill sides, I should expect to see a great variety of birds.

Almost in every house I entered in the mountains and in the contiguous plains I found an enormous dog. Some were pure mastiffs; others of mixed breed, in which the Newfoundland blood predominated. The mastiffs were larger and more powerful animals than I ever saw at dog-shows in London or elsewhere. Their size, however, imparted no air of nobility to their appearance and bearing, but much of savage brutality. The motive, I suppose, for keeping these Cerberuses is protection from wolves, and from the two-legged assailants of life and property.

CHAPTER XVIII.

ROCKY MOUNTAINS A FIELD FOR SPORTING—GREAT VARIETY AND ABUNDANCE OF GAME—WILD FRUIT—EXCELLENCE OF CLIMATE IN THE SHOOTING SEASON—HOW THE MOUNTAINS MAY BE REACHED, AND HOW MUCH SEEN BY THE WAY, IN 15 DAYS FROM LIVERPOOL—COST OF THE EXPEDITION—THE BEST CAMPING-GROUND IS THE SOUTH PARK, AT FOOT OF PIKE’S PEAK—THE ROUTE BY CHICAGO AND DENVER RECOMMENDED—OTHER ROUTE BY ST. LOUIS AND LEAVENWORTH—ROUTE INTO THE PARK—THE NORTH PARK EASIER WORK—THE MORE ENTERPRISING MAY GO TO LARAMIE PLAINS—WILL DETERIORATE EVERY YEAR.

A Field for Sporting.

The Rocky Mountains are just at present the best sporting-ground in the world. They have both feathered and four-footed game, and fishing sufficient to satisfy the keenest sportsman. I saw the herds of antelope running about like flocks of sheep. The elk is very abundant. A few mountain buffalos are to be had: it is a smaller and darker-coloured variety than that of the plains, and plenty of what is here called the mountain rabbit, but which is larger than our hare, and in winter, when I saw it, is nearly white. A bear may occasionally be met with. The Rocky Mountain sheep is so rare that it must not be taken into the account. Among vermin there is the wolf, a brute that will sometimes attack a man. As he sneaks off he looks like a lean and smoke-begrimed sheep. There is also the cayotte, a smaller animal, about the size of a jackal, and which makes itself heard a great deal at night.

As to the feathered game; on lucky days you may get a wild turkey, and every day you will find plenty of prairie fowl, and quail in still greater abundance.

The fishing will be confined to the speckled trout; but this is to be had in any quantity you choose to take out of the water; and wherever you may be camping out on the mountains, you will always be on the banks of a stream, or have one near you.

Incredible quantities of small edible fruit are to be found everywhere. They consist of gooseberries, currants, raspberries, blueberries, and some other kinds, all of them being called collectively, in the language of the mountains, berries. I mention them here, because, when people are camping out, they supply materials for tarts and puddings, and, if it be required, for dessert.