[II-50] Up S. bank of the Arkansaw, past places called Goodnight, Rock Cañon, Vegas, and Meadows; also past Rock and Peck's or Willow Springs creeks, both S., to a point near but short of the mouth of Turkey cr., N.
[III-1] Crossing the river from S. to N. above the mouth of Turkey cr., somewhere about the place now called Swallows, below the mouth of Rush cr., and where the bluffs come down to the Arkansaw. The D. and R. G. R. R. now makes a crossing a little higher up. Passing up the N. bank, opp. Red cr., S., the party continued to Carlisle Springs and camped in that vicinity, just over the border of Frémont Co. Red cr. is lettered "Bed" on the G. L. O. map of 1892.
[III-2] The excessive estimate of the height of Pike's Peak, 18,581 instead of 14,147, was in part due to a misapprehension of the elevation of the prairie whence the observation was taken. This was assumed to be 8,000, but is really little, if any, over 5,000. The altitude of Pico de Teyde, the volcanic Peak of Teneriffe, in the Canary isls., is given on good authority as 12,200; and that of Mt. Chimborazo, one of the highest peaks in the Ecuadorean Andes, is placed at 20,498 feet by Whymper, who ascended it in 1880.
[III-3] Passing Beaver cr., N., with places called Beaver Depot and Beaver at and near its mouth; passing opp. Hardscrabble cr., S., with a place called Adobe at its mouth, where one of the two railroads now makes a crossing; continuing up N. bank, past Ute or Brush Hollow cr., N., and Eight Mile cr., N., to camp below Six Mile cr., N., about opposite the mouth of Coal cr., S., where is now the town of Florence.
[III-4] Passing opposite mouth of Oak cr., S., Six Mile cr., N., and Chandler cr., S., then coming to the "bad place of falling rocks," which is where a bluff point comes down to the river—all these places within 2 or 3 m. of camp; and continuing past Oil cr., N., to camp within the present limits of Cañon City, Frémont Co. This is already a considerable village, and is growing. It nestles directly at the foot of the mountains, under the shadow of Noonan's and Frémont's Peaks, and derives its name from the remarkable formation which the text presently describes. This is the Grand Cañon of the Arkansaw, a part of which is well known to tourists as the "Royal Gorge," because it has been exploited so much on the folders of the D. and R. G. R. R. But it is worthy of exploitation, and does not disappoint the expectations raised by the advertisements of the "scenic line of the world." Cañon City is almost in the very jaws of this vast chasm, through which the Arkansaw has forced its way to issuance on the plains. It was practically impassable, even afoot, until a way was hewn and blasted for the railroad which now traverses its whole length. Both trails which lead west from Cañon City get around the terrible place; one on the north starts up Sand cr., past Noonan's and Frémont's Peaks, and swings around to Parkdale at the head of the cañon; and the other, on the south, crosses Grape cr., traverses Webster Park, and comes down Copper cr. to Parkdale. Next after Pueblo, the basis of the Pike's Peak trip, as we have seen, Cañon City is the most notable place on Pike's Arkansaw route. The party stops here awhile to scout about, before starting for South Park; and to this place they return afterward, build a blockhouse, leave two men, and start on their perilous adventures by way of Grape cr. to the Sangre de Cristo range and so to the Rio Grande.
[III-5] One of these is, of course, the main Arkansaw, in the Royal Gorge; the other, on the left, or S., is Grape cr., which runs through the Wet mts. to its confluence with the Arkansaw a mile or so above Cañon City, under Noonan's Peak. Grape cr. used to be called Pike's fork of the Arkansaw, as by Gregg, 1844; but this name lapsed. Bringing it in for a moment, we find the "forks" of the Arkansaw to be: 1st fork of Pike, Purgatory r.; 2d fork of Pike, Huerfano r.; 3d fork of Pike, St. Charles r.; Grand forks of Pike, confluence of Fountain r. with the Arkansaw; Pike's fork of some books, Grape cr. From his present position at Cañon City, Pike explores the Royal Gorge and Grape cr. to some little extent, and abandons them both; he scouts about for the Spanish trail, and having found it, as he supposes, starts N., up Oil cr., very likely by the present road from the town to that stream.
[III-6] A mountain trail with no course or distance given is not encouraging to follow. In earlier studies of Pike, I had supposed he reached South Park by way of Currant cr., as he might have done. But no doubt remains in my mind that he took the Oil Creek route. If we regard his map attentively, we see that he went up along a large creek which he fetches into the Arkansaw below the blockhouse he built on his return to Cañon City, and which is certainly Oil cr. Camp of Dec. 10th is therefore in a "dry ravine" within "one mile" of Oil cr.—perhaps at the first ravine above where Wilson cr. falls in from the left, or on Wilson cr. itself. Oil cr. is a very well known stream, on the banks of which oil works have been established, and at whose mouth is a place called Reno, about 4 m. below Cañon City. It heads by two main branches and many small tributaries in the mountains S. of Ute Pass, W. of Pike's Peak, and about Saddle and Thirty-nine Mile mt., and runs S. about 50 m. into the Arkansaw. Pike goes up Oil cr. and takes the western one of its two main branches, crosses a divide, and strikes the South Platte r. in South Park.
[III-7] Pike has gone N. from Cañon City some 30 or 35 m., having Oil cr. on his right, and having crossed certain of its tributaries from the west known as Wilson, South Oil, and High creeks. He is now camped on West Oil cr. (the western one of the two main branches), at or near a place called Truro. This is a sufficiently well known locality, in a nest of mountains whence Oil cr. gathers several affluents from various directions. On another branch of the creek is the place called Alnwick, near where Riggs used to have his ranch, or in the same place. West Oil cr. is also called Ten Mile cr.; another small stream is Martin's or Slate cr. Some of the surrounding points are: Mt. Pisgah, 10,322 or 10,487 feet high; Rhyolite Peak, 10,860; Dome Rock or the Needle, 9,463 feet—these on Pike's right as he faces N., and S. W. to W. of his peak; while on his left are in succession: Iron Knoll or Trachyte Knob (lettered "Trackite" on G. L. O. map, 1892); Saddle mt.; Thirty-nine Mile mt., 11,000 feet; Chalcedony Buttes, 10,400 and 10,200 feet. Now the usual way out of this place is N. by Alnwick or Rigg's ranch, between Dome Rock and Saddle mt., over a divide about 9,200 feet high, known as Two Creek or Twin Creek Pass, which fetches out on S. Platte waters at Florissant, on the W. border of El Paso Co.; but Pike takes a route to the left, up West Oil or Ten Mile cr.
[III-8] Between Arkansan and Missourian waters, in a broad sense; between the Oil Creek branch of the Arkansaw and the South Platte r., in a stricter sense; more exactly still, between West Oil or Ten Mile cr. and one of several small spring runs that make into the S. Platte. Pike makes the pass between Ten Mile mt. (right) and Thirty-nine Mile mt. (left), at an elevation of something over 9,000 feet. The difference between this Oil Creek way into South Park and the way by Currant cr. is that, had he come up the latter, he would have made Currant Creek Pass, 9,550 feet, between Thirty-Nine Mile mt. (right) and Chalcedony Buttes (left); it is simply a matter of "cotoying" (flanking) Thirty-nine Mile mt. E. or W. By the way he came, he strikes the South Platte r., in South Park, Park Co., at the very nearest approach it makes to the point he left on the Arkansaw—that is to say, at the elbow it makes where, after flowing S. E. through South Park, it turns sharp N. E. and enters what is called the Upper or Eleven Mile cañon. These particulars are assured: for Pike finds that the river "ran northeast." Camp of Dec. 13th is set in the hills 2 m. south of the river, near the head of the cañon just said.
Pike's route from Cañon City and back to that place has been a subject of much doubt and discussion, in which some very wild notions have been indulged by those who had any opinion whatever as to where he went on this round trip. It has even been mooted whether he was ever on the South Platte, or even in South Park at all. A cautious and tentative statement is ventured in the 1889 Denver reprint of the London ed. of the Travels, where my friend Mr. Maguire says in his new Preface: "The exact line of march of the party from the time it reached the foot of the Grand Cañon ["Royal Gorge">[ of the Arkansas is not easy to trace. It is likely that it reached the Platte in the South Park, and quite possible that it penetrated to the headwaters of the Gunnison." I do not profess to be able to trail a mosquito over a granite bowlder, but I think we shall be able to discover precisely where Pike went on this trip, where he entered South Park, his course through it, the place where he left it, and how, after ascending the Arkansaw for two days, he descended this river to Cañon City. Every one of Pike's camps can be fixed within 2 or 3 m., and some of them with absolute precision. He was never on the Gunnison, or any other Pacific waters. One who wishes to satisfy himself on all these points needs only to study Pike's text with Sheet vii. of Hayden's Atlas of Colorado.