TWO .MILES UP AND DOWN IX AX ARIZOXA DESERT. 53 



well known. San Francisco ^^lonntain is an extinct volcano, the 

 northern side of which has disappeared. We were on the sonth- 

 ern side, on the rim. and could see the arms of the crest extendins: 

 to the rii^ht and to the left ; the latter appeared to be higher and 

 so we walked along the crest in this direction, northwest. At 

 length a large cairn was reached and the crest ended abruptly at 

 the highest point, about 12,600 feet above the sea. After the 

 upper zone (the arctic-alpine) was reached we found small plants 

 hidden between boulders ; these numbered, among others, some 

 saxifrage and arenaria, etc., characteristic of the cold and exposed 

 situation. After lingering on the summit a few minutes we left 

 at one o'clock, and returning directly to cam]). i)acked our burros 

 and made our way back to Belmont, arriving there about half-past 

 six the same evening. 



This itinerary is given to show that the trip from Belmont or 

 from Flagstaff, both of which are on the Santa Fe Railroad, is 

 in no sense a difficult one, and provided it is made before the 

 siunmer rains, it may be very pleasant as well as very profitable. 



Graxd Canyox of the Colorado. 



From Belmont we went by train to Williams where we caught 

 a train for Grand Canyon, a three hours' trip from this station. 



The journe}- from Williams to the Grand Canyon was rather 

 monotonous. The railroad runs through a more or less level 

 open country among groves of pihon and juniper. From the 

 train we could get good views of the San Francisco ^fountain 

 which was in sight during much of the entire rvui. 



The can\"on was reached about sunset and our first view of the 

 misrht\- chasm, "six feet across"* (about 12 miles at Grand 

 Canyon), with its sunken world of plateaux, mountains and dis- 

 tant river which looks from the "rim" as it did in 1540. when 

 the first Europeans saw it, was one never to be forgotten. 



On account of the altitude the night at the " rim " was cool 

 and our woolen blankets were none too warm, but when we made 

 up our bundles for the descent we took but a single one each 

 and, as a matter of fact, found that no blanket at all was needed 



* The Journey of Coronado, George Parker Winship. New York, 1904. 



