THE GRAND CAlSrON OF THE COLORADO. 



[From Major J. W. Powell's Report of the Exploration of the Canons of the Colo- 

 rado— 1869.] 



P 



.OR two years previous to the 

 exploration, I had been mak- 

 ing some geological studies 

 among the heads of the canons 

 leading to the Colorado, and a desire 

 to explore the Grand Cailon itself grew 

 upon me. Early in the spring of 1869 

 a small party was organized for this 

 purpose. Boats were built in Chicago, 

 and transported by rail to the point 

 where the Union Pacific Railroad 

 crosses the Green River. With these 

 we were to descend the Green into the 

 Colorado, and the Colorado down to 

 the foot of the Grand Canon." 



From the record of May 24, 1869, we 

 quote the following: 



"The good people of Green River 

 City turn out to see us start — a party 

 of ten men. We raise our little flag, 

 push the boats from shore, and the 

 swift current carries us down." 



"Our boats are four in number. Three 

 are built of oak, staunch and firm." 



"We take with us rations deemed 

 sufficient to last ten months, abundant 

 supplies of clothing, also a large quan- 

 tity of ammunition and two or three 

 dozen traps." 



On the 26th they go into camp at 

 the foot of the Uintah Mountains, at the 

 head of Flaming Gorge Canon, the first 

 to be explored. 



We quote again: "The river is run- 

 ning to the south; the mountains have 

 an easterly and westerly trend directly 

 athwart its course, yet it glides on in a 

 quiet way as if it thought a mountain 

 range no formidable obstruction to its 

 course. It enters the range by a flar- 

 ing, brilliant-red gorge, that may be 

 seen from the north a score of miles 

 away." 



"You must not think of a mountain 

 range as a line of peaks standing on a 

 plain, but as a broad platform many 

 miles wide, from which mountains 

 have been carved by the waters. You 

 must conceive, too, that this plateau is 

 cut by gulches and canons in many di- 



rections, and that beautiful valleys are 

 scattered about at different altitudes. 

 The first series of canons we are about 

 to explore constitute a river channel 

 through such a range of mountains. 

 The canon is cut nearly half-way 

 through the range, then turns to the 

 east, and is cut along the central line, 

 or axis, gradually crossing it to the 

 south. Keeping this direction for 

 more than fifty miles, it then turns 

 abruptly to a southwest course, and 

 goes diagonally through the southern 

 slope of the range. 



^ Tip ^ 7^ 7^ 



"May 30. — This morning we are ready 

 to enter the rnysterious canon, and start 

 with some anxiety. The old mount- 

 aineers tell us it cannot be run; the In- 

 dians say, 'Water heap catch 'em;' but 

 all are eager for the trial, and off we 



go." 



"Entering Flaming Gorge, we quickly 

 run through it on a swift current, and 

 emerge into a little park. Half a mile 

 below, the river wheels sharply to the 

 left, and we turn into another canon cut 

 into the mountain. We enter the nar- 

 row passage. On either side the walls 

 rapidly increase in altitude. On the 

 left are overhanging ledges and cliffs 

 five hundred, a thousand, fifteen hun- 

 dred feet high. 



"On the right the rocks are broken 

 and ragged, and the water fills the 

 channel from cliff to cliff. Now the 

 river turns abruptly around a point to 

 the right, and the waters plunge swiftly 

 down among great rocks; and here we 

 have our first experience with canon 

 rapids. I stand up on the deck of my 

 boat to seek a way among the wave- 

 beaten rocks. All untried as we are 

 with such waters, the moments are filled 

 with intense anxiety. Soon our boats 

 reach the swift current; a stroke or 

 two, now on this side, now on that, 

 and we thread the narrow passage with 

 exhilarating velocity, mounting the 

 high waves, whose foaming crests dash 



107 



