36 The Mountaineer 
occasional grizzly to make things interesting, and at the ranch 
there are saddle horses and delightful quarters and surround- 
ines for the non-strenuous tourist. 
To a camp 28 miles above the ranch the Emersons and I 
packed by horse: and from this camp we did some minor tramp- 
ing and chmbing, exploring what we called Goat Creek, a nor- 
thern tributary of Horse Thief. We bueked brush up the west 
side of the creek and came down the more open roeky eastern 
bank, following the stream closely and getting superb views 
at close range of magnificent falls, as the stream tumbled in a 
continuous series of cascades down the steep mountain side, 
having their source in a lake of marvelous beauty. 
Above this camp to the head of the creek and the foot of 
the great Starbird Glacier there was no trail for horses ready, 
although the government has interested itself in the section 
and a horse trail was cut up to us before we came out; so, 
with the assistance of the trail-cutters, we packed up on our 
backs ten‘s, sleeping bags and food for about ten days. We 
chose, in a flat bordering the main creek and about two miles 
below the glacier, an ideal camping site. A delightful little 
mossy brook of the purest water ran before our tents; at hand 
was a good supply of fir balsams. 
“The beds were made, the room was fit, 
By punctual eve the stars were lit.” 
Back of us a wild, jagged, vertical cliff up-reared; across 
the valley three wonderful falls plunged down the mountain 
side; and at the head of the creek, in full view, was the lower 
stretch of the noble, curving Starbird Glacier, with its back- 
eround of snow and ice peaks, dominated by the great summit 
which we hoped to climb. 
A reconnaissance was, of course, first in order, and this we 
planned from a minor peak across the glacier to the north. So 
that we need not retrace our steps and the climb might not be 
too long from our eamp, the Emersons and I planned a possible 
three-days’ expedition from camp, packing on our backs sleep- 
ing bags and provisions, devoting the first day to reconnaissance 
and locating a base camp, the second day to the climb, with 
the possibility of returning to the main creek camp the second 
night, but being prepared to be out a third day. 
