American Big Game in its Haunts 



so near the upper course of Black River that one can 

 traverse the distance between the basins of the two 

 streams in a short ride. The descent into the drain- 

 age of Bhie River is very abrupt, and is known locally 

 as the "breaks" of Blue River. The scenery of 

 these breaks nearly, if not quite, equals that on "The 

 Rim" of Tonto Basin in its wild magnificence. The 

 vegetation on the breaks shows at a glance the 

 milder character of the climate, as compared with 

 that of the more elevated area about the head of 

 Black River. In the midst of the shrubbery growth 

 on the breaks there is a fine growth of nutritious 

 grasses, which forms excellent winter forage. 



The entire southern part of the reserve lying be- 

 yond the Prieto Plateau is an excessively broken 

 mountainous country, with abrupt changes in altitude 

 from the hot cafions, where cottonwoods flourish, to 

 the high ridges, where pines and firs abound. 



The northeastern part of the section of the reserve 

 under consideration is cut oiT from the rest by the 

 valley of Nutrioso Creek, a tributary of the Little 

 Colorado, and by the headwaters of the San Fran- 

 cisco River. It is a limited district, mainly occupied 

 by Escudilla Mountain, rising to 10,691 feet, and its 

 foothills. Escudilla Mountain slopes abruptly to a 

 long truncated summit, and is heavily forested from 

 base to summit by pines, aspens and spruces. On 

 the south the foothills merge into the generally 

 mountainous area. On the north, at an altitude of 

 about 8,000 feet, they merge into the plains of the 

 Little Colorado, varied by grassy prairies and irregu- 

 lar belts of piiion timber. 



476 



