A Sportsman 149 



How these goats survive the severe storms and snows 

 of winter I can not understand, but they necessarily 

 must descend to the milder regions of the parks. Still, 

 the mountains have many sheltered valleys where feed 

 exists through the winters, and I have since noted at 

 Cripple Creek, at nine thousand feet elevation, that 

 domestic cattle feed out during most inclement winters. 



The view from Fletcher Mountain was of wondrous 

 interest in its panoramic display of mountain ranges, 

 exhibiting the small tributaries of the Rio Colorado 

 and the Arkansas River. The many small rivulets 

 in commencement seemed almost connecting, but sepa- 

 rated in resulting termination, originating together, 

 one system to mingle in the briny waters of the Atlan- 

 tic and the other in those of the Pacific. We found 

 trout plentiful in all the streams of the same class as 

 found in the parks, brownish with black spots, but no 

 carmine coloring. 



We noticed some peculiarities arising from the high 

 altitude we were at, when water boiled at so low tem- 

 perature as to take from two to two hours and a half 

 to boil our potatoes soft enough for eating ; ten minutes 

 to boil an egg medium well done ; and beans one could 

 not boil long enough all day to crack the skins for 

 baking. Being scalded by boiling water was out of the 

 question as understood at low altitudes. 



We all felt the difficulty in breathing incidental to 

 the rarified atmosphere, and in ascending an elevation 

 frequent stops were necessary. We found, however, 

 some relief in this respect after some days of stay. Our 

 horses were affected the same way, which necessitated 

 much caution in using them freely. It is questionable 



