Memories of a Bear Hunter 



Buck Barker, as to the best hunting grounds. They 

 had just returned from a buffalo hunt in the Judith 

 Basin, and told us that a party of Nez Perces 

 Indians of ninety warriors had just passed through 

 the Judith Gap after buffalo. They advised us to 

 go up on the west slope of the High wood Moun- 

 tains for elk and buffalo. We took their advice, 

 and on the 29th day of October moved up one of 

 the branches of Belt Creek, a day's journey, and 

 made permanent camp. 



It was on a beautiful mountain stream full of 

 trout, and we caught enough for one or two meals 

 that evening. The next day, riding up to the 

 base of the mountains, about a mile distant, we saw 

 during the day twenty-five deer. I killed a black- 

 tail buck, and Cornelius a whitetail buck. About 

 one o'clock, just as I had killed my deer, a fierce 

 snowstorm set in. When I reached camp with the 

 deer I found everything comfortable. The storm 

 ceased before dark, and during the night the sky 

 cleared. 



The next day it again began to snow and stormed 

 hard all day from the northwest, but on the first 

 of November the storm ceased, leaving fifteen 

 inches of snow on the ground. The following day 

 it was cold, only a little above zero, but I hunted 

 and killed nothing. The snow was now getting 



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