580 
THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 
organization, the Mazama Club of Port- 
land. It is an outing club, whose advent 
dates back to 1894, when its formation 
was efifected on the summit of Mount 
Hood. Similar in purpose to its sister 
organizations, the Sierra Club of Cali- 
fornia and the Alpine Club of Canada, 
its principal work is the exploration of 
and acquisition of knowledge concerning 
the high mountains of the north Pacific 
coast. 
The word Mazama is adapted from 
"mazame," which is popularly said to 
refer to the mountain goat* (Haplocerus 
iiioiitanus) indigenous to the high Cor- 
dillera. The aims of the club and the 
conditions of membership may be best 
stated by reference to its by-laws: 
"The objects of this organization shall 
be the exploration of snow peaks and 
other mountains, especially of the Pacific 
Northwest ; the collection of scientific 
knowledge and other data concerning the 
same ; the encouragement of annual ex- 
peditions with the above objects in view ; 
the preservation of the forests and other 
features of mountain scenery, as far as 
possible, in their natural beauty ; and the 
dissemination of knowledge concerning 
the beauty and grandeur of the mountain 
scenery of the Pacific Northwest. 
"Any person who has climbed to the 
summit of a perpetual snow peak, on the 
sides of which there is at least one living 
glacier, and to the top of which a person 
cannot ride, horseback or otherwise, shall 
be eligible to active or life membership." 
The Mazamas claim credit for having 
successfully ascended at least 20 of the 
highest mountains of Washington, Ore- 
gon, and California. Among the num- 
ber are included several first ascents. 
The photographs accompanying this pa- 
per were taken during the 17th annual 
outing of the club on and in the vicinity 
of the Three Sisters peaks, in central 
Oregon. 
The Three Sisters region is approached 
most readily by the Eugene-Prineville 
trail, the long-established highway across 
the range between Eugene, a point in the 
*As a matter of fact "mazame" refers to the 
prong-horn antelope of the plains, Antilocapra 
anicricaua. 
Willamette Valley on the main line of 
the Southern Pacific Railway, and Prine- 
ville, in the upper Deschutes Valley east 
of the divide. From Eugene this trail 
ascends the McKenzie River for 70 miles. 
After leaving this stream near Belknap 
Springs it climbs in an additional 15 
miles to an elevation of about 6,000 feet, 
at the summit of the range. 
The McKenzie River is the largest of 
the headwaters of the great Willamette, 
and all of its upper course is through 
the heavy untouched forests of firs, ce- 
dars, pine, and hemlocks within the Fed- 
eral forest reserve. 
From a point in Lake Valley some 10 
miles short of the divide, styled "Frog 
Camp," a horse trail leads a few miles 
southeastward across a barren lava flow 
and White Branch Creek to the timber- 
line, at 7,750 feet, and to within about 
three miles of the nearest member of 
the group, Middle Sister. 
Long ere this point has been reached, 
however, thrilling glimpses of the snow- 
mantled Sisters may be caught through 
opening vistas in the forest screen, but 
it is only with the forest largely behind 
that the individual peaks rise in their real 
glory, aproned in green and gleaming 
snow-limned against the eastern sky. 
More pleasant and satisfactory cam.p 
sites need not be sought than are avail- 
able within the fringing timber border. 
Here the predominating lodge-pole pines 
and subalpine firs contribute an abun- 
dance of fuel, and the innumerable ice- 
cold streams originating in the perennial 
snows above furnish a second all-essen- 
tial element of physical comfort. Thor- 
oughly watered and protected from the 
agents that threaten removal, the forest 
mold where exposed to sunlight is 
usually carpeted with a sod of green. As 
the snows of winter depart the green is 
eax^ly decorated with an exquisite sprink- 
ling of crimson "painted hats," purple 
violets, and just a sufficient perspective 
of unassuming buttercup yellow ta 
gratify, in its setting, even the more fas- 
tidious of esthetic senses. 
Hundreds of mountain streams of all 
dimensions make their way from the dis- 
solving snows down the lower slopes, at 
