82 GUIDEBOOK OF THE WESTERN UNITED STATES. ' 



between the Benton shale and the granite, and the shale and the 

 granite must be brought into contact by a fault, as shown in figure 16. 



Above Parkdale the river is again confined in a narrow, rugged 

 canyon, which has been cut in a plateau similar to that in which the 

 Eoyal Gorge is cut. (See PI. XXXIV, J., p. 72.) Upon this plateau 

 there are several ranges of mountains, which rise to elevations of 

 12,000 to 14,000 feet above sea level and which are included in the 

 San Isabel National Forest. This forest furnishes excellent summer 

 pasture for a large number of cattle and sheep, which are driven into 

 the mountains each spring from ranches in the lowland on both the 

 east and the west. The forest is also an effective conserver of water, 

 f(;r in it lie the heads of a number of streams that supply water for 

 domestic use and irrigation to the cities, towns, and ranches of the 

 plains. It is a haven of refuge for wild animals, particularly deer, 

 which thrive upon its excellent pasture lands. The fawns are almost 

 as tame as the lambs which gambol about their mothers in the deep 

 grass. (See PL XLII, B.) 



In the Greenhorn Mountains many summer homes have been built 

 by the citizens of Pueblo and connected with that city by fine auto- 

 mobile roads. The use of the national forests for recreation is en- 

 couraged by the Government, and in many localities sites suitable for 

 summer homes have been mapped and laid off in lots so as to be 

 available to those who wish to avoid the crowded cities during the 

 heat of summer. The charge for building permits ranges from 

 $10 to $25 a year, depending on the accessibility and attractiveness of 

 the site. Logs and poles for building and wood for fuel may be 

 procured free of charge under permit from the local forest officers. 

 One of these summer homes is shown in Plate XLII, A. 



The canyon above Parkdale, although it is generally considered 

 with the Eoyal Gorge as constituting the grand canyon of the 

 Arkansas, is really a separate canyon. It has a length of about 24 

 miles, measured along the railroad, and may be divided, according 

 to its width and the ruggedness of its walls, into three parts, two^of 

 them narrow and rugged and the third, separating the more rugged 

 parts, broad and more or less smooth. 



The first part of the canyon extends from Parkdale to Texas 

 Creek, a distance of 11 miles. This canyon is not so narrow nor 

 so deep as the Royal Gorge, but it is nevertheless picturesque and 

 well worthy of close attention, particularly as it can generally be 

 seen from an open observation car. The charm of this canyon 

 is the variety of its scenery. In places it is narrow and has steep 

 and rugged walls; in others it is relatively broad, though here and 

 there projecting points of rock have been cut by the stream into 

 nearly vertical cliffs. In other words, this canyon looks as if it 



