12 FROM GREAT SALT LAKE TO GREEN RIVER. 
angle, and in almost all eastern directions from south to north; and in a few instances strata 
bent (before induration) were seen; and in one, vertical, parallel, walled dikes intersect the 
northern slope of a mountain near the head of the passage, extending from the water's edge to 
near the summit of the mountain, only separated by about ten feet, and rising thirty feet above 
the mountain slope. 
April 7.—A cold rain, which continued to fall throughout the night, poured down upon us as 
we wrapped ourselves in our blankets last evening; and as we were without tents or other pro- 
tection from the weather, but little sleep refreshed the party; and at 9 o'clock this morning the 
rain changed to snow, (which had been falling all night on the high peaks in the mountains,) 
and continued to fall heavily throughout the day, melting as it reached the ground. 
Above the junction of Dry creek with the Weber river, the latter comes from the south, 
cutting through a red conglomerate sandstone mountain six or eight hundred feet high, which 
is rapidly disiniegrating, the talus at some points being entirely swept away by the river, and 
at all others it stands at too steep an angle towards the water to be easily climbed over. 
The Indian trail, however, passes through this cañon at low water, a part of the way in the 
stream. It is five hundred yardslong. We rode to its upper end and clambered in to examine 
it. "The trail by which we passed ascends Dry creek half a mile, and then passes without diffi- 
culty to its head, by a low pass in the ridge through which the cañon itself is cut. This is the 
proper site, also, for a railroad. Above this cafion a considerable valley extends south to the 
Kamas prairie. This valley varies in width from three or four miles to a few hundred yards, 
and is drained by the Weber river, having on its margins considerable bottom lands, which at 
this season of the year are quite wet, and in many parts are covered by cotton-wood trees and 
willow-bushes. Ascending this valley we came to the emigrant road leading from the South 
Pass to Great Salt lake, which we followed to the mouth of Echo cañon, where we left it and 
continued up the river to the mouth of White Clay creek (Moran’s fork.) The mountains on 
the left of the valley, as we ascended it, are conglomerate sandstone, full of cavities numerously 
inhabited by ravens. The snow was falling so fast that we were unable to see a hundred yards, 
and were obliged to dismount and wait for it to diminish ; when we again remounted, and, 
turning east, left the Weber river to ascend White Clay Geck and pass over to Bear and EN 
rivers. The valley of our path after leaving the Weber was from one-half to three-fourths of a 
mile in width, finely covered with dry and green grass, the hills being covered with a stunted 
growth of cedar, and cotton-wood and willows line the stream, which has upon it little or no 
bottom land. The storm ceased as we encamped, having travelled but 10.50 miles, with an 
average ascent of 16.50 feet per mile. 
April 8.—A piercing cold wind sprang up during last night, the thermometer falling to 27°, 
and continued all day blowing from E.N.E. directly in our faces as we ascended White Clay 
creek, which is one foot in depth and five in width, with a free rapid current. Its narrow bottom 
is from one to two hundred yards in width, with low spurs of hills occasionally exiending to 
the stream. It is lined with cotton-wood and willows in the lower part of its course, but is 
quite destitute of timber higher up, while scattered cedars are seen on the nearest hills, and 
pine, fir, and aspen fill the ravines of the mountains, the highest peaks of which are 14 miles 
south of us on the northern bank of Weber river, whence it descends from the east to Kamas 
prairie. Numerous tracks of grizzly bears and porcupines were seen in the snow, beaver dams 
and lodges in the creek bottoms, and a fine silver-gray fox watched our progress for some time 
from a high hill, safely beyond gun-shot. Fourteen miles out we came into continuous fields 
„of snow, six inches in depth, except on the southeru exposures, where it had almost entirely 
disappeared. Its surface was hard and stiff, though not strong enough to bear either men or 
animals, and as we broke through at every step, our progress was tedious and fatiguing; and 
these were greatly increased whenever we had to pass slight inequalities in the ground filled 
with snow, and t the narrow drifts always accumulated on the northeastern declivities of the hills 
—our mules literally rolling, pitching, tumbling, and floundering through. Thermometer at 
eo 
