INTRODUCTION. 23 
sion for the safety of the property of the expedition, to say nothing of its members; but the 
Monterey rode it through without serious damage, and a few evenings afterwards—three weeks 
having elapsed since Cape St. Lucas had first been seen—Captain Walsh informed us that we 
should reach the mouth of the river on the following day. 
Tedious as was the last part of the voyage, it had not been entirely destitute of interest, for 
at no time during the day were we altogether out of sight of land. About Cape St. Lucas the 
country near the shore is uninteresting, but further north the scenery becomes bolder and 
more striking. The navigation of the Gulf is nearly free from shoals and reefs, and the sheet 
of deep water would be unbroken but for lofty volcanic islands, some one of which is nearly 
always in view. Their sides rise suddenly out of the water, and in thick or stormy nights a 
vessel might be driven into dangerous proximity to the rocky bluffs before the lead would give 
notice of their neighborhoo 
North of Guaymas these islands are more numerous, and in one place, with narrow channels 
between, extend across the Gulf in an uninterrupted chain, presenting wild and abrupt out- 
lines, as though formed by spouts of lava hurled up from mammoth submarine craters, and 
hardened in the air before falling. They are by no means destitute of vegetation, but appear 
to be uninhabited, and the unbroken solitude adds to their desolate grandeur. It is probable 
that upon many of their surfaces no human foot has ever trodden. They appear, indeed, 
almost inaccessible, though among the rugged cliffs an occasional break affords a glimpse of 
some green valley or cool sheltered glen inviting to the eye, or a narrow vista momentarily 
opens to view dark and mysterious looking recesses, suggesting the notion, in this region 
teeming with mineral wealth, that there may be among those secluded nooks places that it 
would be well worth while to explore. 
The main land on the western side has a character very similar, but the bold precipices and 
steep shelving planes that girt the shore are crowned with jagged peaks piled confusedly 
above. 
During the gale that we encountered, when near the end of the voyage, the remarkable 
phenomenon was presented of the heavy billows rolling towards us from the portion of the 
coast that was directly under our lee. I supposed at first that this might be due to some 
voleanic disturbance, but it is more probable that it resulted from the action of the tides and 
currents, which increase in strength as the head of the Gulf is approached. A very perceptible 
change takes place also in the temperature when the valley of the Colorado draws near. 
Though less warm—at least at the season of our visit—than the latitude of Cape St. Lucas, it: 
possessed a fresh softness not experienced further south, and the islands and mountain peaks, 
whose outlines, as seen from the Gulf, had been somewhat dimmed by a light haze, appeared 
surprisingly near and distinct in the limpid medium through which they were now viewed. 
The whole panorama became invested with new attractions, and it would be hard to say 
whether the dazzling radiance of the day or the sparkling clearness of the night was the more 
beautiful and brilliant. 
In closing this brief notice of the voyage to the mouth of the Colorado, the recollection of 
one of its features is so agreeable that I cannot refrain from referring to it. I allude to <. 
hospitality extended to myself and companions by Captain Walsh during the whole of the trip. 
In a vessel loaded almost beyond the limits of safety; with a hampered deck, impossible to . . 2 
be kept in order; a crowded cabin, and an inconvenient number of idlers filling up the circum- = 
* 
scribed space, enough of the disagreeable must have occurred during the long passage tose = 
render it the most uncomfortable experience of seafaring life that our captain had probably = 
ever encountered, and we therefore appreciated the more the unflagging kindness and good 
humor which contributed so much to our comfort and enjoyment during the thirty days _ 
we were cooped up together on board of the schooner Monterey. 
