CHITTENDEN.] EOAN PLATEAU CATHEDEAL BLUFFS. 353 



course between two of its principal branches. The summit of the pla- 

 teau was grass-covered and favorable for travelling, rising gradually 

 toward the southward. It was almost nightfall when we reached the 

 heads of the gullies, but here we found small groups of aspen trees, and 

 by descending 400 feet into the caiions found little trickling streams of 

 pure water. The caiion bottoms were too narrow for camping purposes 

 as well as inacessible to our loaded pack-mules. We were therefore 

 obliged to make our camp on the summit of the plateau, and carry up 

 by hand all the water for camp purposes, a distance of 400 feet. We 

 were able to lead down our thirsty animals after they were unloaded, 

 enabling them to drink. Excellent grass was abundant all over the 

 summit of the plateau, and we were well satisfied with the camp, prom- 

 ising, as it did, the easy working of the plateau region, which formed a 

 considerable portion of the district to be worked during the season. As 

 we followed the summit of the plateau in the days following we found 

 abundant water in nearly all the heads of the Pi-ce-ance drainage and 

 also in the branches of Parachute Creek, a stream heading opposite j the 

 former flows southward to Grand Eiver. 



After five days spent in working the country from the water divide of 

 the plateau, always travelling on well-beaten Indian trails, we again de- 

 scended to Pi-ce-ance Creek, reaching it some 15 miles below the point at 

 which we had left it. We then followed it to White River over an indif- 

 ferently good trail. The creek where we reached it this second time was 

 quite a considerable stream, winding with a very sluggish flow through 

 a sage-brush-covered bottom-land. It would perhaps average 30 or 40 

 square feet in cross-section and was not readily fordable by our pack- 

 train. Most of the water in the creek was supplied by t^o or three 

 branches from the northwest. Pi-ce-ance Creek throughout its entire- 

 drainage area has very little wood or timber of any description. A few 

 patches of aspens and occasional pines near its heads, and a few piiions 

 and junipers on the low bluffs near its moutli, comprise all the areas of 

 timber. Nearly everywhere outside of the caiious there is an abundance 

 of good grass. 



On the 11th of September, having visited the agency and taken up a 

 month^s supply of provisions, we took up our line of march down White 

 River, to visit and work up all the western portion of our distrct. 

 The agency is located on White River, near its exit from the moun- 

 tains, at the head of a series of open parks or bottoms w^hich con- 

 tinue at intervals for more than 20 miles below the agency along the 

 course of the river. These bottom-lands are in places nearly a mile in 

 width, all easily irrigable, and affording many thousand acres of most 

 excellent arable land. Mr. Danforth had cuftivated about 40 acres of 

 land for the use of the agency and was raising potatoes, beets, carrots, 

 and turnips, besides quite a large field of oats. White River has ample 

 irrigating capacity for all the available land along its entire length. 



Having followed down White River for about 40 or 45 miles, we left 

 it and turning southward marched toward the summit of the plateau, 

 up an even, gentle slope. We reached the summit level the same after- 

 noon, after travelling about 20 miles from the river, and were surprised 

 to find ourselves on the edge of a precipitous cliff which continued 

 impassable for a distance of 20 miles north and south. This cliff or 

 bluff, with its slopes, was at least 2,000 feet in altitude and overlooked 

 a broad area of low country drained by a creek which later was named 

 by us Douglas Creek, after the head chief of the White River Utes. The 

 bluffs were named Cathedral Bluffs. Following the bluffs around to the 

 south and west we again reached the divide between White and Grand 



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