458 The National Geographic Magazine 



distant Catalina, San Nicholas, and 

 Santa Barbara Islands, the mountain 

 and coast landmarks of San Diego and 

 the country to the east, where flourish 

 Pomona and Ontario. 



On clear days the line of the breakers 

 as they play upon the beach has been 

 discerned by the naked eye, the arrival 

 of the Catalina boat at San Pedro harbor 

 noted, and on a few exceptional morn- 

 ings the buildings on Catalina have been 

 visible, 60 miles away. 



Looking to the north, vast ranges of 

 rugged mountains in the immensity of 

 their trembling bareness suggest to the 

 mind the upheaval of the earth's crea- 

 tion, and with a skyline of eight to 

 eleven thousand feet stand between the 

 eye and the Mojave Desert beyond. 



The magnificent watershed of the San 

 Gabriel River stretching away to the east 

 is a foreground for the majestic white- 

 ness of San Antonio ("Old Baldy"), and 

 farther eastward San Gargonia ("Gray- 

 back"), San Bernardino, and San Ja- 

 cinto are prominent landmarks. 



Directly back of Mount Wilson to the 

 north the West Fork of the San Gabriel 

 River finds its source in the bottom of a 

 gigantic bowl, the three-thousand-foot 

 sides of which, under the softening 

 touches of a waning sun, make a dream- 

 like picture not soon forgotten, calling 

 as from another world to the tired-out 

 worker but a few hours removed from 

 the turmoil of Los Angeles. 



The rush of the tumbling West Fork 

 can be heard on Mount Wilson, and in 

 summer this back country is a favorite 

 camping ground for those who wish to 

 lose themselves from civilization and 

 burn their bridges behind. The mail, 

 the telephone, and the telegraph are of 

 another world ; the use of the razor is 

 tabooed ; the daily packing and driving 

 the burro is the only problem of life, and 

 the business man returns to civilization 

 in such a happy state of carelessness that 

 he is passed on the streets unrecognized 

 by his nearest friends. 



Except for patches of woods here and 

 there and streaks of green in the canyon 

 bottoms, these gigantic heaps of brown- 



ness look as dry as the desert, but' there 

 -are ever-flowing springs to be found on 

 the highest ridges, and trails lead 

 through the most impossible looking re- 

 gions. 



Covered with sugar pines, bearing 

 giant cones over a foot long, Barley 

 Flats and Pine Flats are two of the en- 

 chanted regions which beckon to the 

 Mount Wilson Hotel guest, leading him 

 yet a step farther from civilization. Both 

 are well watered at an altitude of over 

 6,000 feet, are covered with wild barley, 

 and are reached by the roughest sort of 

 mountain trails. 



Gently rolling over the semi-flat coun- 

 try of this high ridge, the green carpet 

 and pine grove of Barley Flats are so 

 entirely different from the steep and 

 rugged bareness of the surrounding 

 country that the imagination seems to 

 lift one into another country, and one 

 half expects to see the fairy prince of 

 nursery days ride forth in gorgeous trap- 

 pings and blow a blast upon his trumpet. 



This picturesque spot really has its ro- 

 mance in "The Horse Thieves of Barley 

 Flats." These hardy outlaws of days 

 gone by are reported to have operated 

 between the Mexican border and San 

 Francisco, using this well-watered grove 

 of pines, commanding an extended view 

 on all sides of any possible approach, as 

 one of their feeding stations. 



The grain which the stolen horses 

 didn't eat is supposed to be responsible 

 for the fine crop of volunteer barley 

 which is now enjoyed by the hardy little 

 burros of the Mount Wilson Hotel Com- 

 pany, for Barley Flats, which is in the 

 government reserve, is leased as a fall 

 and winter pasturage when the absence 

 of the summer colony lessens the need of 

 trail animals. 



The burros are counted daily by tele- 

 scope from the hotel, and if any do not 

 answer to roll-call a rider is dispatched 

 to see whether a mountain lion is at 

 large. When the heavy snow comes, the. 

 burros are brought back to civilization, 

 the rescue expeditions having a tough 

 time battling with the snow-drifts. 



The record fall of eight feet in Jan- 



