52 REPORT UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 



mountains it cuts through the granitic range outside and enters the low- 

 country. Losing much of its water there, it finally enters the Big Sandy 

 as a muddy stream, very wide but shallow. A few small creeks rim 

 into this stream after it leaves the mountains, but they mostly cany 

 water only a short distance, except during the wet season. Proceeding 

 a few miles farther east we find the Dry Sandy. This is a branch of the 

 Little Sandy, and, as the name implies, only contains water temporarily. 

 Flowing for nearly its entire length through a dry, sandy country, the 

 supply received from the mountains is soon exhausted, and nothing but 

 a wide bed filled with yellow sand denotes the course of the stream. 

 Pacific Creek, located a short distance farther east, is a tributary of the 

 Dry Sandy. Bising at Pacific Springs, this creek flows in a southwest- 

 erly direction. It contains water through a large portion of its course, 

 although it is very alkaline. Father south there are several other 

 streams carrying water during some seasons of the year. White Horse 

 Greeli is one of these. 



Muddy Greelc. — Near the northwestern corner of our district is a good, 

 sized stream indicated by some maps as Muddy Creek. It takes its rise 

 near that depression in the Wind Biver Bange over which the Shoshone 

 trail leads. Flowing to the southwest, it rapidly changes its course to a 

 westerly one upon emerging from the mountains and passes out of our 

 district. 



Packer's Greeli. — A short distance west of Salt Wells Station, on the 

 Union Pacific Eailroad, we find a long creek, having its course through 

 a wide, nearly straight valley. Its direction is approximately southward 

 and it forms a junction with Bitter Creek near the station above men- 

 tioned. During the summer the lower portions of this creek are dry and 

 water can only be found in small stagnant pools. 



Sulphur Greeli. — Near Point of Eocks, Sulphur Creek joins Bitter 

 Creek. Some of its northern branches extend into our district. While 

 most of them are dry, others contain water at local intervals. The 

 southwestern corner of the district is very poorly watered, and the trav- 

 eller must depend in a great measure upon finding springs or small 

 alkaline pools. By following the drainage-courses the latter can fre- 

 quently be found. 



DRAINAGE SOUTH OF SWEETWATER HILLS. 



Without the aid of an accurate map it becomes an exceedingly diffi- 

 cult task to convey any definite idea of the hydrological conditions of 

 this region. No well-developed system of drainage exists there, and 

 the distribution of elevations and depressions varies materially from 

 that observed in other portions of the district. The continental divide 

 through that section of country follows a line about east 45° south. 

 Accepting that position and direction for it, it is determined by the 

 headwaters and upper drainage of Pacific, Packer's, and Sulphur Creeks. 

 At all points within this region the "backbone of the continent" is so 

 low and generally obscure, that it really requires careful attention to 

 recognize it. Looking eastward from any point of this divide we find 

 the streams apparently flowing in such a way as to join Atlantic drain- 

 age. Upon examination, however, we here find an extensive depression 

 into which water is carried from both east and west, only to sink. The 

 shape of this depression is approximately oval, and is located near the 

 one hundred and eighth meridian. Although scarcely anything but dry 

 washes are met with in this region, it contains quite a number of lakes 

 of various sizes. Within their immediate vicinity small creeks may 



