eotlich.] SWEETWATER DISTRICT LAKES. 53 



sometimes be found, owing to a saturation of the subsoil, whereby the 

 water is enabled to remain upon the surface. Without reliable hypso- 

 metric data, it is scarcely possible to recognize the character of this 

 entire region unless the whole of it has been seen. Were flowing water 

 contained in the channels that now appear only as dry gulches, the 

 recognition of the characteristics here exhibited would be somewhat 

 facilitated. 



Considering the peculiar position of this basin, between the drainage 

 of Green Kiver and that of the Platte, it remains rather doubtful on 

 which side of the depression, east or west, the continental divide should 

 be located. Considering that the western drainage is perhaps more 

 pronounced than that to the east, I have given preference to the western 

 rim of the basin. For the purpose of facilitating subsequent description 

 I shall apply to this extensive " sink" the provisional name of Shoshone 

 Basin. 



LAKES AND SPRINGS. 



Lakes. 



Wind River Range. — On the eastern slope of this range we find a large 

 number of lakes within the granitic area. Most of them are small. 

 Dependent upon their position, either in cations or on ridges, they are 

 deep or shallow. Perhaps the most picturesque one that we met with 

 during our trip through that region is the one upon which we located 

 our thirty-seventh camp on July 18. Situated at the lower end of a 

 wide green valley, bordered on either side by ridges that rise above tim- 

 ber-line, this lake surpasses in beauty of surroundings any we saw on 

 the eastern slope of the range. Its elevation is about 10,000 feet above 

 sea-level. Game and the striking scenery render the lake a most desir- 

 able place for camping purposes. In order to commemorate, to some 

 extent, our stay of two days at that locality, and to give exjjression to 

 our appreciation of the vicinity I have given this sheet of water a name, 

 Lake Christina. Surrounded by steep rocks and dark timber, many 

 of the smaller lakes appear very pretty. The western slope of the range 

 does not, perhaps, contain so many lakes, but those we found there 

 were very characteristic. Prominent among them is Barrefs Lake, on 

 the Little Sandy. Apparently surrounded on all sides by precipitous, 

 rocky slopes, this body of water is completely secluded, well hidden 

 from the observation of the casual traveller. Its depth seems to be very 

 considerable, a fact which is indicated both by the character of its shores 

 east and west and by the measurements some fishermen took there. 

 Higher up in the range, and farther north, are many small glacial lakes. 

 They have been either formed by a dam composed of glacial drift, or 

 they occupy shallow depressions produced by the abrading action of 

 the moving ice and its accompanying bowlders. Surrounded by rocky 

 slopes and scattering timber they present a very definite character. 



Shoshone Basin. — Within the area forming this depression a large 

 number of lakes or lake-beds were observed. Usually they occur in 

 groups, each individual lake only separated by a short distance from 

 the other. Prominent among them is one that we name Trail Lake, from 

 the proximity of the Shoshone and Ute trail. - It is about a mile and a 

 half long and half a mile wide. To the north and northwest of Trail 

 Lake there are quite a number of others, fiuiiishing a favorite resort for 

 numerous antelopes. Farther toward the east is another series of lakes. 

 This was discovered by Fremont during his second expedition in 1813. 

 It is located nearly due south of Elkhorn Gap, about 25 miles dis- 



