278 



RECREATION. 



During the winter the weather in the moun- 

 tains is generally good, though sometimes 

 extremely cold. From February to the end 

 of April perfect conditions prevail, there 

 being no extreme heat or cold, no rain, and 

 generally an invigorating breeze. The 

 nights, though sometimes cold in the higher 

 altitudes, are cloudless and dry, without 

 dew. From April to June it is excessive- 

 ly hot in the sun, and traveling during the 

 day would be attended with considerable 

 discomfort. 



About mid June the rainy season com- 

 mences, and there is a daily downpour for 

 3 months. In October cool, dry weather 

 reappears, and probably that would be the 

 best month to make this trip, both for 

 scenery and hunting. 



Our chief difficulty was lack of water. 

 Owing to an exceptionally dry winter many 

 of the mountain streams and springs were 

 dried up. In some of those left, water was 

 discolored and unpalatable, though seeming- 

 ly harmless. 



Curiously, there is no available fish life in 

 these mountains, and it is useless to take 

 fishing tackle. Some of the rivers contain 

 fish 2 to 3 inches in length, and the Indians 

 catch them by beating with a board on the 

 water. The concussion stuns the little fishes 

 and turns them belly upward, when the In- 

 dians collect and cook them. 



We made our first camp on the Guerrero 

 river, a short distance from Minaca. We 

 had heard that great numbers of ducks were 

 usually to be seen there, and we were 

 anxious to shoot a few, but the migration 

 Northward had evidently been going on 

 some time and ducks were scarce. By ardu- 

 ous stalking, there being little cover on the 

 banks, we secured one or 2 stragglers. 



The next day, after a ride over a hot and 

 dusty prairie, we arrived about noon at the 

 foot of the mountains. The altitude of 

 Minaca is 6,600 feet, and the maximum 

 height attained in crossing the range is 8,300 

 feet. The trail for some distance keeps in 

 close touch with the grading of the new 

 railroad,- then parts from it and finally picks 

 it up again. 



The forests of the Sierra Madre moun- 

 tains are of great value, but are often seri- 

 ously damaged by fire. This waste should 

 be stopped. 



At sunset we camped on a small river in 

 a deep canyon. 



In the earlier stages of the journey we 

 hobbled the mules before turning them loose 

 at night, as they would otherwise return 

 home. After some days this precaution be- 

 comes no longer necessary and they are al- 

 lowed to wander at will, in search of food. 



It takes some time to get the packs tied 

 on the mules, in spite of the dexterity and 

 activity of the mozos. The mules have to 

 be blindfolded. No one who has not striven 

 with a hired mule can form the least idea 



of the extraordinary patience requisite to 

 get the proper amount of work out of the 

 beast. A mule does things his own way. 

 Often he will apparently pay no attention to 

 his persecutors, but when the opportunity 

 comes he will be even with them. Each of 

 our party suffered at the feet of his mule, 

 one member being knocked down and 

 badly trampled. The mountain mules 

 are marvelously sure footed, and though 

 heavily loaded will scramble safely over 

 most perilous places. I heard of a traveler 

 through these mountains whose mule, in 

 turning a sharp corner on a steep trail, had 

 his balance upset by the load striking an 

 overhanging rock. The mule started to roll 

 down the ravine and, as he gathered speed, 

 the pack, bumping against projecting rocks, 

 caused him to rebound like a rubber ball. 

 The traveler watched him until the mule 

 was out of sight, and then started down the 

 mountain, with heavy heart, to recover his 

 packs. He had not proceeded far when to 

 his astonishment he saw his mule, pack and 

 all, apparently uninjured, slowly working 

 his way up a deer trail. The mule continued 

 the ascent until he finally rejoined the pack 

 train as if nothing had happened. 



There are different grades of mules. A 

 good one is usually worth 100 Mexican dol- 

 lars, up. Mules can be bought as low as 

 $40, but to travel this trail on a $40 mule 

 would be to take unnecessary risks. 



Bacoyna is about 100 kilometers from 

 Minaca, and the trail is easy and well de- 

 fined, there being considerable traffic be- 

 tween the 2 places. Bacoyna is a desolate 

 little place with a few hundred inhabitants, 

 situated in a dusty plain, hollowed out in 

 the mountain range. 



Our first camp after passing Bacoyna was 

 at Rochibo (goat ranch), at an altitude of 

 8,100 feet. There, for the first time, we 

 saw some Indian habitations. These Indians 

 are known as the Taharumari, and are ex- 

 tremely retiring and inoffensive. Their ap- 

 pearance is remarkable, but their faces show 

 their extraordinary timidity and gentleness. 

 Their comnlexion is chocolate in color; their 

 hair long and unkempt. The garments they 

 wear resemble pajamas of white cotton and 

 are generally very clean. When traveling 

 on the trail with heavy loads on their backs, 

 these Indians go practically naked and carry 

 rude bows and arrows, with which they 

 shoot squirrels. The Taharumaris generally 

 go out of their way to avoid the white man, 

 and will hide if they have time before he 

 comes up to them. They dislike manual 

 labor and will often rather starve than 

 work, though they do not seem to mind 

 traveling great distances on foot and heavily 

 laden. They are extremely superstitious and 

 their superstition centers around what 

 knowledge they have of the life of Christ 

 as given to them by the traveling priests. 

 A number of mysterious signs may be ob- 



