8 



Sierra Club Bulletin. 



filled with snow. Far below lay another desolate lake 

 walled in by gigantic cliffs to the east, and the outlet, 

 which entered a deep gorge, was evidently a tributary of 

 Palisade Creek. The immense canon of this latter could 

 now be seen cutting thousands of feet deep directly across 

 our pathway, and on the farther side rose the Palisades, 

 more savage and forbidding than ever. The snow which 

 choked our pass formed a cornice projecting far over the 

 chute, so it was necessary to first descend by the aid of 

 the rocks on one side, and then take to the snow-field 

 below. Now a swift glissade was a pleasant rest from 

 climbing over talus, and this let us down a couple of 

 hundred feet in a few minutes. At the shore of our 

 Amphitheater Lake we stopped a moment to rest and en- 

 joy the wild outlook, and then entered the canon through 

 which the outlet stream made its way. The view down 

 this was now unobstructed. Its confluence with Pal- 

 isade Creek was directly opposite that of the stream 

 which drained the huge amphitheater between the North 

 Palisade and Mt. Sill. Our route could not have been 

 picked better, for all that was now necessary was to 

 descend to Palisade Creek, cross it, and climb out on 

 the other side as far as the timber-line before dark. 



This all seems very easy on paper, and looks nice and 

 smooth on the map, but the reality was quite the reverse. 

 The canon which we now entered was exceptionally 

 rough. Near its head falls blockaded the way, necessitat- 

 ing detours along side ledges. In other places brush 

 choked the narrow space by the stream, or piles of giant 

 debris encumbered the way. Luckily, gravitation was in 

 our favor, and we made fair time, finally reaching the 

 beautiful valley of Palisade Creek by noon. 



