l82 



Sierra Club Bulletin. 



arrayed themselves in bloomers or overalls, the sensible 

 costumes of hardy mountaineers. 



The informality of breakfast being quickly finished, 

 the party was formed into a circle and told off in three 

 companies with Captains Willoughby Rodman, Duncan 

 McDuffie, and Olcott Haskell in charge thereof, respect- 

 ively. 



At 4: 15 o'clock, just as the gray dawn began to light 

 the canon depths sufficiently to enable us to move with 

 certainty among the rocks and trees, under the able leader- 

 ship of Mr. E. T. Parsons, we started. We proceeded at 

 first slowly up the steep side of the right-hand canon-wall 

 and through the forest and over the granite slopes until 

 we reached the basin at the head of the valley we had left. 

 Here our course for half a mile or more over a compara- 

 tively level stretch of open country was exceedingly 

 interesting. Before us was the beautiful mass of snow 

 coming far down the mountain-side and feeding the 

 numerous small tributaries to Lyell Creek which we had 

 to ford on inconvenient stepping-stones or leap across 

 where width permitted ; to our right were the steep cliffs 

 of this glacial cirque ; while to our left the lazy sun was 

 just getting up from his cold couch and beginning to warm 

 himself for the day's routine. As we made frequent 

 stops to rest, we began to take note of our companions. 

 Judging from appearances alone, one would assume that 

 most of the party had slept on the charred embers of the 

 camp-fire and washed their faces with the under-side of a 

 frying-pan; while others had pale and ghostly visages, 

 caused by covering their faces with cold cream and adhe- 

 sive plasters; and all this care and trouble was taken to 

 avoid blistering of the skin by the reflection of the sun on 



