The Evolution Group of Peaks. 233 



wonderful pyramidal rock of clean-cut white granite. 

 Though not quite so large, it reminds one of the East 

 Vidette — that noble monument on King's River. At the 

 head of the canon, blocking the whole view in that direc- 

 tion, is the colossal Mt. Darwin. Near the head of the 

 canon our companions, Messrs. Hutchinson, Noble, and 

 Whitney, left us and proceeded by a fairly well-defined 

 trail up the northern side in the direction of Mt. Hum- 

 phreys, while we went on to the foot of the Hermit and 

 pitched camp. 



At this point the valley proper ends in an immense 

 amphitheater, into which streams from all directions tum- 

 ble in foaming cataracts. The principal one comes down 

 from a shelf at the very foot of Mt. Darwin. Two others 

 enter from either side of the Hermit, while a fourth 

 large one, upon which we were camped, drains the great 

 area to the north of Mt. Darwin. In the afternoon of that 

 same day Dr. Gilbert explored the ridge to the north, 

 and on the following day he and Kanawyer, the packer, 

 climbed a peak back of the Hermit. 



On the morning of the i8th, he and I got a fairly 

 early start, determined to explore the head-waters of the 

 main stream. This, as I have said, drops from a shelf at 

 the base of Mt. Darwin, and the first plunge is over 

 smooth glaciated granite at an angle of about forty-five 

 degrees. It was therefore impossible to follow up the 

 stream itself, but fortunately a comparatively easy route 

 was found just to the north. At first we followed an old 

 sheep-trail, but soon abandoned it when it bore off to the 

 northeast. About a thousand feet above camp we reached 

 the level of the shelf, and chmbing over a low ridge 

 came suddenly upon the beautiful Evolution Lake and 



