98 



Sierra Club Bulletin. 



on the national flag to have happened within twenty 

 miles of the city. 



As timber line is reached, the trees grow smaller, and 

 tend to become segregated into groups instead of standing 

 as isolated individuals. The bunch-grass continues to 

 cover the smooth, unbroken slopes, unaccompanied by any 

 other plant, up to 14,000 or 1 5,000 feet. There are many 

 little trails, worn by the ice-cutters and the herders of 

 cattle and sheep. It is an easy matter to make trails 

 where there are neither rocks nor brush to contend with. 



The amount of snow varies with the season. Strange 

 to say, there is most snow at the end of summer, and by 

 May there is hardly any left on the south slopes. This is 

 because all the rain comes in summer, when the mountains 

 are often covered with clouds for weeks at a time. A 

 Mexican winter is drier than a California summer, hence 

 winter is the season for climbing. The best time is the 

 latter part of November, December, or January, when the 

 air is still clear from the thorough washing given it dur- 

 ing the rainy season. Later it becomes warm and the air 

 is hazy, and, by May, storms may be encountered. While 

 it is always cold at these high altitudes, it is not cold 

 enough, even in winter, to be more than agreeably brac- 

 ing. 



One fine thing about these climbs is that they are in- 

 expensive. If one can talk a little Spanish and arrange 

 with the native guides, the trip from Mexico City to 

 Ixtaccihuatl or Popocatepetl should not cost more than 

 ten dollars (U. S. currency) a person for a small party. 

 This includes guides, horses, railroad fare, and hotel 

 accommodations at Amecameca. Nevado de Toluca can 

 be climbed at a cost of about fifteen dollars, and Orizaba 

 for twenty-five or thirty dollars a person, the latter being 

 a four days' trip. 



The guides are Indians, but all speak Spanish. They 

 do pretty good work, remarkable work when you con- 

 sider that they live almost entirely on tortillas, and their 

 wearing apparel consists of a cotton shirt and trousers, 



