walker’s pass. 
15 
being a little north of east. We could see the open valley of Kern river to the south and 
southwest. Higher up, this river canons ; and it was to avoid this canon that we were 
obliged to keep the ridge, where there is a good pack-trail, hut impracticable for wagons. We 
camped in a little hollow in the mountain, and the barometer indicated the altitude above Depot 
camp to be 3,400 feel. As we had descended somewhat to find a camping-place, the highest 
point we passed over must have been over 4,000 feet above that camp, or nearly 5,000 feet above 
the level of the sea. Directly opposite us, on the other side of the river, was a mountain which 
we called Canon mountain, still higher than the one we were on ; and these two mountains, 
approaching each other with precipitous side-slopes, formed the canon above mentioned. 
The next day, after ascending a short distance, we began to descend. We could see the river 
far below us, white with foam, looking like a thread of silver as it dashed among the rocks 
with a very rapid current. There was the appearance of a large valley at the base of the mount¬ 
ain. Godey told us that the river there received a tributary, and that it was near the head of 
that stream that we should find Walker’s Pass. The descent was very steep ; so much so that 
in many places it was dangerous to ride, and it was more easy to slide down than to walk. We 
arrived on the hanks of the river, at the base of the hill, just in time to allow me to get a series 
of circummeridian altitudes of the sun, about half a mile below the mouth of the branch. 
The river was very rapid, and apparently deep. We tried to find a ford in several places, 
but did not succeed till we had gone up stream three miles ; and here the water came nearly up 
to the mules’ backs. To keep our packs dry we had to have them carried across by the men. 
After crossing, we went up the valley of the creek for four or five miles, and made a camp in 
fine grass on its banks. The valley is from one to three miles wide, with a poor soil, except in 
the bottoms near the creek, where the grass grows luxuriantly. Following up the valley, 
which averaged more than a mile in width, with a gentle ascent, gradually increasing all the 
way, we found, about twelve miles from the mouth of the creek, a small branch coming in from 
the south, now dry, but having apparently a long and wide valley. Five miles further, the 
creek, now a small brook, came from the mountains to the north, while from the southwest 
there was an open valley from a quarter to half a mile in width. This valley we followed up ; 
and having arrived within a mile and a half of the summit, we were fortunate enough to find 
a fine spring and plenty of coarse grass. Here we made our camp ; and, it being early in the 
afternoon, I rode up to the summit, where I had a fine view of the basin. There appeared to 
the eastward a strip, twenty or thirty miles wide, of unbroken ground; and beyond this the 
view was limited by masses of mountains. The pass is nowhere less than a quarter of a mile 
wide, and the ascent and descent both gradual. In fact, it is an excellent natural wagon-road. 
The mountains on either side are composed mostly of granite, and are rough and precipitous. 
There were quite a number of Indians, both on the creek and at the spring near our camp. 
At first they fled, but soon gained confidence, and came into camp. They seemed at this season 
of the year to be principally employed in collecting a kind of bulrush or cane, upon the leaves 
of which is found a substance very like sugar, which to them is a not unimportant article of 
food. They cut the cane and spread it in the sun to dry, and afterwards, by threshing, separate 
the sugar from the leaf. The cane itself had no sweet taste. As the creek had no name that 
I knew of, I endeavored to ascertain its Indian name, and found it to he Chay-o-poo-ya-pah— 
the accent strong on the last syllable. This name I have adopted on the map. I understand 
it to mean the creek of the bulrushes. 
The following day was occupied in examining the pass fully, and obtaining data for making 
3 C 
