CARRIZO CREEK—SANDSTONE STRATA. 
105 
plates, much, of it being detached and lying upon the surface. It being nearly dark, few 
observations could be made on these strata; they extended along the road for several miles, 
and formed bluffs from twenty to sixty or eighty feet in elevation. Before descending the hill, 
a specimen of Gnatliodon was obtained. Water was at length found in the bed of the creek, and 
we encamped a short distance above, among some mezquit trees. A great quantity of bones of 
cattle and sheep showed the fatality which has attended the passage of the desert. 
November 22.— Camp on Carrizo Creek to Vallecito. —The temperature of the stream early in 
the morning was 50°, and the air 44°. Nearly opposite the camp, the sandstone strata were 
similar to those seen in the Cajon Pass, and are formed of rudely commingled gravel and sand, 
and have a light, pinkish color. They are in thick beds, and not firmly consolidated. They 
were observed to have a westerly dip. Not far beyond, a dip of 17° was seen. Beyond the 
camp, and further up the creek, higher bluffs of nearly horizontal strata rose on either side. 
They were argillaceous, and contained seams of gypsum and concretions, some of the latter 
being like those seen on the desert. Passed a grove of palm trees, growing at a short distance 
on the right, the valley being one or two miles wide. The agave or mescal plant and many 
species of the cactaceae grow abundantly along the road. The air was loaded with the effluvia 
rising from numerous carcases of cattle and sheep in an advanced state of decomposition. 
Reached Vallecito in the evening. This is a narrow valley, between high ridges of granite or 
gneiss and mica slate. The water was somewhat charged with sulphuretted hydrogen, and 
boils up from a grassy hank on the side of a low hill, upon which a rude adobe house, with one 
room, is built. There are no trees at this place, hut the springs were surrounded with willows; 
there were many mezquit hushes, and the Strombocarpa pubescens , hearing the tournil or “ screw 
bean.” The temperature of. the principal spring was found to he 78°, the air being 40°. The 
water in the shallow open pools was about 46°. It is probable that these are thermal springs. 
November 23.— Vallecito to San Felipe. —We travelled up the narrow valley between the 
gneissoidal ridges on either side, and soon crossed the out-cropping edges of the rocks to another 
and more elevated valley. The mountains are rugged, and almost without soil; the rocks are 
blackened, or very brown, so that their true character or composition cannot be recognized at a 
distance. At San Felipe there are several Indian rancherias and small fields along the borders 
of the creek. The squaws were gathering mezquit beans, and some were seen carrying jars of 
water on their heads in true oriental style. At the sources of the small creek, a little higher 
up the valley and beyond the Indians, there is an abundance of grass and several springs of 
excellent water. The valley was much wider than that at Vallecito, and extended off among 
the mountains towards the south. Cotton-wood trees were visible in that direction, and other 
timber was seen on the elevated parts of some of the ridges. Encamped at the springs. 
November 24 to 28.—We pitched tents, and prepared to remain for several days, or until the 
party arrived from the Mojave. On the 26th it began to rain, and continued most of the day, 
flooding the camp. On the 27th the tops of the ridges were covered by fog, and the sky con¬ 
tinued cloudy. A man arrived from the west, over the pass—Warner’s Pass—informing us 
that the remainder of the party had returned, and were encamped at Warner’s. 
November 28.— San Felipe to Warner’s. —Left camp and travelled up the valley, finding 
granite and gneiss along the road to the summit of the pass, where a compact gray granite 
makes its appearance. The whole aspect of the country was changed, oak trees and shrubbery 
were abundant, and grass grew along the side of the road. A short descent from the summit- 
level (about 3,500 feet above the sea) brought us to a broad valley, known as Warner’s. Its 
14 F 
