52 
GRAND RIVER VALLEY.—LAKE FORK. 
As the train left the river, Captain Gunnison ascended a spur on the north side, whence “ a 
small part of the Arkansas mountains could be seen through the gorge of the river, N. S0° E.; 
the river itself passing him between square-capped hills, which characterize the spurs on either 
side, S. 75° W., for perhaps twenty miles. From this position, the reason was apparent why 
the guides pronounced the further progress of the wagons along the river impracticable.” “ The 
stream is imbedded in narrow and sinuous canones, the dark top outline of which resembles a 
huge snake in motion, as the wavy atmosphere conveys the light to the eye. And the little spurs 
appear merged into one great connecting ridge, from the mountains at the head of the Rio del 
Norte to the great Elk mountains on the north. These spurs have their lowest depressions at the 
bed of Grand river, a chasm in the porphyritic and crystalline rocks opened for its passage. 
The red sandstone that has at one time overlaid it, has been washed away. The side creeks 
from the mountains have cut deep valleys, with perpendicular sides, in the softer rocks ; and 
there are left sending many hills of sandstone, which are protected from decay by what appears 
to have been lava, cooled under water after spreading over the sediment, which is hardened 
into argillaceous sandstone in some places, and sand cemented with a ferruginous cement in 
others. In some parts the capping is removed over great areas, and the stone is found in the 
bottoms of the streams rounded into pebbles. To look down over the tangent plane to the 
canon below, it seems easy to construct a railroad ; but immense amounts of cutting, filling, and 
masonry would be required. There is no timber to speak of nearer than the mountains, and 
that difficult of access for such a work. Cotton-wood in clumps on the rivers, and dwarf cedar 
and pine scattered on the cliffs and hills, will furnish fuel for wagoners.” 
September 9.—For the second time our guide returned to camp last night ill at ease, and it was 
evident that his two morning’s examination of the route ahead had not only proved less successful 
than he desired, but had quite surprised his memory. But we were too close upon his trail to 
admit of longer delay in informing us that we had a serious obstacle before us in the passage of 
the Rio de la Laguna, or Lake fork, coming into Grand river from the south, through almost one 
continuous canon from the mountains to the river, and that he had failed to find an easy crossing. 
This morning, therefore, large working parties of soldiers and employes started forward, under 
their respective commanders, to prepare the crossing of the creek; and at 2 o’clock p. m. we 
received orders to move on with the train. Ascending from the ravine on which we had 
encamped, we were forced high up on the mesas, to avoid numerous deep ravines, which we 
succeeded in turning successfully, when a short, steep ascent around the rocky wall of the table 
to our left, brought us, four miles from our morning camp, to the top of the difficult passage—a 
rapid descent of 4,055 feet in length, and 935 in perpendicular height above the stream, covered 
with stones of all sizes, from pebbles to tons in weight, with small ledges of rocks cropping out 
at various points. Some of the stones had been removed in the proposed road; but the wagons, 
with locked wheels, thumped, jarred, and grated over the greater portion, especially those too 
large and deeply imbedded in the soil to be removed, until their noise quite equalled that of the 
foaming torrent creek below. At one point, as they passed obliquely over a ridge, it was neces¬ 
sary to attach ropes to the wagons, and employ a number of men to prevent their overturning. 
Two hours were thus employed in descending with our eighteen wagons, and in twice crossing 
the creek, in the bed of which we had to descend for a quarter of a mile, before we could gain 
a permanent footing on the west side. The creek is sixty feet wide by from one to two deep, 
with an impetuous current falling with a loud noise over a bed of rocks and large stones. Just 
above its mouth two fine streams, half a mile apart, enter Grand river from the Elk mountains. 
Day’s march five miles, through a heavy growth of sage. 
September 10.—After considerable labor in removing surface-stones and digging down a few 
yards of the opposite hill, too sideling for our wagons, we doubled our teams, and with ten mules, 
but not without severe labor—detaining us, however, but six hours—pulled up the load of six to 
the crest of the western bank of Lake fork, ascending 480 feet in forty-one hundredths of a 
