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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 21, 1889)
WEST SHORE. DEATH GULCH IN YELLOWSTONE PARK. pXTKEMKLY rugged mountains occupy tlu-(st-rn r portion of the National Turk of the Yellow-atone, . their snowy summits reaching altitude of from 10,0(10 to 11,000 foot, and the streams which run down from their melting snow have their course through canyons whose precipitous walla of rock reach evil's tail ami surpass the changing tire of an opal. Thin feast of color, w ith its kaleidoscopic change, fa eiuatetl ua, and many minute were nnt watching it, hefore aa.cn.ling to the aummit of a little platform overl.ii.king thin spring. The slope is formed of a gray rock, whose rilled aurface at once suggest the terrace of travertine, the so-called "formation" of the Mam moth hot aorim.'. It in in, I. ...I it... . a height of from 2,00 to o,IKK feet. On a hranch of ; hot spring, hu, altered ( cryataline. the material the Lamar river has been found a remarkable sHt that haa been named "Ueath gulch" by Walter II. Weed, j of the United States geological aurvey, who thua rclatca his exH'rionco8 in that deadly place : " Even at first sight there apM'ars to lie something unusual and jieculiar alwut this little oH'iiing in the pines; in the center is a shallow depression that is bare of verdure, the surface white with an encrustation that proved to lie salt, while the converging and deeply worn trails leading to it, and the numerous game tracks, show it to bo what in the hunter's vernacular is called a " lick." It is the dried bod of an ancient hot spring that is now a shallow alkali mhi1 in the early spring, f running this little meadow, wo found the creek cutting its further edge, while the white s!om-s on the opxtsito side, and the smell of sulphur in the air, suggest at once to those familiar with "(ieysorland " the presence of hot springs. Picketing our horses where they might graze UHin the salty grasses that grow ulsmt the " lick," we descended the bank to the Wder of the creek, and found its waters flowing Itotweon white w alls of mlishel marble, and on expansion of the stream bordered by this creamy white nx'k forma a natural bath reservoir that oven tho luxuriousness of ancient Koine could not have equalled. In the center tho water is boiling furiously, the bubbling mass rising several inches als.ve the surface of tho crook ; but the water is quite eld, the commotion la-inn duo to the copious emiaai.ni of nearer the stream resembling a course in., s'trilbd into white, marly transparent crystals. The lower crystals are, however, nearly a dense and hard a flint, an.l it is this material that form the marble banks of the creek, where its surface is M.ishcd, until it I a smooth as glass, by tho stream itself. Hut it is neither this dcit nor the bank of sulphur a few yards further up the crock that distinguished this place from all others in the park, though the sul phureotitains cedar logs embedded in it thaf are ready for lighting, the wood bring so Impregnated with sulphur that a splint of it will bum like a match, while the black water, s.tiug from under the bank would make a really "jet black" ink. It i an innocent looking little gulch that runs down the sloe at right angle to the creek, that make the place worthy of this notice. This little ravine, scarce fifty feel deep, bit steeply sloping sides of chalky white ..,con.e. rs k, a soft and loose a sand or clay. A little water run down the narrow bed of the gulch, cold and ur, puckering the mouth with the peculiar astriiigeucy of alum. Turning aside to explore this place, we ascended the ravine, llnding it rather dillicult walking In the little stream ld, and hard work getting up several drop where the steam form miniature fall of live or six f. et. AIh.vo one of them' tiny cataract we Ural noticed a white, or rather creamy, seductive ..klng ubtance in the stream lad This was so like genuine country gas from some vent in tho lied of the stream. Over cream that it was hard to Mirve it a purely mineral this spring a stranded log reaches from bank to hunk, and served as a foot-bridge, which wo crossed w ith that sure-footed noss born of tho knowledge that our clothes could no longer bo sMilod by a wetting should we full in. On the further side of the creek w e tirst notice a low mound of red material evidently iron ochre, and just hcvond in a nrinif now ilrnositinir this substance. II.1' siibslan.-e, but such it is, and formed aU.iit the minute tuning springs, whi. h i"iie front the bottom and aid.' of the g.il.h. It wns lu re too that we first noticed a sulphurous odor and a slight oppression of the ung tlie irritating rile, t of the fume of a sulphur match ac companied by a ele king a If from lack of air. W paused a moment to real, and found ourselves strangely fatiu'ied f.r so hrt climb; but several gust of the water, clear as crystal and icy n .Id, issues fnm.il - M r,hwM w.nd . l--d nur lung, w.t ,,,w vlg.,, t.rof .little Im,w1 of ochre, surrounded by the hrigl.M and w I.nu.d our , UmL-r up the guhh "f green moss. We were curious enough to taste i!ii water and found it slightly acid, highly charged with gas and tasting like our soda water. Hut it i the sur saceof the little basins and hs.I, lilled by ll.eov.-rtlow of this spring, that interests us most, f.r the surface of the water is covered with an ever varying irrid.-oen.-e whoso brilliant tints put to shame the hue of the ya- With le-ad 1 i'l and eyes eager to note the curioU ,, p!s ill the r.lMl.r l.tl..l, it WS llol Ul.til IJlllte el,...- to him that w noticed an Immense grinly lar t,nt j h yard" ah' d of u Startled by t Hidden rA, M. an .-n. oui.l r. we instinctively gave a leap up th- (.-. p so. I! k now lug that tlie Up hill side U the -' w " a l ;.r i near and no fr-- bandy Itiil