GRAND CANYON OF THE YELLOWSTONE
After crossing the Yellowstone boundary, about two miles west of
Pahaska Tepee Lodge, I began to feel an atmosphere of freedom that I
had not hitherto enjoyed on the trip. I felt that the Yellowstone
National Park, with all of its wonders and many interests, belonged to
me as much as to any other person on the earth; and from that moment
it seemed that I was walking with God to the very gates of heaven and
to the brink of hell. The freedom of animal life in the Park, brought
to my mind vivid pictures of the Millennium, when, as Isaiah says,
nothing shall hurt or destroy in all God's holy mountain. It should be
a matter of great interest and satisfaction to Americans that our
government has the custody of the Yellowstone--that man with selfish
interests is prohibited from laying claim to anything within its
boundaries, and is compelled to refrain from marring or defacing the
formations around the geysers and other places, and from destroying
animal life.
It is to be deplored that so few know how rich they are in the gifts
that God and nature have bestowed upon us as a people, in this vast
region of more than 3,000 square miles of so many miracles and
wonders.
About eight miles from the border, we came to Sylvan Pass; then
followed Snow Fall, Lake Eleanor, Sylvan Lodge, Sylvan Lake, and
Wedded Trees, at the left. About eleven miles from Sylvan Pass, we
came to Turbid Lake, Osprey Nest in a tree at the right, Fishing
Bridge, Yellowstone River, and turned to the right to Grand Canyon.
Our first stop after leaving Pahaska Lodge was at MUD VOLCANO and
GREEN GABLE SPRING, at the left. This was the first place where we had
found any disturbance on the surface caused by the heated regions
below. The angry crater of the volcano resembled, in some respects,
the Mammoth Paint Pots in the Lower Geyser Basin, but unlike the
latter, there was nothing beautiful about it,--it was simply a great
mass of boiling mud, manifesting such intense heat as to spout up
several feet, threatening to bespatter those who came too near. It
was enclosed by a railing, around which was a board walk. Below the
mud geyser was a boiling spring where the water, clear as crystal,
poured out of the ground and was carried away.
[Illustration: SYLVAN LAKE © _Haynes, St. Paul_]
I ventured to put my finger into the water and was nearly burned. This
place was only a suggestion of what we were to see later in the Geyser
Basins.
At our left, eight miles from Sylvan Pass, we had a splendid view of
YELLOWSTONE LAKE in the distance. In the heart of the Park Plateau,
averaging more than eight thousand feet elevation, surrounded by
mountains, waterfalls, and cascades, is the lake, twenty miles in
length, which, at its elevation, has but one rival, Lake Titicaca, in
the Andes. As our party did not visit West Thumb, it was our privilege
to see the lake only at a distance, where we could have but a slight
idea of its beauty and immensity.
"David E. Folsom, of the Folsom and Cook Exploring Party, in 1869
says:
'As we were about departing on our homeward trip, we
ascended the summit of a neighboring hill and took a final
look at Yellowstone Lake. Nestled among the forest-crowned
hills which bounded our vision, lay this inland sea, its
crystal waves dancing and sparkling in the sunlight as if
laughing with joy for their wild freedom. It is a scene of
transcendent beauty, which has been viewed by but few white
men, and we felt glad to have looked upon it before its
primeval solitude should be broken by the crowds of
pleasure-seekers, which at no distant day will throng its
shores.'"
[Illustration: YELLOWSTONE LAKE © _Haynes, St. Paul_]
For the next few miles the scenery was most fascinating, but it was
only a prelude to what awaited us in the first glimpse we were to get
of the GRAND CANYON.
We halted at INSPIRATION POINT, where I followed others down the steps
to a great ledge of rocks overhanging the chasm. The scene that
greeted my vision was so overwhelming and unexpected that I became
dizzy and had to make my way back to the car, supported by the
railing.
This yawning gulf with its awful depths of nearly two thousand feet,
through which the river, like a silver thread was wending its way, and
the sublime coloring produced by nature, reflected from the mineral
formations on the sides of the great canyon, was a sight too much for
human frailty, and I had to be satisfied to take a glimpse and wait
until I could recuperate from the shock before attempting another
adventure.
Before leaving Inspiration Point, some one shouted, "See the eagle's
nest!" and there, looking down into a tall pine tree at the right of
the descent, was the nest; but I was more interested in the canyon,
for I had never had the faintest conception of what it really is.
When I had recuperated somewhat from the bewilderment, I was inclined
to charge those who had visited the Park before, among whom were my
brother and his wife, with stupidity and a lack of appreciation for
not having done more to tell of such grandeur. But afterwards I had to
admit that the half cannot be told however much anyone might try.
Unlike the Royal Gorge in Colorado, we were not at the bottom looking
up, but at the top looking down into the silent and awful depths. It
was as if the earth had rent asunder and we were standing on the brink
looking over into the abyss.
"Of all the marvels of the Yellowstone National Park, the
most sublime is the Grand Canyon. Through this the
Yellowstone River, which is a tributary of the Missouri,
flows in one place for twenty continuous miles between
perpendicular cliffs only about 200 yards apart and from
1,200 to 1,500 feet in height. At the entrance of this part
of the canyon the whole river makes a stupendous leap of
308 feet, in what is known as the 'Lower Fall.' The sides of
this gigantic chasm have literally almost all the colors of
the rainbow displayed upon their vertical surfaces. Red,
orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, and white tints, are
constantly succeeding one another here in wonderful variety,
thus lighting up with glory countless architectural forms,
which Nature, it would seem, had fashioned here to make the
proudest works of man appear diminutive and tame. These
colors doubtless have been formed by the percolating through
the cliffs of the hot mineral waters from the neighboring
springs. Distinguished painters have sadly declared that any
adequate representation of these brilliant, variegated hues
is utterly beyond the power of human art. What an unrivalled
combination is there, therefore, in this canyon, of
awe-inspiring grandeur and enchanting beauty! And what a
magnificent pathway has been given to the Yellowstone River!
Leaving the famous Yellowstone Lake enclosed by snow-clad
mountains, it passes through a series of rapids and a fall
of 140 feet before it even reaches the Grand Canyon, and
just beyond this it receives a tributary, which in its haste
to join it, makes a leap of 156 feet. Thus cradled in
sublimity, the Yellowstone River must be called in some
respects the most extraordinary stream upon our continent."
[Illustration: EAGLE'S NEST ROCK © _Haynes, St. Paul_]
Why was this place kept concealed from the eyes of civilized man for
nearly four hundred years after America was discovered? Even now only
a small per cent of the 100,000,000 people of the United States know
what they possess in this romantic and mysterious region, which in
some places seems to be the ante-chamber of heaven and the very mouth
of hell. Many, for lack of opportunity or interest, will never see the
Yellowstone National Park, while multitudes from foreign shores will
swarm like bees within its boundaries and reap the benefits of the
sacrifice and toil of its discoverers and of God's free gift to
America.
[Illustration: NO. 147. UP THE GRAND CANYON FROM INSPIRATION
PT.--YELLOWSTONE PARK. HAYNES-PHOTO.]
When the Queen of Sheba came from the uttermost parts of the earth to
hear the wisdom of Solomon, and he answered all her questions, showing
her the riches and glory of his kingdom, she said, "It was a true
report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom.
Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen
it: and, BEHOLD, THE HALF WAS NOT TOLD ME." This truly could be said
of the Grand Canyon. I have been many times through the Rocky Mountain
regions, passed through the Royal Gorge, have seen most of the places
of interest that the mountain passes, fastnesses, and peaks afford,
but nothing had ever so charmed, awed, inspired, and bewildered me
as did the first glimpse of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
Solomon's kingdom symbolizes the second work of grace, taught in the
Scriptures, an experience which no one can understand unless he is in
possession of it. Experience is necessary to enjoy it in its fulness,
and so with nature's grandeur and magnificence on such a tremendous
scale as in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. One must see with the
eyes what the mind fails to grasp by the hearing of the ear. Language,
with its adaptability to the usages of mortal man, is inadequate.
Word-pictures, though drawn by the most visionary and gifted, fail to
convey in a slight degree the grandeur of nature's activities and
exhibitions in this the most inspiring and picturesque spot on the
globe.
After I was again seated in the car, for a few moments my eyes were
closed to all the world about me, and in a new sense I began to
realize the infinite depths of divine power and wisdom, and how small
is the creature when compared with the Creator.
At ARTIST'S VIEW we stopped again for another look at the canyon. In
the opinion of some persons, a better view was to be had here than at
Inspiration Point, but I did not think so, and did not tarry long.
Feeling that enough had been crowded into one day, I went back to the
stage anxious to get where I could relax and rest.
A few minutes later we arrived at YELLOWSTONE CAMP, near the Upper and
Lower Falls. After we had registered and were shown the way to our
tents, the evening meal was served in a large, spacious dining-room.
In the office of the camp we found a log fire burning. A score or more
of tourists seated around it were engaged in conversation; and the new
arrivals received a cordial welcome. Everything presented so homelike
an appearance, it made me feel as if I should like to spend a week
here.
The greatest courtesy was manifested on the part of the managers and
those who rendered us service, and I felt that they had a real heart
interest in our welfare. The accommodations in the tents were all that
one could ask. The tents had floors, were boarded up the sides, and
furnished with all the conveniences necessary. In each one there was a
stove that was lighted both morning and evening, as it was late in
the season and sometimes the temperature was almost at freezing point.
When a fire was needed, one of the attendants at the camp came to
light it.
[Illustration: WILLOW PARK CAMP, YELLOWSTONE PARK © _Haynes, St.
Paul_]