"_January 3._--A fog, so dense that we could not see a hundred yards,
covered the country, and the men that were sent out after the horses
were bewildered and lost; and we were consequently detained at camp
until late in the day. Our situation had now become a serious one. We
had reached and run over the position where, according to the best maps
in my possession, we should have found Mary's Lake or river. We were
evidently on the verge of the desert which had been reported to us; and
the appearance of the country was so forbidding, that I was afraid to
enter it, and determined to bear away to the southward, keeping close
along the mountains, in the full expectation of reaching the
Buenaventura River. This morning I put every man in the camp on
foot--myself, of course, among the rest--and in this manner lightened by
distribution the loads of the animals.
"_January 4._--The fog to-day was still more dense, and the people again
were bewildered. We traveled a few miles around the western point of the
ridge, and encamped where there were a few tufts of grass, but no water.
Our animals now were in a very alarming state, and there was increasing
anxiety in the camp.
"_January 5._--Same dense fog continued, and one of the mules died in
camp this morning. We moved to a place where there was a little better
grass, about two miles distant. Taplin, one of our best men, who had
gone out on a scouting excursion, ascended a mountain near by, and to
his great surprise emerged into a region of bright sunshine, in which
the upper parts of the mountain were glowing, while below all was
obscured in the darkest fog.
"_January 6._--The fog continued the same, and with Mr. Preuss and
Carson, I ascended the mountain, to sketch the leading features of the
country, as some indication of our future route, while Mr. Fitzpatrick
explored the country below. In a very short distance we had ascended
above the mist, but the view obtained was not very gratifying. The fog
had partially cleared off from below when we reached the summit; and in
the south-west corner of a basin communicating with that in which we
had encamped, we saw a lofty column of smoke, 16 miles distant,
indicating the presence of hot springs. There, also, appeared to be the
outlet of those draining channels of the country; and, as such places
afforded always more or less grass, I determined to steer in that
direction. The ridge we had ascended appeared to be composed of
fragments of white granite. We saw here traces of sheep and antelope.
"Entering the neighboring valley, and crossing the bed of another lake,
after a hard day's travel over ground of yielding mud and sand, we
reached the springs, where we found an abundance of grass, which, though
only tolerably good, made this place, with reference to the past, a
refreshing and agreeable spot.
"This is the most extraordinary locality of hot springs we had met
during the journey. The basin of the largest one has a circumference of
several hundred feet; but there is at one extremity a circular space of
about fifteen feet in diameter, entirely occupied by the boiling water.
It boils up at irregular intervals, and with much noise. The water is
clear, and the spring deep; a pole about sixteen feet long was easily
immersed in the centre, but we had no means of forming a good idea of
the depth.
"Taking with me Godey and Carson, I made to-day a thorough exploration
of the neighboring valleys, and found in a ravine in the bordering
mountains a good camping place, where was water in springs, and a
sufficient quantity of grass for a night. Overshadowing the springs were
some trees of the sweet cotton-wood, which, after a long interval of
absence, we saw again with pleasure, regarding them as harbingers of a
better country. To us, they were eloquent of green prairies and buffalo.
We found here a broad and plainly marked trail, on which there were
tracks of horses, and we appeared to have regained one of the
thoroughfares which pass by the watering places of the country. On the
western mountains of the valley, with which this of the boiling spring
communicates, we remarked scattered cedars--probably an indication that
we were on the borders of the timbered region extending to the Pacific.
We reached the camp at sunset, after a day's ride of about forty miles.
"_January 10._--We continued our reconnoissance ahead, pursuing a south
direction in the basin along the ridge; the camp following slowly
after. On a large trail there is never any doubt of finding suitable
places for encampments. We reached the end of the basin, where we found,
in a hollow of the mountain which enclosed it, an abundance of good
bunch grass. Leaving a signal for the party to encamp, we continued our
way up the hollow, intending to see what lay beyond the mountain. The
hollow was several miles long, forming a good pass, the snow deepening
to about a foot as we neared the summit. Beyond, a defile between the
mountains descended rapidly about two thousand feet; and, filling up all
the lower space, was a sheet of green water, some twenty miles broad. It
broke upon our eyes like the ocean. The neighboring peaks rose high
above us, and we ascended one of them to obtain a better view. The waves
were curling in the breeze, and their dark-green color showed it to be a
body of deep water. For a long time we sat enjoying the view, for we had
become fatigued with mountains, and the free expanse of moving waves was
very grateful. It was set like a gem in the mountains, which, from our
position, seemed to enclose it almost entirely. At the western end it
communicated with the line of basins we had left a few days since; and
on the opposite side it swept a ridge of snowy mountains, the foot of
the great Sierra. Its position at first inclined us to believe it Mary's
Lake, but the rugged mountains were so entirely discordant with
descriptions of its low rushy shores and open country, that we concluded
it some unknown body of water; which it afterwards proved to be.
"We saw before us, in descending from the pass, a great continuous
range, along which stretched the valley of the river; the lower parts
steep, and dark with pines, while above it was hidden in clouds of snow.
This, we felt instantly satisfied was the central ridge of the Sierra
Nevada, the great California mountain, which only now intervened between
us and the waters of the bay. We had made a forced march of 26 miles,
and three mules had given out on the road. Up to this point, with the
exception of two stolen by Indians, we had lost none of the horses which
had been brought from the Columbia river, and a number of these were
still strong and in tolerably good order. We had now sixty-seven animals
in the band.
"We had scarcely lighted our fires, when the camp was crowded with
nearly naked Indians. There were two who appeared particularly
intelligent--one, a somewhat old man. He told me that, before the snows
fell, it was six sleeps to the place where the whites lived, but that
now it was impossible to cross the mountain on account of the deep snow;
and showing us, as the others had done, that it was over our heads, he
urged us strongly to follow the course of the river, which he said would
conduct us to a lake in which there were many large fish. There, he
said, were many people; there was no snow on the ground; and we might
remain there until spring. From their descriptions, we were enabled
to judge that we had encamped on the upper water of the Salmon-trout
River. It is hardly necessary to say that our communication was only by
signs, as we understood nothing of their language; but they spoke,
notwithstanding, rapidly and vehemently, explaining what they considered
the folly of our intentions, and urging us to go down to the lake.
_Tah-ve_, a word signifying snow, we very soon learned to know, from its
frequent repetition. I told him that the men and the horses were strong,
and that we would break a road through the snow; and spreading before
him our bales of scarlet cloth, and trinkets, showed him what we would
give for a guide. It was necessary to obtain one, if possible; for I
had determined here to attempt the passage of the mountain. Pulling a
bunch of grass from the ground, after a short discussion among
themselves, the old man made us comprehend, that if we could break
through the snow, at the end of three days we would come down upon
grass, which he showed us would be about six inches high, and where the
ground was entirely free. So far he said he had been in hunting for elk;
but beyond that (and he closed his eyes) he had seen nothing; but there
was one among them who had been to the whites, and, going out of the
lodge, he returned with a young man of very intelligent appearance.
Here, said he, is a young man who has seen the whites with his own eyes;
and he swore, first by the sky, and then by the ground, that what he
said was true. With a large present of goods, we prevailed upon this
young man to be our guide, and he acquired among us the name Mélo--a
word signifying friend, which they used very frequently. He was thinly
clad, and nearly barefoot; his moccasins being about worn out. We gave
him skins to make a new pair, and to enable him to perform his
undertaking to us. The Indians remained in camp during the night, and we
kept the guide and two others to sleep in the lodge with us--Carson
lying across the door, and having made them comprehend the use of our
fire-arms."
Fremont here, after a consultation with some Indians who came into his
camp, made up his mind to attempt the passage of the mountains at every
hazard. He therefore, to quote his own words, called his men together,
and "reminded them of the beautiful valley of the Sacramento, with which
they were familiar from the descriptions of Carson, who had been there
some fifteen years ago, and who, in our late privations, had delighted
us in speaking of its rich pastures and abounding game, and drew a vivid
contrast between its summer climate, less than a hundred miles distant,
and the falling snow around us. I informed them (and long experience had
given them confidence in my observations and good instruments) that
almost directly west, and only about seventy miles distant, was the
great farming establishment of Captain Sutter--a gentleman who had
formerly lived in Missouri, and, emigrating to this country, had become
the possessor of a principality. I assured them that, from the heights
of the mountain before us, we should doubtless see the valley of the
Sacramento River, and with one effort place ourselves again in the
midst of plenty. The people received this decision with the cheerful
obedience which had always characterized them; and the day was
immediately devoted to the preparations necessary to enable us to carry
it into effect. Leggins, moccasins, clothing--all were put into the best
state to resist the cold. Our guide was not neglected. Extremity of
suffering might make him desert; we therefore did the best we could for
him. Leggins, moccasins, some articles of clothing, and a large green
blanket, in addition to the blue and scarlet cloth, were lavished upon
him, and to his great and evident contentment. He arrayed himself in all
his colors; and, clad in green, blue, and scarlet, he made a gay-looking
Indian; and, with his various presents, was probably richer and better
clothed than any of his tribe had ever been before.
"I have already said that our provisions were very low; we had neither
tallow nor grease of any kind remaining, and the want of salt became one
of our greatest privations. The poor dog which had been found in the
Bear River valley, and which had been a _compagnon de voyage_ ever
since, had now become fat, and the mess to which it belonged requested
permission to kill it. Leave was granted. Spread out on the snow, the
meat looked very good; and it made a strengthening meal for the greater
part of the camp.
"The people were unusually silent; for every man knew that our
enterprise was hazardous, and the issue doubtful.
"The snow deepened rapidly, and it soon became necessary to break a
road. For this service, a party of ten was formed, mounted on the
strongest horses; each man in succession opening the road on foot, or on
horseback, until himself and his horse became fatigued, when he stepped
aside; and, the remaining number passing ahead, he took his station in
the rear.
"The camp had been all the day occupied in endeavoring to ascend the
hill, but only the best horses had succeeded; the animals, generally,
not having sufficient strength to bring themselves up without the packs;
and all the line of road between this and the springs was strewed with
camp stores and equipage, and horses floundering in snow. I therefore
immediately encamped on the ground with my own mess, which was in
advance, and directed Mr. Fitzpatrick to encamp at the springs, and send
all the animals, in charge of Tabeau, with a strong guard, back to the
place where they had been pastured the night before. Here was a small
spot of level ground, protected on one side by the mountain, and on the
other sheltered by a little ridge of rock. It was an open grove of
pines, which assimilated in size to the grandeur of the mountain, being
frequently six feet in diameter.
"To-night we had no shelter, but we made a large fire around the trunk
of one of the huge pines; and covering the snow with small boughs, on
which we spread our blankets, soon made ourselves comfortable. The night
was very bright and clear, though the thermometer was only at 10°. A
strong wind which sprang up at sundown, made it intensely cold; and this
was one of the bitterest nights during the journey.
"Two Indians joined our party here; and one of them, an old man,
immediately began to harangue us, saying that ourselves and animals
would perish in the snow; and that, if we would go back, he would show
us another and a better way across the mountain. He spoke in a very loud
voice, and there was a singular repetition of phrases and arrangement of
words, which rendered his speech striking, and not unmusical.
"We had now begun to understand some words, and, with the aid of signs,
easily comprehended the old man's simple ideas. 'Rock upon rock--rock
upon rock--snow upon snow--snow upon snow,' said he; 'even if you get
over the snow, you will not be able to get down from the mountains.' He
made us the sign of precipices, and showed us how the feet of the horses
would slip, and throw them off from the narrow trails which led along
their sides. Our Chinook, who comprehended even more readily than
ourselves, and believed our situation hopeless, covered his head with
his blanket, and began to weep and lament. 'I wanted to see the whites,'
said he; 'I came away from my own people to see the whites, and I
wouldn't care to die among them; but here'--and he looked around into
the cold night and gloomy forest, and, drawing his blanket over his
head, began again to lament.
"Seated around the tree, the fire illuminating the rocks and the tall
bolls of the pines round about, and the old Indian haranguing, we
presented a group of very serious faces.
"_February 5._--The night had been too cold to sleep, and we were up
very early. Our guide was standing by the fire with all his finery on;
and seeing him shiver in the cold, I threw on his shoulders one of my
blankets. We missed him a few minutes afterwards, and never saw him
again. He had deserted. His bad faith and treachery were in perfect
keeping with the estimate of Indian character, which a long intercourse
with this people had gradually forced upon my mind.
"While a portion of the camp were occupied in bringing up the baggage to
this point, the remainder were busied in making sledges and snow shoes.
I had determined to explore the mountain ahead, and the sledges were to
be used in transporting the baggage.
"Crossing the open basin, in a march of about ten miles we reached the
top of one of the peaks, to the left of the pass indicated by our guide.
Far below us, dimmed by the distance, was a large, snowless valley,
bounded on the western side, at the distance of about a hundred miles,
by a low range of mountains, which Carson recognized with delight as the
mountains bordering the coast. 'There,' said he, 'is the little
mountain--it is fifteen years ago since I saw it; but I am just as sure
as if I had seen it yesterday.' Between us, then, and this low coast
range, was the valley of the Sacramento; and no one who had not
accompanied us through the incidents of our life for the last few
months, could realize the delight with which at last we looked down
upon it. At the distance of apparently thirty miles beyond us were
distinguished spots of prairie; and a dark line, which could be traced
with the glass, was imagined to be the course of the river; but we were
evidently at a great height above the valley, and between us and the
plains extended miles of snowy fields and broken ridges of pine-covered
mountains.
"It was late in the day when we turned towards the camp; and it grew
rapidly cold as it drew towards night. One of the men became fatigued,
and his feet began to freeze, and building a fire in the trunk of a dry
old cedar, Mr. Fitzpatrick remained with him until his clothes could be
dried, and he was in a condition to come on. After a day's march of
twenty miles, we straggled into camp, one after another, at nightfall;
the greater number excessively fatigued, only two of the party having
ever traveled on snow-shoes before.
"All our energies were now directed to getting our animals across the
snow; and it was supposed that, after all the baggage had been drawn
with the sleighs over the trail we had made, it would be sufficiently
hard to bear our animals.
"At several places, between this point and the ridge, we had discovered
some grassy spots, where the wind and sun had dispersed the snow from
the sides of the hills, and these were to form resting places to support
the animals for a night in their passage across. On our way across, we
had set on fire several broken stumps and dried trees, to melt holes in
the snow for the camp. Its general depth was five feet; but we passed
over places where it was twenty feet deep, as shown by the trees.
"With one party drawing sleighs loaded with baggage, I advanced to-day
about four miles along the trail, and encamped at the first grassy spot,
where we expected to bring our horses. Mr. Fitzpatrick, with another
party, remained behind, to form an intermediate station between us and
the animals.
"Putting on our snow-shoes, we spent the afternoon in exploring a road
ahead. The glare of the snow, combined with great fatigue, had rendered
many of the people nearly blind; but we were fortunate in having some
black silk handkerchiefs, which, worn as veils, very much relieved the
eye.
"In the evening I received a message from Mr. Fitzpatrick, acquainting
me with the utter failure of his attempt to get our mules and horses
over the snow--the half-hidden trail had proved entirely too slight to
support them, and they had broken through, and were plunging about or
lying half buried in snow. He was occupied in endeavoring to get them
back to his camp; and in the mean time sent to me for further
instructions. I wrote to him to send the animals immediately back to
their old pastures; and, after having made mauls and shovels, turn in
all the strength of his party to open and beat a road through the snow,
strengthening it with branches and boughs of the pines.
"_February 12._--We made mauls, and worked hard at our end of the road
all the day. The wind was high, but the sun bright, and the snow
thawing. We worked down the face of the hill, to meet the people at the
other end. Towards sundown it began to grow cold, and we shouldered our
mauls, and trudged back to camp.
"_February 13._--We continued to labor on the road; and in the course of
the day had the satisfaction to see the people working down the face of
the opposite hill, about three miles distant. During the morning we had
the pleasure of a visit from Mr. Fitzpatrick, with the information that
all was going on well. A party of Indians had passed on snow-shoes, who
said they were going to the western side of the mountain after fish.
This was an indication that the salmon were coming up the streams; and
we could hardly restrain our impatience as we thought of them, and
worked with increased vigor.
"I was now perfectly satisfied that we had struck the stream on which
Mr. Sutter lived, and turning about, made a hard push, and reached the
camp at dark. Here we had the pleasure to find all the remaining
animals, 57 in number, safely arrived at the grassy hill near the camp;
and here, also, we were agreeably surprised with the sight of an
abundance of salt. Some of the horse guard had gone to a neighboring hut
for pine nuts, and discovered unexpectedly a large cake of very white
fine-grained salt, which the Indians told them they had brought from the
other side of the mountain; they used it to eat with their pine nuts,
and readily sold it for goods.
"On the 19th, the people were occupied in making a road and bringing up
the baggage; and, on the afternoon of the next day, _February_ 20, 1844,
we encamped with the animals and all the _materiel_ of the camp, on the
summit of the PASS in the dividing ridge, 1,000 miles by our traveled
road from the Dalles of the Columbia.
"_February 21._--We now considered ourselves victorious over the
mountain; having only the descent before us, and the valley under our
eyes, we felt strong hope that we should force our way down. But this
was a case in which the descent was _not_ facile. Still, deep fields of
snow lay between, and there was a large intervening space of
rough-looking mountains, through which we had yet to wind our way.
Carson roused me this morning with an early fire, and we were all up
long before day, in order to pass the snow fields before the sun should
render the crust soft. We enjoyed this morning a scene at sunrise,
which, even here, was unusually glorious and beautiful. Immediately
above the eastern mountains was repeated a cloud-formed mass of purple
ranges, bordered with bright yellow gold; the peaks shot up into a
narrow line of crimson cloud, above which the air was filled with a
greenish orange; and over all was the singular beauty of the blue sky.
Passing along a ridge which commanded the lake on our right, of which we
began to discover an outlet through a chasm on the west, we passed over
alternating open ground and hard-crusted snow-fields which supported
the animals, and encamped on the ridge after a journey of six miles. The
grass was better than we had yet seen, and we were encamped in a clump
of trees, twenty or thirty feet high, resembling white pine.