Temperature of the climate--Root Diggers on horseback--An Indianguide--Mountain prospects-- The Grand Rond--Difficulties on SnakeRiver--A scramble over the Blue Mountains--Sufferings fromhunger--Prospect of the Immahah Valley-- The exhausted traveller THE TEMPERATURE of the regions west of the Rocky Mountains ismuch milder than in the same latitudes on the Atlantic side; theupper plains, however, which lie at a distance from the sea-coast, are subject in winter toconsiderable vicissitude; being
traversed by lofty "sierras," crowned with perpetual snow, whichoften produce flaws and streaks of intense cold This wasexperienced by Captain Bonneville and his companions in theirprogress westward. At the time when they left the Bannacks SnakeRiver was frozen hard: as they proceeded, the ice became brokenand floating; it gradually disappeared, and the weather becamewarm and pleasant, as they approached a tributary stream calledthe Little Wyer; and the soil, which was generally of a wateryclay, with occasional intervals of sand, was soft to the tread ofthe horses. After a time, however, the mountains approached andflanked the river; the snow lay deep in the valleys, and thecurrent was once more icebound.
Here they were visited by a party of Root Diggers, who wereapparently rising in the world, for they had "horse to ride andweapon to wear," and were altogether better clad and equippedthan any of the tribe that Captain Bonneville had met with. Theywere just from the plain of Boisee River, where they had left anumber of their tribe, all as well provided as themselves; havingguns, horses, and comfortable clothing. All these they obtainedfrom the Lower Nez Perces, with whom they were in habits [sic] offrequent traffic. They appeared to have imbibed from that tribetheir noncombative principles, being mild and inoffensive intheir manners. Like them, also, they had something of religiousfeelings; for Captain Bonneville observed that, before eating,they washed their hands, and made a short prayer; which heunderstood was their invariable custom. From these Indians, heobtained a considerable supply of fish, and an excellent andwell-conditioned horse, to replace one which had become too weakfor the journey.
The travellers now moved forward with renovated spirits; thesnow, it is true, lay deeper and deeper as they advanced, butthey trudged on merrily, considering themselves well provided forthe journey, which could not be of much longer duration.
They had intended to proceed up the banks of Gun Creek, a streamwhich flows into Snake River from the west; but were assured bythe natives that the route in that direction was impracticable.
The latter advised them to keep along Snake River, where theywould not be impeded by the snow. Taking one of the Diggers for aguide, they set off along the river, and to their joy soon foundthe country free from snow, as had been predicted, so that theirhorses once more had the benefit of tolerable pasturage. TheirDigger proved an excellent guide, trudging cheerily in theadvance. He made an unsuccessful shot or two at a deer and abeaver; but at night found a rabbit hole, whence he extracted theoccupant, upon which, with the addition of a fish given him bythe travellers, he made a hearty supper, and retired to rest,filled with good cheer and good humor.
The next day the travellers came to where the hills closed uponthe river, leaving here and there intervals of undulating meadowland. The river was sheeted with ice, broken into hills at longintervals. The Digger kept on ahead of the party, crossing andrecrossing the river in pursuit of game, until, unluckily,encountering a brother Digger, he stole off with him, without theceremony of leave-taking.
Being now left to themselves, they proceeded until they came tosome Indian huts, the inhabitants of which spoke a languagetotally different from any they had yet heard. One, however,understood the Nez Perce language, and through him they madeinquiries as to their route. These Indians were extremely kindand honest, and furnished them with a small quantity of meat; butnone of them could be induced to act as guides.
Immediately in the route of the travellers lay a high mountain,which they ascended with some difficulty. The prospect from thesummit was grand but disheartening. Directly before them toweredthe loftiest peaks of Immahah, rising far higher than theelevated ground on which they stood: on the other hand, they wereenabled to scan the course of the river, dashing along throughdeep chasms, between rocks and precipices, until lost in adistant wilderness of mountains, which closed the savagelandscape.
They remained for a long time contemplating, with perplexed andanxious eye, this wild congregation of mountain barriers, andseeking to discover some practicable passage. The approach ofevening obliged them to give up the task, and to seek somecamping ground for the night. Moving briskly forward, andplunging and tossing through a succession of deep snow-drifts,they at length reached a valley known among trappers as the"Grand Rond," which they found entirely free from snow.
This is a beautiful and very fertile valley, about twenty mileslong and five or six broad; a bright cold stream called the Fourche de Glace , or Ice River, runs through it. Its shelteredsituation, embosomed in mountains, renders it good pasturagingground in the winter time; when the elk come down to it in greatnumbers, driven out of the mountains by the snow. The Indiansthen resort to it to hunt. They likewise come to it in the summertime to dig the camash root, of which it produces immensequantities. When this plant is in blossom, the whole valley istinted by its blue flowers, and looks like the ocean whenovercast by a cloud.
