Trip to the lower Colorado River

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PRICE

TRIP TO THE LOWER
COLORADO RIVER

University Library
University of California • Berkeley

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Trip to the Lower
Colorado River . . .

fl Crip

TO THE

Cower Colorado River

Mr, William W. Price will conduct a party of
boys and young men on a Natural History and
Exploring trip during the Christmas holidays to
the Lower Colorado River, from Yuma, Arizona,
southward through Mexico to the Gulf of Cali-
fornia. The party will leave Yuma, Dec. 2J, and
will return to Yuma, Jan. 5.

The itinerary of the trip, based on the ex-
perience of last year, will probably be as follows:
Dec. 21-23, on the river, camping and hunting at
suitable places en route. Dec. 23-27, in camp at
Boca de Hardy at tide water, hunting wild hogs,
deer and water fowl, possible trips to the oys-
ter-beds in the Gulf, and to the Sierra Pinto, where
antelope abound. Dec. 27-30, up "Hardy Colo-
rado" to the Volcanoes. Dec. 30-Jan. 3, exploring
the Volcanoes and Volcano Lake, where there is
probably better wild-fowl shooting than anywhere
else on the river. Jan. 3-5, return to Yuma from
the Volcanoes, by wagon, sixty miles.

This expedition will furnish unique experiences
for those not acquainted with the strange topog-
raphy, the plant and animal life of our southwest-

ern deserts. The trip will be highly educational
and at the same time will furnish unusual oppor-
tunities for sport. Repetition of the disappoint-
ing features of the expedition from the Thacher
School last Christmas will be avoided as far as
possible. Then, we were very much handicapped
by heavy boats, which we found almost impossible
to row against the current or to carry to sloughs or
lagoons adjoining the river. This year 16-foot
folding canvas boats will be used. These weigh
but 70 pounds, and one used the past summer on a
75-mile trip about Lake Tahoe, in heavy winds
and waves and on numerous portages, proved en-
tirely satisfactory.

The trip is neither hard nor dangerous, as
hunting trips go, but it must be realized that after
leaving Yuma, we are in the midst of a vast de-
sert, and that no white men live beyond the border.
The rowing on the river is done in half-hour shifts,
and with light boats this is not burdensome.

Membership, $50.00, This includes the hotel
expense at Yuma, and all expense for boats, guides,
and living while on the river.

For particulars, railroad rates, maps of the
region, etc., address,

WILLIAM W. PRICE, M. A.,

Agassiz Hall, Alta, California.

REFERENCES

President David Starr Jordan, Stanford University, Cal.

Mr. Sherman D. Thacher Nordhoff,

Professor Charles H. Gilbert Stanford University "

Professor John C. Branner "

Professor William K. Ritter Berkeley

Mr. Warren Olney, San Francisco

Rev. J. K. McLean, D. D. Oakland "

MEMBERS OF THE PARTY IN 1899

Mr. William W. Price Alta, Calif.

Mr. H. A. Vanlandingham Nordhoff, "

Mr. Herbert L.Bodman, 835 Madison Ave.,New York Cy.
Mr. J. M. Chandler 53 Devonshire St., Boston, Mass.
Mr. Coring Farnham New Haven, Conn,

Mr. S. Harold Freeman Morristown, N. J.

Mr. J. P. Hazard Peacedale, R. I.

Mr. W. A. Hopkins, 95 Milk St., Boston, Mass.

Mr. W. B. McCormtck 197 Rush St., Chicago, 111.

Mr. Wm. T. Morris Colorado Springs, Colorado

Mr. Burleigh Putnam, 4503 Forestville Ave. .Chicago, 111.
Mr. Henry Stephens, 1271 Woodward Ave., Detroit, Mich.
Mr. Townsend Vail Santa Barbara, Calif.

EXTRACTS FROM A NOTE BOOK

Dec. 16. "We left Yuma in three boats, seventeen
in the party, including our four Indian guides. # *
* * Below Yuma the river takes a straight course^
westward for some five miles, when it swerves to the
southeast from the desert sandhills at Pilot Knob, and
passes into a broad bottomland, a jungle of willow, cot-
tonwood, tule, cane, and wild hemp, which reaches to
the water's edge. * * * * We passed the iron
monument on the line between Mexico and California,
and camped on the Arizona shore some twenty miles
below Yuma.

Dec. 17, "All day we have been rowing down the
river. We passed the Arizona line about ten o'clock
and are now in Mexico. * * * * The mono-
tony of the green river banks is now and then enliv-
ened by groves of cottonwoods in golden foliage, or the
yellow-brown of the tule patches, already touched by
the frosts. # # # # This is a strange region.
No sign of human life anywhere along the banks, but
water-fowl abound, and great fish splash the placid
surface of the stream. # # * * Toward even-
ing we passed sandhills on the Sonora side. Here
the river makes a great bend to the east, cutting into
the desert mesa. # ^ * * Today we shot ducks
and pelicans, and saw deer tracks on the sandbars.
Our camp is on a little shelf of land at the edge of the
jungle.

Dec. 18. "This evening an Indian rode up to our
camp. He had heard our shooting from his village six
miles away. He talked with our guides a time and
then disappeared in the wilderness. Strange crea-
tures, these Cocopahs ! * * # * Shot at a
coyote on the bank, but did not g=t it. Tomorrow
our guides say we shall reach the "Hardy", a sluggish
branch of the Colorado which comes in from the
northwest, and which is formed by the hot springs at
the Volcanoes, and marshy streams from the Colorado.
It is a famous region for fish and game.

Dec. 19. "The Colorado is a mile wide here at the
junction of the two rivers, and the tide is noticeable
even now. At the full and new moon the bore, a
great tidal wave, comes rolling in from the Gulf, to

* * * We made camp after night; miserable
work it was. We came struggling in one after
another, over the sandbars, grounding many times;
the guides got into the water and shoved us off.
Great flocks of pelicans arose with deafening roar
from their roosting places in the shallow water.

* * # * A great fire ot driftwood and
the smell of supper soon bring contentment to the
most weary traveler.

Dec. 20. "By daylight most of the boys were hunt-
ing, and the reports of shotguns gave promise of good
things for dinner. * * * * Our head guide
went for mullet, an excellent sea fish that cannot be
caught with hook and line, and which it is customary
to kill with dynamite. A few shots of the powder fur-
nished an abundance. Mullet baked in the ashes is
a dish equaled only by mountain brook trout broiled
on a hot rock. # # # * Farnam shot a deer
today.

Dec. 21. "Thirteen deer and one wild-hog were
seen in the hemp and tules on the point between the
Hardy and the Colorado, but none were shot. # *

* * IQ t-ne shallow lagoon a half mile from camp
are myriads of snipe, ibis, avocets, stilts, godwits, and
curlews; over sixty were shot today. Some are
dripping wilti fat, and these the Cocopah guides prefer
to ducks.

Dec. 22. "The Indians set fire to the tules
to drive out the deer and hogs. The smoke was
intensely black, but the fires died out so rapidly that
one could walk over a burned area a few minutes
after the fire had passed. The hogs congregate in
the few patches that are left unburued, and here it is
easy to find them,

Dec. 23. "Farnam and Morris ,each killed a hog,
and Putnam shot two deer with his "Savage" carbine.

* * * * Tomorrow we shall begin our trip up
the Hardy.

Dec. 24. "We have a delightful camp tonight on
the left bank of the river. Plenty of dry grass for
beds and much drift for fires. # # * *
Putnam's two deer are being skinned, and Charley is
cooking a good dinner of fish, venison and ducks. #

# * * Antonio suggests calling this place Campo
de la Noche Buena, for this is Christmas eve # *

# ^ A huge fish of the minnow family, called here
the Colorado Salmon, is abundant in the Hardy. Vail
caught several from the shore with a hand line. One
weighed over fifteen pounds. The flesh is white and
good to eat. The boys are roasting choice morsels of
venison in the camp fire. Meat never tastes so good
as when cooked this way.

Dec, 25 "We camped early to cook our Christmas
dinner. The Christmas box, brought all the way from
San Francisco, was opened. The cooks had done their
best. We gathered about apiece of canvas spread on
the ground — our Indians too, for this was Christmas—
and had fish, venison, ducks, snipe, baked beans
fruit cake, plum pudding, cranberry sauce, cheese,
chocolate, candy and nuts. * * * * Ducks are
becoming more abundant as we ascend the Hardy.
Many beautiful white cranes are seen flying, toward
the Volcano L,ake, our guides say. * # * * Putnam
caught a salmon weighing fully twenty-five pounds.
We hear them splashing continually.

Dec. 26. "We had hard work today getting our
boats past the "rapids"; in some places we tied the
three boats together and dragged them along with a
long rope. ^ * * * Ducks and geese numerous.

# * * # Two of the party went to a cattle
ranch near Sierra Myor to get wagons to take us to
Yuma.

Dec. 27. "The wagons overtook us early this morn-
ing. We bade our Indians farewell; they will take
our boats back to Yuma, a fortnight's task, while we
shall go directly to Yuma by wagon. * * * *
We had a hard road today, and much walking to do.

# * # * Myriads of water-fowl in the lagoons —
Bodman killed seven canvasback at one shot. * *

# # We bought watermelons of the Indians, and

took many snap shots, but the Cocopahs, like most
Indians, do not like to be photographed.

Dec. 28. "We camped last night at Poso Vicente,
a slough swarming with ducks. * # # * An
old Indian woman had been burned in her tule hut
and her funeral was in progress. A dozen women
mourners all night kept up a wail. The body was to
be burned in the morning. # * * * We passed
the Volcanoes at noon; a ^wonderful place! Full of
rumblings, overpowering sulphur stench, bursts of
steam, showers | of scalding mud, lakes of boiling
mud, ink black pools— sulphur, soda, alum, every-
where.

Dec. 29. We reached Beltran's ranch last night. *

* * * All day we have traveled the desert near
the edge of the botto mlands; mesquite and creosote
are the chief bushes. * # # * Tonight we
camped on the Paderone, one of the several streams
which leave the Colorado near the Border and follow a
swampy course to the Volcano Lake region. ^ ^ ^

* Coyotes entered our camp close to the campfire.
Dec. 30. "A monotonous ride today through desert

sand'aud scanty vegetation. # * * * Camped
near the line. Tomorrow we shall reach Yuma.