Girl Scouts in the Rockies Read online

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  Finally they found better going along a narrow ledge]

  Girl Scouts in the Rockies

  Lillian Elizabeth Roy

  1921

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER ONE--OUTFITTING FOR THE TRIP CHAPTER TWO--VIA A "PRAIRIE SCHOONER" CHAPTER THREE--JULIE'S STRANGE EXPERIENCE CHAPTER FOUR--GOING UP! CHAPTER FIVE--HITTING THE TRAIL CHAPTER SIX--A MULE'S PLEASANTRIES CHAPTER SEVEN--TALLY AND OMNEY ENTERTAIN CHAPTER EIGHT--SCRUB'S UNEXPECTED HUNTING TRIP CHAPTER NINE--A THRILLING CANOE TRIP CHAPTER TEN--JULIE AND JOAN'S PREDICAMENT CHAPTER ELEVEN--ON TO FLAT TOP MOUNTAIN CHAPTER TWELVE--LOST IN A BLIZZARD CHAPTER THIRTEEN--A FOREST FIRE CHAPTER FOURTEEN--LOST IN THE BAD LANDS CHAPTER FIFTEEN--BACK-TRAILING TO DENVER

  CHAPTER ONE

  OUTFITTING FOR THE TRIP

  "Girls, this is our third Summer as the Dandelion Troop of GirlScouts,--do you realize that fact?" commented Mrs. Vernon, generallycalled "Verny" by the girls, or "Captain" by her friends.

  "That first Summer in camp seems like mere child's play now, Verny,"returned Juliet Lee, known as "Julie" or just "Jule" by her intimates.

  "That really wasn't camping, at all,--what with all the cooked food ourfamilies were bringing weekly to us, and the other housekeepingequipment they brought that day in the 'furniture shower,'" JoanAllison added, giggling as she remembered the incident.

  "But last Summer in the Adirondacks was real camping!" declared RuthBentley, nodding her head emphatically.

  "Yes. Still it wasn't anything like this year's camping experiencepromises to be,--in the Rocky Mountains," replied Mrs. Vernon. "Mr.Gilroy furnished the tents and cots and other heavy camping thingslast summer, but this year we will have to do without such luxuries."

  "We don't care what we have to do without, Verny, because we are sothankful to be here at all!" exclaimed Anne Bailey, who was one of thefive additional scout members admitted to the circle of the fourfounders of Dandelion Troop the preceding summer.

  "I'm so sorry the other girls can't be with us this trip," remarkedJulie, who was Scout Leader of the troop.

  "It's a shame that Amy's mother treats her as if she were a babe. Why,this sort of trip is exactly what the girl needs to help her get ridof her nerves," said Joan.

  "Yes; didn't every one say how well she was after last summer's campin the Adirondacks?" added Ruth Bentley.

  "Poor Amy, she'll have to stay home now, and hear her mother worryabout her all summer," sighed Betty Lee, Julie's sister.

  "Well, I am not wasting sympathy on Amy, when dear old Hester needsall of it. The way that girl pitched in and helped earn the familybread when her father died last winter, is courageous, say I!"declared Julie.

  "We all think that, Julie. And not a word of regret out of her whenshe found we were coming away, with Gilly, to the Rockies," addedJoan.

  "Dear old pal! We must be sure to write her regularly, and send hersouvenirs from our different stopping-places," said Mrs. Vernon, withtears glistening in her eyes for Hester's sacrifice.

  "If Julie hadn't been my sister, I'm sure Mrs. Blake would havefrightened May into keeping me home," announced Betty. "When she toldsister May of all the terrible things that might happen to us in theRockies, Julie just sat and laughed aloud. Mrs. Blake was real angryat that, and said, 'Well, May, if your mother was living _she'd_ neverallow her dear little girls to risk their lives on such a trip.'"

  Julie smiled and added, "I told Mrs. Blake, then and there, thatmother would be delighted to give us the opportunity, and so would anysensible mother if she knew what such a trip meant! Mrs. Blake jumpedup then, and said, I'm sure I'm as sensible as any one, but I wouldn't_think_ of letting Judith and Edith take this trip.'"

  "I guess it pays to be as healthy as I am," laughed Anne Bailey, whowas nicknamed the "heavyweight scout," "'cause no one said I was toonervous to come, or too delicate to stand this outing."

  The other scouts laughed approvingly at Anne's rosy cheeks andabundant fine health.

  The foregoing conversation between Mrs. Vernon and five girl scoutstook place on a train that had left Chicago, and Mr. Vernon, the daybefore. He had had personal business to attend to at that city, and sostopped over for a few days, promising to join the Dandelion Troop atDenver in good time to start on the Rocky Mountain trip.

  "It's perfectly lovely, Verny, to think Uncle is to be one of ourparty this summer," remarked Joan. "He and Mr. Gilroy seem to get onso wonderfully, don't they?"

  "Yes, and Mr. Gilroy's knowledge of camping in the Rockies, combinedwith Uncle's being with us, lightens much of the responsibility I feltfor taking you all on this outing," answered Mrs. Vernon.

  "It will seem ages for us to kill time about Denver when we're soanxious to get away to the mountains," said Julie.

  "But there's plenty to do in that marvelous city; and lots of shorttrips to take that will prove very interesting," returned the Captain.

  "Besides, we will have to get a number of items to add to ouroutfits," suggested Ruth.

  "That reminds me, girls; the paper Uncle gave me as he was about toleave the train is a memo Mr. Gilroy sent, about what to take with usfor this jaunt. Shall I read it to you now?" asked Mrs. Vernon.

  "Oh yes, do!" chorused the girlish voices; so Mrs. Vernon opened thepage which had been torn from a letter addressed to Mr. Vernon by Mr.Gilroy. Then she began reading:

  "About taking baggage and outfit for this trip in the Rockies, let megive you all a bit of advice. Remember this important point whenconsidering your wardrobe, etc.,--that we will be on the move most ofthe time, and so every one must learn how to do _without_ things. Wemust travel as the guides and trappers do--very 'light.' To know whenyou are 'traveling light' follow this rule:

  "First, make a pyramid of everything you think you must take for useduring the summer, excluding the camp outfit, which my man will lookout for at Denver.

  "Next, inventory the items you have in the heap. Study the listearnestly and cross out anything that is not an actual necessity. Takethe articles eliminated from the heap, throw them behind your back,and pile up the items that are left.

  "Then, list the remainder in the new pyramid, and go over this mostcarefully. Cast out everything that you have the least doubt aboutthere being an imperative need of. Toss such items behind you, andthen gather the much smaller pyramid together again.

  "Now, forget all your past and present needs, all that civilized lifeclaims you should use for wear, or camp, or sleep, and removeeverything from the pyramid excepting such articles as you believe youwould have to have to secure a living on a desert island. If you havedone this problem well, you ought to have a list on hand, after thethird elimination, about as follows:

  "A felt hat with brim to shed the rain and to shade your eyes from thesun; a good all-wool sweater; winter-weight woolen undergarments thatwill not chill you when they are dripping with water that is sweatedout from within, or soaked through from without; two or three largehandkerchiefs, one of silk to use for the head, neck, or other partsof the body in case of need; three pairs of heather stockings,--onepair for day use, one pair to wear at night when it is cold, and thethird pair to keep for extra need; high boots--one pair to wear and oneto carry; two soft silk shirts--shirt-waists for you girls; a _purewool_ army blanket; one good rubber blanket; a toothbrush, hairbrushand comb, but no other toilet articles. Be sure to have the girl-scoutaxe, a steel-bladed sheath knife, a _compass_, the scout pocket-knife,fishing tackle, and a _gun_. (More about this gun hereafter, girls.)

  "Now, being girl scouts,
you will naturally wear the approved scoutuniform. If possible, have this made up in good wiry serge that willshed dust and other things, along the trail. You will want a goodstrong riding-habit, and two pairs of silk rubber bloomers, the latterbecause of their thin texture and protection against moisture.

  "Wear a complete outfit, and then pack your extras in the blanket;roll the bundle in the rubber blanket, and buckle two straps about theroll. Then slip this in the duffel-bag, and you are ready.

  "About the gun. Don't let your parents have a panic over the itemmentioned. You girls had excellent target practice all last winter, sothe fact of your carrying a rifle on this trip should not undulyexcite any one. In the Rockies, a gun is as necessary as an axe orknife, and no one incurs a risk from carrying such a weapon unless heis careless. Being trained scouts, with experience back of you, youwill be perfectly safe on this outing even though you do carry arifle.

  "An old Indian guide that I had some years ago, sent word that hewould be happy to give us his time for the summer. So he will attendto all the camping needs,--utensils and canvas and horses, for thetrip. I told him that we would have a party of girls with us thistime, and he smiled when he said he would have to add needle andthread, cold cream, and such requisites to his list."

  "There, girls," continued Mrs. Vernon, when she had concluded thereading of Mr. Gilroy's instructions, "that is about all Gilly saidabout the outfit. But I knew we had conformed to most of theserequirements already, so there is nothing more to do about it. When wego over the duffel-bags in Denver, Gilly may ask you scouts to throwout your manicure cases, or whimsical little things you deem anabsolute necessity now, and several articles of wear that you thinkyou must take, but, otherwise, we are ready to 'travel light,' as hesays."

  "Shan't we take our sleeping-bags, Verny?" asked Ruth.

  "Gilly doesn't say a word about them, so I don't know whether heforgot them, or thought you left them home."

  "I wonder what sort of an outfit the guide will take?" remarked Julie.

  "Aluminum-ware for cooking, and a cup, plate, and cutlery for eachmember of the party, Uncle Vernon said," answered Mrs. Vernon.

  Just before reaching Denver, Mrs. Vernon asked of the eager scouts,"Did you girls read the books I mentioned, to become familiar withthis wonderful country through which we are going to travel?"

  "I read all I could, and I'm sure the other girls did, too, becauseevery time I asked for one of those books at the Public Library I wasinformed it was out. Upon investigation, I learned that one or theother of Dandelion Troop was reading it," laughed Julie.

  "Well, then, you learned that Colorado can boast of more than fiftymountain peaks, each three miles or more in height; a hundred or sonearly that high. And between these peaks can be found the wildestgorges, most fertile valleys and plains, that any state in the Unioncan boast.

  "And because of these great peaks with their snow-capped summits, manyof which are snowy all the year round, the flow of water from themelting snows furnishes the many scenic streams that give moisture tothe plains; which in turn produce the best crops in the West.

  "But the plains and valleys were not the attraction that first broughtpioneers to Colorado. It was the gold and silver hidden in themountains, and the upthrust of valuable ore from the sides of thecanyons and gulches that was the magnet which caused mankind to swarmto this state. Thus, you see, it became generally populated, themountainous, as well as the ranch sections."

  While riding westward from Chicago, the gradual rise of the countryfailed to impress the scouts, so they were all the more surprised whenMrs. Vernon exclaimed, "I verily believe I am the first to see Pike'sPeak, girls!"

  "Oh, where? where?" chorused the scouts, crowding to the windows onthe side of the train where the Captain sat.

  "Away off there--where you see those banks of shadowy clouds! There isone cloud that stands out more distinctly than its companions--that'sit," replied the Captain.

  "Oh, Verny, that's not a peak!" laughed Joan.

  "Of course not! That's only a darker cloud than usual," added Julie,while the other scouts laughed at their Captain's faulty eyesight.

  Mrs. Vernon smiled, but kept her own counsel, and half an hour laterthe girls began to squint, then to doubt whether their hasty judgmenthad been correct, and finally to admit that their guide and teacherhad been quite right! They saw the outline of a point that thrustitself above the hanging clouds which hid its sides in vapor, and thepoint that stood clearly defined against the sky was Pike's Peak!

  "But it isn't snow-clad, and it isn't a bit beautiful!" cried Ruth indisappointment.

  "Still it is the first Rocky Mountain peak we have seen," Betty Leemildly added.

  "Scouts, this is known as 'The Pike's Peak Region,'" read Julie from aguide-book.

  "It ought to be called 'Pike's Bleak Region,'" grumbled Anne. "I neversaw such yellow soil, with nothing but tufts of grass, dwarfed bushes,and twisted little trees growing everywhere."

  Mrs. Vernon laughed. "Anne, those tufts are buffalo grass, which makessuch fine grazing for cattle; and your dwarfed bushes are the famoussage-brush, while the twisted trees are cottonwoods."

  "Oh, are they, really?" exclaimed Anne, now seeing these things withthe same eyes but from a changed mental viewpoint.

  "And notice, girls, how exhilarating the air is. Have you ever feltlike this before--as if you could hike as far as the Continental Rangewithout feeling weary?" questioned Mrs. Vernon.

  When the train pulled in at Denver, Mr. Gilroy was waiting, and soonthe scouts were taken to the hotel where he had engaged accommodationsfor the party.

  "Don't say a word until you have washed away some of that alkali dustand brushed your clothes. Then we will go out to view the village,"laughed he, when the girls plied him with questions.

  But the scouts wasted no time needlessly over their toilets, and soonwere down in the lobby again, eager for his plans.

  "Now I'll tell you what Uncle wired me from Chicago to-day," began Mr.Gilroy, when all were together. "He'll be there three days longer, sowe've almost five days to kill before meeting him at this hotel."

  "I've engaged two good touring cars, and as soon as you approve of theplan, we will start out and see the city. To-morrow morning, early, wewill motor to Colorado City and visit Hot Springs, and all the pointsof interest in that section. Then we can return by a different routeand embrace dear old Uncle, who will be waiting for us. How about it?"

  "How needless to ask!" exclaimed Mrs. Vernon, when the chorus ofdelight had somewhat subsided. Mr. Gilroy laughed.

  "Come on, then! Bottle up the news, and stories of crime youexperienced on the way West from New York, until we are _en route_ toColorado Springs. Then you can swamp me with it all," said he.

  So that day they visited the city of Denver, which gave the scoutsmuch to see and talk about, for this wonderful city is an example ofwestern thrift, ambition, and solid progress. Early the followingmorning, the touring party started in the two machines to spend a fewdays at Colorado Springs.

  Without loss of time they drove to the famous Hot Springs, and then onthrough the picturesque estate of General Palmer, the founder ofColorado City. His place was copied after the well-known Englishcastle Blenheim, and Julie was deeply impressed with the architectureof the building.

  "Girls, to-morrow morning I want you to see the sun rise from thevantage point of Pike's Peak, so we won't climb that to-day. But wewill go to Manitou, where the setting sun casts long-fingered shadowsinto the ravines, turning everything to fairy colors," said Mr.Gilroy.

  The scouts were awed into silence at the grandeur of the scenery theybeheld, and Mr. Gilroy said, "The Ute Indians used to come to theManitou Waters for healing, you know. To-morrow, on your way down fromthe Peak, we will stop at the Ute Pass. But I want you to see themarvelous feat of engineering in this modern day that has made an autodrive to the top of Pike's Peak a possibility."

  So very early the next morning the scouts were called, and after ahurried
breakfast started out in the cars for the Peak. Having drivenover the fine auto road, recently completed, to the top of the Peak,they got out to watch the sunrise. This was truly a sight worthworking for. From the Peak they could see over an expanse of sixtythousand square miles of country, and when the rays of the sun beganto touch up with silver places here and there on this vast stretch,the scene was most impressive.

  After leaving Pike's Peak, Mr. Gilroy told the chauffeur to drive tothe Ute Pass. That same day the girls visited the scenic marvels ofthe Garden of the Gods, the Cave of the Winds, Crystal Park, and otherplaces.

  They dined at the "Hidden Inn," which was a copy of one of the Pueblocliff-dwellings of the Mesa Verde. This Inn is built against a cliff,and is most picturesque with its Indian collection of trophies anddecorations after the Pueblo people's ideals.

  They visited William's Canyon and the Narrows, with its marvelous,painted cliffs of red, purple, and green; and went to CheyenneMountain and the canyon with its beautiful "Seven Falls." Other placesthat Mr. Gilroy knew of but that were seldom listed in the guidebooksbecause they were out of the way, were visited and admired.

  The last day of their visit to Colorado City, they all took therailroad train and went to Cripple Creek. The train wound over awesomeheights, through rifts in cliffs, and past marvelously colored wallsof rock, and so on to the place where more gold is mined than at anyother spot in the world.

  That night the scouts returned to the hotel at Colorado City welltired out, but satisfied with the touring they had accomplished in thetime they had been in Colorado. In the morning they said good-bye tothe gorgeous places in Pike's Peak Park and headed again for Denver.

  A splendid road led through Pike View, where the best views of Pike'sPeak can be had. Then they passed the queer formation of rock called"Monument Park," and on still further they came to a palisade of whitechalk, more than a thousand feet wide and one-fifth that in height,that was known as Casa Blanca.

  Castle Rock was the next place of interest passed. It is said to be athousand feet higher than Denver. Then several picturesque littletowns were passed by, and at last Fort Logan was reached. As an armypost this spot interested the scouts, but Mr. Gilroy gave them no timeto watch the good-looking young officers, but sped them on pastLoretto, Overland, and Denver Mile, finally into Denver again.

  As they drove into the city, Mr. Gilroy explained why he had to hurrythem. "You see, this is almost the middle of June, and I am supposedto return from the mountains in September with reports and specimensfor the Government.

  "Few people tarry in the Rockies after September, as the weather isunbearable for 'Tenderfeet.' So I have to get through my work beforethat time. Besides, Uncle Vernon is probably now awaiting us at thehotel, and he must not be left to wander about alone, or we may losehim."

  "When can we start for the Rockies, Gilly?" eagerly asked Julie,voicing the cry of all the other scouts.

  "As soon as the Indian guide gives us the 'high sign,'" replied Mr.Gilroy.

  "About when will that be?" insisted Julie.

  "Where is he now, Gilly?" added Ruth.

  "I suppose he is in Denver waiting for us, but we can tell betterafter we see Uncle. I wired him to meet Tally there and complete anyarrangements necessary to our immediate departure from Denver the dayafter we get back there."

  "I hope the guide's name is easier to say than Yhon's was lastsummer," laughed Mrs. Vernon.

  "The only name I have ever given him is 'Tally'; but his correct namehas about ninety-nine letters in it and when pronounced it soundssomething like Talitheachee-choolee. Now can you blame me for quicklyabbreviating it to Tally?" laughed Mr. Gilroy.

  "I should say not!" laughed the girls, and Julie added, "Ho, Tally isgreat! It will constantly remind the scouts to keep their records upto date."

  Mr. Vernon was found at the hotel, comfortably ensconced in a hugeleather chair. He pretended to be fast asleep, but was soon rousedwhen the lively scouts fell upon him in their endeavor to tell him howglad they were to see him again.

  "Spare me, I beg, and I will lead you to the nicest meal you evertasted!" cried he, gasping.

  Mr. Gilroy laughed and added, "You'd better, for it's Tally, and wildIndian cooking hereafter, for three months!"

  "That threat holds no fears for us brave scouts," retorted theCorporal.

  The girls followed quickly after Mr. Vernon, just the same, when heled the way to the dining-room. Here he had his party seated in aquiet corner, and then he reported to Mr. Gilroy all he had done sincehe landed in Denver in the morning.

  "I have the surprise of the season for the scouts, I'm thinking,"began Mr. Vernon, smiling at the eager faces of the girls. "Have youformed _any_ idea of how we are going to travel to the Divide?"

  Even Mr. Gilroy wondered what his friend meant, for he had asked Tallyto secure the best horses possible in Denver. And the scouts shooktheir heads to denote that they were at sea.

  Mrs. Vernon laughed, "Not on foot, I trust!"

  "No, indeed, my dear! Not with shoe leather costing what it does sincethe war," retorted Mr. Vernon.

  "We all give up,--tell us!" demanded his wife.

  "First I have to tell you a tale,--for thereby hangs the rest of it.

  "You see, Tally came here first thing this morning, and when I came infrom my train, which was an hour late from Chicago, he greeted me. Ihadn't the faintest idea who he was until after the clerk gave me thewire from Gilly, then I saluted as reverently as he had done. Finallyhis story was told.

  "It seems 'Mee'sr Gil'loy' told Tally to get outfit and all thehorses, including two mules for pack-animals (although I never knewuntil Tally told me, that mules were horses). And poor Tally was in anawful way because he couldn't find a horse worth shucks in the city ofDenver. I fancy Tally knows horseflesh and would not be taken in bythe dealers, eh, Gilly?" laughed Mr. Vernon.

  Mr. Gilroy nodded his head approvingly, and muttered, "He is _some_guide, I tell you!" Then Mr. Vernon proceeded with his tale.

  "Well, Tally got word the other day from his only brother, who runs aranch up past Boulder somewhere, that a large ranch-wagon, ordered andpaid for several months before, was not yet delivered. Would Tally goto the wagon-factory, and urge them to ship the vehicle, as the ownerwas in sore need of it this summer.

  "Tally had gone to the factory all right, but the boss said it wasimpossible to make any deliveries to such out-of-the-way ranches, andthe railroad refused freight for the present. Poor Tally wired hisbrother immediately, and got a disconcerting reply.

  "He was authorized to take the wagon away from the manufacturer andsend it on by _any route_ possible. But the brother did not offer anysuggestions for that route, nor did he provide means by which Tallycould hitch the wagon up and send it on _via_ its owntransportation-power or expenses.

  "Fortunately for Tally, and all of us, a horse-dealer had overheardthe story and now joined us. ''Scuse me fer buttin' in,' he said, 'butI got some hosses I want to ship to Boulder, and no decent driver fer'em. Why cain't we-all hitch up our troubles an' drive 'em away. Letyour Injun use my hosses as fur as Boulder, and no charge to him. Hedrives the animals to a stable I'll mention and c'lect fer feed andexpenses along the road, but no pay fer himself,--that's squared on theuse my beasts give you-all.'

  "I ruminated. Here we were with Tally who had a wagon on his hands andno horses, and here was a dealer with four horses and no wagon. Itsure seemed a fine hitch to make, so we all hitched together. So nowwe are all starting early in the morning _via_ a prairie schooner toBoulder. How do you like it?"

  A cry of mingled excitement and delight soon told him what the scoutsthought of the plan, but Mr. Gilroy remarked, "But what am I to doabout horses for the rest of the jaunt?"

  "Oh, Tally says he can drive much better bargains with ranchers thanin the city here, and the horses trained for mountain climbing by theranchers are far superior to the hacks that have been used for yearsto trot about Denver City. So I decided to put it right up to Tally,an
d he agreed to supply splendid mounts for each one of us, or guideyou free of charge all summer," said Mr. Vernon.