ity without being able for some moments to discover the
cause. So rapidly did the fire spread that there was no escape except by
the boats. Some had their clothing burned and their hair singed, while
Bradley even had his ears scorched. The cook in his haste stumbled with
his arms full of culinary utensils, and the load disappeared beneath the
waters, ever on the alert to swallow up man, boat, or beast. Just below
the camp was a rapid and, casting off, they were forced to run this
without stopping to examine it. No harm was done to the boats, and they
landed at the first opportunity. When the fire had burned out they
went back along the rocks to pick up what had been left behind and was
unconsumed. On the same day, as the men were in the act of lowering
a boat by lines, she broke away and started on an independent run.
Fortunately, she soon became entangled in an eddy, where she halted long
enough to permit them to hurry down the small boat and recapture her.
Sometimes the channel was beset with innumerable great rocks, amidst
which the river seethed and boiled in a manner sufficient to terrify
any boatmen, but, luckily, they were able to work their way cautiously
along, and without further disaster they came, on the 17th of June, to
a place where the walls broke away and they emerged into a beautiful
park-like widening of the canyon with bounding cliffs only about 600
feet high near the river. After the continuous cliffs of from 2000 to
2500 feet this place seemed like open country. Once more they camped in
a quiet place at the mouth of a river entering through a deep canyon on
the left or east side. It was the Yampa, sometimes called Bear River.
After a side trip of several hours up this canyon they started again on
the descent and, skirting the smooth perpendicular wall which forms the
west side of Echo Park, they turned a corner and found themselves in a
new gorge, which, on account of many whirlpools existing at that
stage of water, was called Whirlpool Canyon. The run through this was
accomplished with great rapidity, as there were no serious obstacles,
and in two days the expedition emerged into another expansion of the
walls, where the tired men had a brief respite before they perceived the
rocks, again closing in on the water.

Here a deer was brought in by one of the men, and, as they killed a
mountain sheep farther up, they had not suffered for fresh meat. The
entrance to the next canyon was very abrupt, and th