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July 27
The Jim Sutton party of Jacksonville brings the first wagon
nearly to the Rim of the lake after blazing a four and a half
mile trail. (Great Great Granddaughter, Jackie Wobbe reports
that Capt. Sutton was eventually buried in the Parnkey Cemetery
on Ramsey Road, near Medford.)
August 5
J.B. Coats, James Fay, David Linn, James Sutton and Lt. Thoburn
set out on the lake in a canvas boat. This is probably the first
boat on the lake. The party estimates the Lake to be 1,500 to
2,000 feet deep after taking two soundings down to 550
feet. (The length of their rope.) Crater Lake is named by James
M. Sutton. At one time the prosaic name of “Hole in the Ground”
was in use, but was fortunately abandoned. The Indian name for
the lake was Glowy’s or Gaywas. The Sutton party attempted to
circumnavigate the lake, and sound it, but due to the fragile
nature of the boat and a strong wind, they were forced to forego
the attempt. One sounding was made a half mile from the
island. Mr. Linn built the boat, which was scow-shaped, 16 feet
long and 3.5 feet wide, at his planning mill in Jacksonville,
but did not put it together until reaching the Rim of Crater
Lake.
The morning of the day that they made their voyage on the Lake,
the men carried the boards down the rugged precipice leading to
the water as there was no marked out trail. Several times, being
encumbered with the boards, they were in imminent danger of
losing their footing and plunging down into the Lake.
August 7
THE OREGON SENTINEL, Saturday: We learn that a party of pleasure
seekers from Rogue River Valley are now at Lake Majesty,
cruising upon its blue and placid water in a boat built in
Jacksonville. At it is reported that the party is partly
composed of young ladies, you may well imagine that the desire
to see and explore Lake Majesty has become intense.
August 21
THE OREGON SENTINEL, Saturday: TRIP TO CRATER (sic) LAKE, To the
Editor Sentinel: In response to your request, I will endeavor to
furnish you a brief sketch of our late tour to the source of
Rogue River, and Fort Klamath.
On the 27th of July, memorable as the day of the great freshet
in Jacksonville, our party, consisting of David Linn, wife and
five children, Jas. D. Fay, Miss Anna Fay, Miss Hannah Ralls,
J.B. Coasts, Capt. J.M. Sutton, wife and one child, started on
an exploring and recuperating expedition to Crater Lake and
other points of interest in its vicinity. The thermometer stood
at 96 in the shade and atmosphere was unusually sultry...From
our first camping point we witnessed in the distance the
terrific storm which was devastating Jacksonville and terrifying
its inhabitants. We could see the dark and terrible cloud which
hung over our devoted town, pouring forth stream after stream of
lurid lightning and heavy peals of thunder which was startling,
even at our safe distance...
From this point the road was made through thick timber and over
a soft pumice stone soil, and consequently the road has been
beaten down from eighteen to twenty inches, leaving some
hundreds of stumps to the mile, too high for our duck legged
wagon to pass over. It was these stumps that the peculiar
virtues of our baggage master shone forth though the clouds of
dust which surrounded him and his favorite wagon....
On the 31st we traveled all day over a very good but stumpy
road. During the day we passed through vast forest of dead
timber, which had been killed by fire. Among this dead timber in
many places the ground was covered with a low whortleberry of
the most delicious kind. We also passed many small brooks and
springs in which the water stood at 40 degrees, F, just 8
degrees above freezing, while Jacksonville water stands at
sixty...
We camped one mile from the summit of the Cascade Mountains and
two and half miles from Crater Lake at a place known as
Sprague’s dug-away. At this place a trail has been graded down
the precipitous banks of Crack Creek sufficient to pass men and
horse. On the next day (August 1), the order of the day was to
find a “north-west passage” to Crater Lake whereby we could take
our wagons and boat. We started out early in the morning, a
party of self constituted road viewers. After nearly the whole
day spent, we succeeded in finding a good route for a wagon road
and moved our camp about one half mile Lakewards where we found
excellent grass and water. On the next day we cut out the road
to the Lake, returned and moved camp to within half a mile of
that point and in time to haul our boat to the brink of its
destination. On the 3rd we took our families in the wagons and
soon arrived at the long wished for point. On alighting from the
wagons and reaching the brink, the first exclamation of the
ladies was, “look out for the children! Come back Jimmy! Come
back Peter.”
In approaching the lake from whatever direction, we had to
ascend a mountain; it being located on a high point of the
dividing ridge of the Cascade mountains. From the south we
gradually ascended the mountain through heavy open timber,
principally hemlock and spruce, until within two hundred yards
of the lake, when we passed out of the timber into a fine grassy
lawn mottled with sealberry and other lowering shrubs peculiar
to high regions. Passing up this lawn, which was a little more
precipitous than before, we arrived at the brink of the Lake
which was beautifully skirted with timber at intervals, all
around its circumference, To say that this wonderful lake is
grand, beyond description, is to give an idea of its
magnificence. Everyone gazes at it for the first time in almost
tearful astonishment. Elevated 4,200 feet above the sea we could
skim the tops of the vast piles of mountains in every direction
which almost a quarter of a mile beneath our feet reposed the
placid lake. From the best estimates we could make, the lake is
about six and a half miles from east to west and five and a half
from north to south and nearly oval in shape. It is entirely
surrounded by walls of light colored basalt, scoria, and almost
every conceivable variety of volcanic productions. Near the west
end rises a cone like island about a mile in diameter at the
base and about seven hundred feet in height. This island is
about two miles from the shore where we stood and a half mile
from the west end of the lake.
Each man now shouldered up a portion of our boat material, and
after a few timid glances down the fearful incline, started
boldly over the loose, crumbling bank, starting bevies of loose
boulders at every step, at the imminent danger of anyone who
dared venture ahead of the party. We succeeded in getting our
boat to the water and afloat before night. I had forgotten to
state that one lady accompanied down on this occasion, arriving
at the bottom with her shoes torn entirely from her feet on the
sharp rocks. On getting ready to return, she made the following
address to the lake. “O, thou horrid puddle! Like a great
spider, thou has hid thyself down in this miserable hole to
catch butterflies. Before I entered thy face, you looked smooth
and the distance short, but I found the road long, and nothing
but roughness and danger, and now thou art rolling great waves
at my feet! I know not whither I shall escape these villainous
walls, but I promise you that if again safe at the top, I will
never more trouble you with my presence; In sincerity of which I
now make unto you this peace offering!” So saying, she cast her
dilapidated shoes in the troubled water, and returned barefoot,
through tribulation and boulders, to the top. As there was no
water for our horses, and only snow for ourselves, we returned
to your last camp, for the night. During the day we were joined
by Lt. S.B. Thornburn, U.S.A from Fort Klamath, Col. Ross and
H.P. Duseans and lady.
DOWN TO THE LAKE Arriving at the lake, speedy preparation was
made to go down to the water. Lieut. Thorborn, Col. Ross, David
Linn, J.B. Coasts, James D. Fay, J.M. Sutton, Miss Anna Fay,
Mrs. Linn and Mrs. Sutton make the decent. After the ladies had
went out in the boat a few hundred yards and returned, five of
us started for the island, two miles distant. One hour’s hard
rowing against a heavy wind, brought us to the island; forty
five minutes more took us to the top of the Island, where we
proclaimed it to the winds that on the 4th day of August, 1869,
we, David Linn, J.D. Fay, Lieut. S.B. Thorborn, J.B. Coats and
J.M. Sutton landed on the CREATER (sic) Lake Island, and then
and there claimed to be the first human beings that ever set
foot on its soil. This Island is but a loose pile of cinders and
pumice stone, crumbling down at the very touch. Around the
basin-like crater is large piles of scoria ready to tumble down
with the least exertion, and many, indeed, were the tons of this
rock that we started down the precipitous sides of the
Island. The rim around the crater is some five hundred yards in
circumference and on hundred feet deep, in the bottom of which
remains a bank of snow. We left a bottle on the south side of
the crater, sheltered beneath a ledge of lava, containing the
names of all our party. Any one curious to find it, near some
blazes made with a knife on the limbs of some small trees hard
by. We returned to the lake and found the wind blowing almost a
gale, and coming from every point of the compass every five
minutes. We arrived safely on shore, drew our boat above high
water mark, which by the way, is only about four feet, left with
it a bucket of tar and four or five pounds of nails for
repairing purposes, and then started on our weary way to the
top, a distance of half a mile at an angle steeper than
forty-five degrees. On arriving at the top, we heard the story
of how the ladies got back, how the Col. climbed a rope, and
many other male, and female adventures. Through the politeness
of Mr. Peter Britt, I was prepared to take photographs of the
lake, but owing to the smoke in the atmosphere I did not
succeed. We were soon underway to our camp, well repaid for all
our pains, and proud of our store of adventures.
October 28
The JACKSONVILLE SENTINEL reports that several citizens recently
returned from visiting the great sunken lake. The walls of the
lake are almost perpendicular. The depth of the water is
unknown. Its surface is smooth and unruffled. It lies so far
below the surface of the mountain that air currents do not
affect it. Its length is 12 miles, and breadth is 10 miles. No
living man has or probably in the future will be able to reach
the water’s edge. It lies silent, still and mysterious in the
bosom of the “everlasting hills”, like a huge well scooped by
the hands of the giant genie of the mountains in ages gone
by. These facts seem incredible, but they are vouched by some of
the most responsible citizens. The lake is certainly a most
remarkable curiosity.
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