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They then gave us some advice about and how to avoid the heavy drifts they had camped about a mile down on the western side of the mountains and said they had no snow that night they were in good spirits about their prospects over on the Blue they had taken chains and were going to Tarryall for tools and provisions they started down the mountain ? and in a few minutes were out of sight in a deep valley. We now had to arrange our packs and make them as convienient as possible to carry on our shoulders we had each a pair of blankets weighing about five pounds ten pounds of flour three pounds of meat two pounds of sugar and one pound of coffee a coffee pot and frying pan making in all about fifteen pounds for each to carry. We strapped the bundles on our shoulders and started bravely up the mountain, the sun now shone out pretty hot melting the snow and making it very disagreeable the summit now was about a mile off but it did not look one fourth that distance the incline was becoming more steep so that we had to sit down and rest about every fifteen yards. Oh it was terrible hard work climbing up there sometimes I would fix a point and say we would make that our next resting place we would start and strain every sinew to reach it but it would be impossible ere we got half way we would be panting like a sheep on a hot day our knees would get weak and shaky and we would drop down utterly exhausted and lay full length on the snow untill we would get revived. The pack small as it was by this time had grown into an enormous burden we thought if we were rid of it that we could make the journey without much inconvienciener and we were almost tempted to throw it away. The fact of it is a man is not so strong up on these great hights the air is pure and raw and what should be only on level ground only a recreation of these great hights throws a man into the same way as would running or any other violent exercise,