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Tuesday Augt 12 We Rode up to the Gulch to day to see our Chicago friends and found them also prepared for the Change. We Walked thru the Village and Saw Card playing Mining fighting horse racing drinking and plenty of Drunkards unclear and other Merchants at work Idlers all over the place and [unclear] filled with all manner of Men. can it be possible that that there is another Such place on Earth I doubt. I felt alarmed for the first time in My life in going thro the place. I bid fare Well to the Gulch I never want to See it any More

Monday Augt 13 We camp tonight on the banks of the 2 lakes a beautiful spot. We should like to Stay a week here to [unclear] & feed our horses but the first Snow on the Mountains admonishes us to [?simply?] [?] our time in this place is about 8 or 10 Miles West from our last Camp on the West Side of the Arkansas River and in the Western Range of the Snowy Mountains. here we caught some fine fish, but did not Succeed in getting any Mountain Sheep or any other game Said to abound here our party consists in [?Mr?] [?Brewster?] & Son of Quincy Illinois Clark & Williams do {ditto} Smith & Son of Schuyler Illinois, Co's Wood and Sherwood of Whiteside County Illinois Samuel Couldwell of Warren Ohio our passenger and John & Self -- all well and in good Spirits. the Two lakes are really beautiful almost Surrounded by mountains and a fine Mountain Stream passing through them and emptying it Self into the arkansas River Say 5 Miles below. the waters of the lake are as clear as cristal the bottom can be Seen 20 feet below the surface with distinction they abound in excellent fish [?] Brook Trout Salmon Trout &c &c