Kings Middle Fork 1894 Adventure

[fourputt]

My late friend Richard D. and I did our first trip to Tehipite Valley in early May 1987. Always on the lookout for early season trips, I knew nothing more about it than as a spot on the map, that it had a river with fish, and that it was accessible from Wishon Reservoir in that drought year. We did another trip the next year, and I did several more over the years including up the Middle Fork from the South Fork confluence in 2001 so I can attest how rugged the country is. Soon after our first trip Richard got the history bug and did some pre-internet research which involved visiting libraries and the Fresno County Historical Society and digging through collection files and boxes. What follows is his best find, since the newspaper in question, the Fresno Daily Expositor, changed its name around 1906 and much of the pre-change material was not properly indexed.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure this is from the Fresno Daily Expositor files that Richard found either at the library or historical society. I kept this from his effects and finally typed it up recently. (It's a barely readable xerox-of-a-copy-of-a-xerox-of-a-copy that an OCR can't handle.)



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Fresno Daily Expositor Feb. 10, 1894


IN THE HIGH SIERRAS

A Winter Camp Among the Peaks.


THE EXPERIENCE OF THREE MINERS

One Hundred Miles Through Snow. Perils of the Journey - Threatened by Starvation - Wading Miles in the Icy River - Other Incidents

On the 26th of September 1893, a party consisting of the following persons, Messers. Wm. Akers, Wesley Akers and Elmer Bonner, left Hughes Creek to work in the "Fisk mine," located about 100 miles from Sanger, on the middle fork of the Kings river and about fifteen miles from the summit of the Sierras.

Many are apt to picture the upper Sierras in their imagination as a cold, dreary and desolate region in the winter season, and such a thing as a winter resort as an utter impossibility. The temperature, by many, is supposed to run far below zero. And as for the verdant sheltered meadows, that would be a physical impossibility.

In reality, passing winter in the Sierra Nevada mountains near the summit, is not such a heroic adventure as might be supposed.

The following account, taken from the diary of Mr. Bonner, beginning on Oct. 20, 1893, and ending on Jan. 21, 1894, speaks for itself as to the temperature:

From about the first of October to October 20th the thermometer ranged from 30 to 38 degrees above zero; on the 4th of January, the coldest day, 1 above; on the 5th, the thermometer registered 4 above, and on Christmas the diary read "It is a bright, sunny day. It was pretty cold this morning, as the thermometer was down to 8." Now take this in connection with the following description of the location of the place and it will be seen that the cold does not begin to be so severe as that of the Eastern States, together with the fact that there is an entire absence of cold, biting winds.

The Fisk mine is situated about 100 miles northeast of Sanger on the east side of the middle fork of the Kings river, just above Triple Falls creek, and four miles from Simpson meadow, which is nestled at the foot of Tuna Ma mountain (so called from the profanity which echoed through the mountain fastnesses as the celestials drove their sheep through the rugged and almost impassable defiles in the mountains.) Here, also, Goddard creek joins the river.

The site of the mine is between Cartridge Hull creek and the river, on a mountain with an elevation of 10,000 feet. To the north stands Mount Woodworth, rising its stern visage into the aerial regions above the height of 11,000 feet.

On each side of the river, engulfed in the rugged bosoms of the surrounding mountains, lies a beautiful valley covered with rich meadow grass, and contains 500 acres. The river divides the valley into two nearly equals parts.

A stunted growth of sugar pine, yellow pine and juniper and some fir and cedar cover the adjacent mountains, while further back tamarack is found along with a dwarfed growth of manzanita, deer brush and chinquapin, the former growing prostate upon the ground by reason of the snow which gives it no opportunity to assume an upright growth. The branches are exceedingly small.

About one mile from the mine is located five mineral springs, known as the Seltzer spring.

Being situated as it is within fifteen miles of the summit, the mines receive the frowns of those towering peaks with their icy crests piercing the light air and defying the fiercest wintry storms. Their eternal snows feed the foaming river which has its source among their icy gorges.

The river is about twenty-five or thirty feet wide, but in some places where the banks are contracted by the narrowing mountains, an active man can almost jump across it. Immense boulders which have been torn away from their mountain beds lie in chaotic confusion, dashing aside the rushing water, which makes frantic attempts to overleap all obstacles and then hurries on to its destination. But these rocks, hard though they are, succumb finally to the action of water and commence their revolving journey to the plains below.

The steeply-inclined bed of the stream will furnish abundant water power, as 100 feet fall can be secured in as many feet.

The ledge runs in an easterly and westerly direction and is about 25 feet in width. "We have run in a tunnel," said Will Akers, "through the ledge about 40 feet on the foot wall." The ore consists principally of silver with some gold, and assays from $5 to $150 a ton. Containing, as it does, considerable base metal it will have to be smelted.

The party arrived at the mine in the early part of October, and proceeded to make preparations for the winter. The weather was warm and pleasant. The first two or three weeks were spent in repairing their log house and collecting fuel, with an occasional hunt by way of variety.

During the summer plenty of deer and bear are to be found, together with the booming grouse and the crisp melting speckled mountain trout, than which there is no better fish in the world. They are small, rarely exceeding eight inches in length, but what they lack in size, they make for in delicious flavor. A man that has no taste for other fish would indeed be a curiosity if he could not, like Benjamin Franklin, find no excuse for eating these.

South of the mine about 10 miles, is a remarkable curiosity known as Granite Lake. The lake, eight miles from the Kings River canyon, and 35 miles from Sequoia mills, is situated at the top of a rugged mountain at an elevation of about 10,000 feet.Its waters are of unfathomable depth and clear as crystal. The lake is circular in form and compasses about 50 acres. The banks are about four feet high, except on the south side, where the precipitous side of the mountain rise to the height of a quarter of a mile. Its waters contain no fish. The lake has a small rocky island in the center. A tiny stream issues from the lake and steals down the mountain to the Kings River canyon. The lake is thus a supply for the South Fork.

The only animal to be seen near this beautiful sheet of water is the woodchuck, a small creature resembling the badger in form, but not so large, and with the head and back of a squirrel. An excellent trail leads from the Sequoia mills, with good feed along the way.

The following extract from Mr. Bonner's diary tells how they passed the winter and also the kind of weather they experienced:

"On Sunday, October 23d, a light rain in the valley, with snow on the mountain. We went fishing, and Will caught 35 fish, and myself 14.

"Tuesday 24, all went to work on the mine and got some very good rock. Rained some.

"Wednesday thermometer registered 29 degrees; clear. Got the frame on our shop up.

"Thursday 26, lovely day, thermometer 34.

"Friday 27, lovely day, thermometer 41. Will killed two deer above the mine.

"Saturday, thermometer 44. Nice day.

"Sunday, read novel all day. Thermometer 42.

"Monday 30, thermometer 34. Will's watch stopped at 5 o'clock.

The above gives a fair idea of the weather for October. During November the following condensed account will show the weather for that month:

The number of clear days were 23, stormy days 4, cloudy days 3, highest point registered by thermometer 44, lowest 18; ranged most of the time between 32 and 40.

For December weather we have the following: Nice days 25, stormy days 6, highest temperature 50, lowest 12; ranged most of the time between 30 and 40 degrees.

For January until they left we have the following: Clear days 12, stormy days 9, highest temperature 34, lowest 1, range of temperature between 20 and 30.

This shows that the temperature near the head of the Kings river is comparatively mild, and that passing a winter there, aside from its loneliness, is not so much to be dreaded after all.

On the 7th of November Son (Wesley) as he was called had finished a pair of snowshoes, baked a lot of pies, this latter receiving special mention and that in pie making he was hard to beat, like the jug they opened, and on which the same appellation had been bestowed. They had been fishing that day. With pies, fish and "hard to beat" they had a glorious repast.

About a week afterwards while out hunting Bonner and Will Akers perceived "Son" gesticulating frantically with his hat. Their first thought was "bear." Will went down the mountain twenty feet at a leap, while Bonner ran for a pass which he to guard should the bruin chance to come that way. Bang! went Son's gun, and Will and Bonner were soon on the spot. They found him engaged in dissecting a sheep which he had killed. "Is this all you have?" asked Bonner. "No. You bet it isn't," answered Son. "I've got eight more there in the rocks and I'm going to drive them home." And he did.

Next morning they went in search of the sheep which they found near the mine. Then the fun commenced. "I'll bet Napoleon never made a grander charge than we did that morning, when we slaughtered those sheep," said Bonner. In due time the sheep were all butchered and soon a string of jerky, half a mile wide was the result.

On November 17th found this entry in the diary and give it the publicity which such noteworthy events should receive: "Had pie for supper."

On December 17th Will killed four grouse and the boys had another grand feast.

On the 23d, there being five inches of snow, and it being a lovely night, the boys opened another jug of "hard to beat," mounted their snow shoes, and as the boys say, they felt they were worth at the lowest estimate, $50,000, and passed the greater part of the night racing over the snow.

On the 17th of December I find this entry: "If the grass keeps growing like it has for the last three or four days, we shall soon have some good feed."

They had intended to pass the entire winter at the mine, but, getting out of fuse, they determined to start for the valley without delay.

Now, passing the winter near the summit is not such an unpleasant thing, but a 100 mile trip out of that region is another matter, and that, too, down the fearful gorges of the Kings river. Boxes of provisions were nailed up, and suspended from the rafters to render them safe from the depredations of wood rats. They baked a sufficient quantity of bread to last them almost four days and a half--the time they estimated it would take to reach the valley--and added a quantity of jerky and coffee. They had a dog which accompanied them.

Mr. Bonner gave me the following account of the first part of the journey:

"Bright and early on the morning of the 22d we slipped on our snow shoes, and away we went for the valley, 100 miles down the river. The snow was about five feet on the level, and 15 or 20 where it had drifted. We had gone but a short distance when we found ourselves in the midst of a snow storm. We thought of retracing our steps, but Wesley said "Let us brave it through," and on we went. By noon the storm ceased. We had made but two miles and that by hard work. Here I broke one of my snow shoes, but fortunately, I had a hatchet along, with which my snow shoes were repaired, and we were on our way again. We traveled hard all day, camping at dark 10 miles from the mine.

"We dug out about three feet of snow, gathered some fir boughs and placed them in the excavation, on which we threw our blankets. We built a rousing fire, prepared and partook our frugal repast, and prepared to take a much needed night's repose. Owing to the bitter cold we could sleep but a few minutes at a time, when we would be obliged to rouse up our fire and warm ourselves. We passed a miserable night.

"Next morning, after partaking of hearty breakfast of bread, coffee and bacon, we again started our journey. We thought we could reach Tehipite valley, about 10 miles distant, that day, where we could be quite comfortable in the Rock house.

"We made good progress until about 10 o'clock, when we were passing around a rough, bold headland, our faithful dog stepped on Will's snow shoes. In an instant down went dog, blankets and man, rolling and bounding into 10 or 12 feet of water in the river 60 yards below.

"They got safely ashore, where we built a rousing fire. He was nearly frozen and it was fully two hours before he got his clothing dry and himself somewhat comfortable.

"We then pursued our way, climbing over rocks and winding through ravines, until about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, when the snow became so soft that it stuck to our snow shoes. Nothing was left but to wait till the snow froze. We built a good fire and made ourselves as comfortable as the situation permitted.

"The country is extremely rough--great bluffs rising thousands of feet into the air, and sides covered with a matted growth of brush almost impenetrable and the river roaring and boiling beneath the beetling cliffs.

"By 9 o'clock that night the moon was out and the snow in the necessary condition, we resumed our journey. We toiled painfully along till midnight, when we reached the mouth of Blue canyon, and being too fatigued to travel further, we encamped for the remainder of the night.

"Early the next morning we again resumed our toilsome journey, but had traveled only a short distance when we decided to abandon our snow shoes and try it afoot, as the nearer we approached Tehipite valley the less snow we found, and in the valley, which we reached about 3 p.m., we found six inches only.

"We took up our abode in the Rock house on which are to be found the names of many prominent ladies and gentlemen of Fresno. Here we passed a pleasant night, and secured a good night's rest of which we stood greatly in need.

"We had placed twenty miles behind us when we reached this valley, containing 180 or 200 acres of land, on which in the summer time there is good growth of the bunch grass. The river runs through the center. A few scrubby oaks and pines are seen, with here and there small thickets of brush.

"Perpendicular walls of rock surround the valley, rising to the height of probably a quarter of a mile. On one side of the valley is Tehipite Dome--an Indian name--rising probably to 150 [sic] feet. It is a huge granite cone of sugar loaf, and is perfectly smooth.

"The next morning being quite refreshed and strengthened by our rest we cheerfully resumed our journey. We had fair traveling for about a mile and a half, where we reached a little flat known as the Temples. Here the huge cliffs barred further progress as their cliffs reached into the water from either side and their bold brows rose hundreds of feet above us. Our only alternative was the river. We stood shivering at the sight of the ice cold water for a short time, when we gritted our teeth and jumped in. We traveled on the bank whenever possible, but in traveling one mile we crossed the river several times.

The account of the remainder of the journey was told me by Will Akers.

"Then," said Mr. Akers, "we thought we could do better by climbing upon the cliff. We traveled a short distance upon the bluff, when we could travel, as it seemed, neither backward nor forward nor around. Finally, we discovered a little crevice around the edge of a dizzy precipice. After painfully creeping around the cliff, during which time the scraping of a shoe as it seemed on the treacherous rock, made one turn sick with apprehension, we found ourselves on an open hillside where we had fair ground for a time. Finally, the way became so brushy that we determined to try the river again, which we crossed. We traveled till 2 p.m., when we stopped for lunch.

"We again resumed our journey till night. After resting awhile, we once more started on our trip, and I tell you things began to look gloomy, for we had eaten the last of our provisions at lunch that day. We had no supper, and to be without food in that country as cold as it is, is no funny thing. After traveling awhile we bivouacked for the night, supping on the mountain scenery.

"Next morning we built up a great fire, warmed ourselves well, and started on our trip, having had nothing to eat for about eighteen hours.

"We traveled hard all that day, encamping for the night in a little flat. Our route had been through a portion of country so rough and brushy as to beggar description. We were so weak from want of food, having now fasted 30 hours, and, coupled with the extraordinary exertion necessary for travel, that we could scarcely drag one foot after the other.

"Glorious sight! Before us was a small bunch of cattle; and, having my rifle with me, I shot a yearling calf. We dressed the beef, cut off portions of the meat and roasted it on sticks on the fire.

"Nothing ever tasted so good as that meat. Our faithful dog was well supplied, and in fact he needed it badly as he had fared worse than ourselves. He ate till he was apparently in misery. We kept roasting and eating till near midnight, when we lay down to secure a much needed night's rest.

"We were on our way next morning as soon as we could see how to travel. We had not traveled more that two miles (it was just getting daylight), when we saw a camp fire, around which were two hunters, Joe Fox and another man. They received us hospitably and got us a good breakfast, to which we did ample justice.

"We traveled hard all that day through an extremely rough and bushy country and crossed the river once that day at the Moore and Smith trail, which was built when they were surveying the route for the flume.

"That evening we got to the flume, built us a raft, and floated down to Trimmer Springs." "I tell you," said Will Akers, "that Trimmer Springs looked like the Palace Hotel to us." "The next day we arrived safely at home here, and more thankful creatures I never saw."

I asked them about the game along the route, when Will Akers said: "From the forks of the river to the Dutch oven--a distance of eight miles--the hillsides were literally cut up with deer tracks, but we never saw a single deer.

Hume Creek; Feb. 5, 1894.

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Personal Note

I met the son/grandson of the two Akers in May 1989. I had done a short pre-Memorial Day trip to Rae Lakes in Kings Canyon and stopped at Junction Vista Point on hwy 180 on the way out, where I met an older couple talking about how the gentleman's father and grandfather had worked a mine on the Kings Middle Fork. I thought they were talking about the mine below Tehipite Valley and mentioned I'd visited it. I asked his name and he answered "Akers." I had seen Richard's article by then, but didn't connect the name with it till after I got home--to my lasting regret since I might have been able to supplement Mr. Akers' family history.

The gentleman asked rhetorically at one point looking up the rugged canyon "Why do you think they did it?" to which his wife offered "To get away from grandma?"

[druid]

Fascinating story! Thank you very much for posting this and also thanks to your late friend Richard for digging it up. It's always sobering to read accounts of the difficulties faced by the early explorers. Plus I got to learn a new profanity, which I'm sure will come in handy if I'm ever anywhere near Tunemah Peak.

[Jimr]

thank you very much for the fascinating account. Looks like Fisk mine is somewhere on the South flank of Windy Cliff. It is also rather obvious that they followed the MFK down to it's confluence with the SFK at Yucca Point.

https://caltopo.com/map.html#ll=36.9547 ... 30&o=t&n=0

[commonloon]

Thank you for posting. What a great read. The middle fork is one of my favorite places in the Sierra. It still seems wild, particularly late season with few people.

Are there mine ruins somewhere? Does anyone know the location?

[mort]

Thanks for the enjoyable read. I'd love to find that mine.
"...and soon a string of jerky, half a mile wide was the result." Ha!
Just a historical note, "snow shoes" in those days meant skis.

Snowshoe-Mural-.jpg

[bobby49]

"Are there mine ruins somewhere?"

I am no expert. However, I have several historic geology reports, and I've been reading. I know nothing for sure, but if you go to Tehipite Dome, then cross the river to the south side, somewhere along those cliffs is where the Uncle Sam Mine once was. From the reports, it was not large at all, and it was mostly copper ore.

Beyond this information, kids, you are on your own.

[mort]

OK, the mine maybe hard to locate, but "We have run in a tunnel," said Will Akers, "through the ledge about 40 feet on the foot wall." A tunnel 40 feet deep should be obvious.
Anyway, what is the rock house in Tehipite Valley?
-mort

[bobby49]

Something may have been a real mine 120 years ago. Then, before or after the area became a national park, it is highly possible that some mining scars were covered over.

[fourputt]

The Natural House, aka Rock House, can shelter a small party and is located a couple hundred yards from the Crown Creek trail crossing.

Theodore Solomons 1897 Tehipite Valley Map

[Jimr]

I wish I could read the name of the camp at the base of the trail coming down from Crown Valley. You can still find remnants of the camp there next to the river. I came across a stone and mortar stove and lengths of steel pipe I assume were water pipes. There was also what's left of a 19th century rifle at the base of the trail.