By noon we ran out of the Dark Canyon and the river broadened out, the walls became lower and stood further back from the stream than at any point we had yet pa.s.sed.
It seemed to give us breathing s.p.a.ce after being cramped so long in narrow walls. We also left the storm behind with its dark grey ma.s.ses piled up on the cliffs of the canyon and the wind was stirring the vapor around and around between the narrow walls as though the storm was boiling there.
The sun had come out with all the hot, intense brilliancy of the desert atmosphere. The river seemed plated with the thin silver of the sun and its current was moving lazily along at about four miles an hour.
"By Jove!" exclaimed Tom, "but it"s fine to have the sun again after being buried alive in those canyons."
"It"s nice to loaf along like this too," I said, "after sliding down hill at forty miles an hour for several hundred miles."
"Better get all our wet duds out," put in Jim, "and hang them in the rigging until they get dry."
We did this and then we took it easy for several hours. I laid down on the deck with my head on one of the saddles gazing up into the blue sky and basking in the sun.
We felt like sailors who have been through days of storm and who run into a calm in which they can sit on deck and mend their clothes and absorb the sun into their frozen systems.
We had the whole afternoon of this restful drifting and made a good camp in a comparatively open place.
"Let"s climb to the top of the cliffs and have a look out," proposed Jim.
It was not particularly hard and we enjoyed having a chance to climb once more. In an hour we reached the top.
"What a splendid view," cried Jim.
It certainly was. The mountains that we had seen first in the distance, stood out with clear distinctness in their marvelous symmetry and sharp outlines, but robed in a mystery of blue enchantment. We saw nearer to us the wide landscape of the plateau land.
CHAPTER XXIV
THE COLORADO RIVER
"See below there!" exclaimed Jim. "It looks as if a big river comes in there. It must be the Grand."
"Then we shall be on the Colorado River," I said. "I wonder if we will have any trouble navigating where the two of them come together?"
"I have read that there is quite a whirlpool, formed by the junction,"
replied Jim, "we will have to be careful."
"From the appearance of things we ought to be able to reach it to-morrow," suggested Tom.
"We certainly will if we have good luck," responded Jim.
"Do you suppose that we will find any gold or precious stones in the country that we run into below the Grand?" questioned Tom, who never lost sight of the practical side of our cruise.
"We stand a first rate chance," replied Jim. "One thing is certain and that is that there has not been very many ahead of us to get away with any valuables that might be near the river. I don"t suppose that there have been more than a dozen persons down this river since the world first started rolling."
"Well, I certainly hope that we will find something that will repay us for all the risks that we have run the past months," remarked Tom.
"Just think of the experience you are getting. Don"t you consider that valuable?" asked Jim.
"I have got a goldarned sore leg if that"s what you mean, where that rock hit me," growled Tom.
"You"ve got a sore head, but you always had that," added Jim.
"It isn"t sore from being swelled," Tom retorted, bitingly.
"If I ever want a lawyer with a razor-backed tongue, I will employ you,"
laughed Jim.
"You won"t ever have the money, unless you strike something soon,"
remarked Tom.
"Let"s not quarrel among ourselves, so long as we have the river and the Indians to sc.r.a.p with," I suggested.
"Very well, old sox, we won"t," concluded Jim, and Tom kept silent.
So peace was established, until the next outbreak.
It was the middle of the afternoon of the following day that we neared the junction of the two rivers, the Grand and the Green. We had considerable curiosity to see the uniting of the two great streams. We imagined that the surroundings would be "Grand and Green" as Jim phrased it, but we were to be disappointed.
The walls were neither so high nor so impressive as those we had already pa.s.sed through. They appeared to be about twelve hundred feet high and were set back some distance from the river.
"We will make a landing," said Jim, "before we reach the junction of the two streams and get a bird"s eye view of the situation."
"It"s a good idea," I said, "I"ll keep a sharp lookout for a landing."
I soon sighted ahead an excellent place in a rocky little cove, where the waters were quiet. Here we effected an easy landing and climbed up on a plateau of absolutely bare rock that extended from the river to the cliffs.
"What curious looking formation," exclaimed Jim. "It looks something like layer cake. A thick red base then a strip of grey and the red again."
There were low walls of this formation bordering the rock plateau and much recessed.
"Isn"t that a strange looking rock over there," said Tom, "something like a bunty church with a round tower."
This expressed it as nearly as possible. Two-thirds of it was of the solid red rock with the broad white band of stone placed squarely upon it. But I cannot stop to refer to the many odd and curious formations, that came under our observation, for I would never have done.
After a walk of about a half a mile we came to a place where we could look down upon the mingling of the two rivers. They rushed together equally, the Grand being the clearer of the two streams. They whirled in a round dance as they met, forming a great whirlpool.
"We will have to look out for that," said Jim, shaking his head, "but I think we can avoid it all right."
We returned to the boat and prepared for the descent. Everything was made tight and snug. "The Captain" trimmed perfectly and we shoved off.
"All ready now?" said Jim.
"Ready," we replied.