"Phelps" remarked with quaint humor, that
he was frequently likened to his Satanic Majesty, as he often took
clergymen "up thar." The rocky walls of this lake rise from one
thousand to fifteen hundred feet high, in many places almost
perpendicular. A large eagle soared above the cliffs, and circled in
the air above us, which we took as a good omen of our journey.
* * *
The rills
That feed thee rise among the storied rocks
Where Freedom built her battle-tower.
_William Wallace._
* * *
After reaching the southern portion of the lake, a trail of a mile and
a quarter leads to the Upper Ausable--the gem of the Adirondacks. This
lake, over two thousand feet above the tide, is surrounded on all
sides by lofty mountains. Our camp was on the eastern shore, and I can
never forget the sunset view, as rosy tints lit up old Skylight, the
Haystack and the Gothics; nor can I ever forget the evening songs from
a camp-fire across the lake, or the "bear story" told by Phelps, a
tale never really finished, but made classic and immortal by Stoddard,
in his spicy and reliable handbook to the North Woods.
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