“Tues 6/17 There was a couple elk [milling] around my camp this morning. I passed the Cliff in a short time also saw a couple good springs, then I cam to where the road cuts down through a beautiful rough, narrow gorge called the Golden Gate from there it was all down hill to Gardiner.
At the Springs I looked around a little y tok some pictures then hiked on down to G. Here I left 8 rolls of film at the drugstore also got a check by mail y some other mail, then I was fool enough to buy a lemonade at the [something] and it made me as sick as a dog so I found a secluded spot y put a finger down my throat y got rid of most of it, but I felt miserable as I dragged my self out of town, y as soon as I could find a place to camp I just laid down, but tonight I had to out y tickle my throat again y still I don’t feel right, but perhaps it will be better in the morning.”
Parsons doesn’t mention it in his journal, but we know from his photos that he visits and passes through the Golden Gate, the Silver Gate, stops off at the Devils Kitchen, and Canary Springs before crossing the border into Montana and stopping in Gardiner.
For those that are interested the Yellowstone Insider has some interesting history on the Devils Kitchen. They note,
“The Devil’s Kitchen is all but unknown in today’s Yellowstone National Park. Located east of Bath Lake in the [Mammoth Hot Springs area, the Devil’s Kitchen (for all its hellish imagery) was just a cavern—one regularly pumping out gases, of course. Further, it was itself the remains of a hot spring. What makes the Devil’s Kitchen interesting, in terms of Yellowstone history, is its uniqueness as a tourist attraction. In the early history of Yellowstone tourism, the Devil’s Kitchen was an interesting feature, despite featuring none of the hallmarks of a typical thermal attraction. It didn’t bubble, or pop, or flow, or cascade, or even hiccup. It wasn’t distinguished by its impressive colors.” Read more here.
