CET4-09 JOURNEY WEST

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In 1976, during America's bicetennial celebra-
tion, a family decided to travel to the American West
instead of jaining the majority of people that were cele-
brating on the East Coast. They wanted to follozer the
trails that the pioneers had made when they began to
settle the West. The family was looking forward to
making their owm discoveries.

JOURNEY WEST

Jim Doherty
We began our trip out West on June 19, 1976, a time when millions of
other American families were preparing to crowd into the Bicentennial
shrines of the East. We sized up America's 200th birthday celebration a bit
differently. Although the Republic may have been born in the East, it had
5 spent most of its time and energies since then moving west. So we resolved
to head in the same direction in 1976, following the old pioneer trails and
the famous rivers.Concentrating primarily on Wyoming and Montana,we would
explore such legendary mountain ranges as the Big Horns, the Bitterroots
and the Swan.
10 There was one problem though. I was sure our four kids -- educated
about the West through the movies -- would be disappointed. As an envi-
ronmental editor, I knew that strip mining was tearing up many scenic areas
and that clear-cutting was causing widespread damage in the mountains. I
was well aware that draining and damming were making a mess of many rivers
15 and wetlands. The grasslands were overgrazed and coal-burning power plants
were befouling the air. Wildlife was on the run everywhere and tourists
were turning the national parks into slums.
I was prepared for the worst. But how to prepare the kids?
The answer, we decided, was to undertake our journey not just as
20 tourists on a holiday, but as reporters on the trail of "the real West."
So all of us, from my kids to my wife, pledged to do our homework before we
left and to record on the way everything we did,saw,heard,felt or thought.
Predictably, we did not uncover any new truths about the West in three
short weeks. But there were plenty of surprises on that 5, 200-mile journey
25 and the biggest one was this: I had been wrong. Some of the troubles we
saw were every bit as bad as I had dreaded. But by and large, the country
was as glorious, as vast and as overwhelmingly spectacular as those
know-nothing kids had expected !
Half the fun of. going west is discovering, along the way, how much
30 the past is still with us. Old wives' tales. Little old farm towns shaded
from the summer heat by enarmous maple trees on streets. White-haired folks
reading the paper on their farmhouse porches at sunset. Worn-out windmills
standing alone in pastures... All in all, we did not see much evidence that
small-town America is vanishing as we traveled through rural Wisconsin,
35 Minnesota arid South Dakota. It's true that many new homes are rising in
many old cornfields. But for the most part, life in vast areas of the Ameri-
can heartland remains pretty much the same as it was 30 and 40 years ago.
In the hilly farmlands of southern Wisconsin and Minnesota, we found
the fields and forests green and the creeks still flowing. The farnis, with
40 their "eggs for sale" signs and enormous "grandma's gardens" in the front
yards, looked prosperous and secure. Not much further north, though, a
drought was threatening the land.
In South Dakota, the situation was far worse. "Haven't seen anything
like this since the dirty thirties," one farmer told us. Even in normal
45 times, most of South Dakota is dry. Now it was being burned to a crisp. The
water holes were dried up and we saw dead cattle lying here and there on
the treeless, rolling range. Some farmers were hauling water out to their
thirsty stock daily; others were trying to drill deep wells.
We saw two distinctly different Wyomings. We crossed the first Wyoming
50 between the Black Hills and the Big Horns. Wide-open grassland, fenced and
colorless, with red rocks and sweet-smelling shrubs scattered about, it was
typical of a hard-used land. Cattle grazed on it. Oil rigs pumped on it and
power lines zigzagged all over it. Freight trains labored across it, hauling
coal from strip mine to power plant, hauling uranium and other minerals to
55 refineries. This Wyoming, clearly, was booming.
The other Wyoming started some miles east of Buffalo, an unexpectedly-
graceful community in the foothills of the Big Horns. On one side of town,
antelope abounded by fours and fives in the hills, and yellow wild flowers
lined the roads. On the other side rose the Big Horns and nearly 10, 000
60 feet up, Powder River Pass cut through them.
The Big Horn canyons were incredible, with four and five distinct lay-
ers of pine trees somehow clinging to the steep, rocky walls. Far, far be-
low, Ten Sleep Creek was a thin, white torrent on the rampage. In some of
the less wild terrain, we saw deer on the high green hillsides and, as we
65 climbed up toward our picnic spot, we flushed two does and two fawns. That
night, we fell asleep with the roar of Ten Sleep in our ears.
We had picked by chance for our stopping place an area rich in western
lore. At one time, Ten Sleep -- a small village at the western base of the
Big Horns -- lay midway between two great Indian camps. in those days, the
70 Indians measured distances by the number of sleeps and the halfway mark
between those two camps was exactly ten sleeps.
We crossed the Continental Divide for the first time on a cool morning,
cutting through the Rockies in northwestern Wyoming at a place called
Togwatee Pass (at a height of 9, 656 feet) . Our van had just leveled off
75 and we were rounding a downhill bend when, all at once, there they were,
stretched out before us in a spectacular procession of massive white peaks:
the Tetons. My wife gasped and, behind us, the kids began to yell.In truth,
it was a startling sight -- a sight none of us will ever forget.
We had seen mountains before, but we had never experienced anything
even remotely like that initial impact of the Tetons. It was exactly what
80 we had in mind when we decided to take our first trip "out West. "

　

New Words


bicentennial / a. happening once in 200 years; of a 200th
anniversary
n. 200th anniversary
shrine / n. a building or place associated with sth.
or sb. deeply respected 神殿, 圣地
resolve / vt. make up one's mind (to do sth.) ; decide
决心; 决定
trail / n. a path across rough country made by the
passing of people or animals 小径,小道
legendary / a. of,like or told in a legend 传奇(似)的
mountain range a row of connected mountains 山脉
disappointed / a. sad at not getting what was hoped for 失
望的
environmental / a. having to do with environment 环境的
environment / n.
editor / n. 编辑
strip mine / n. a mine which is operated from the surface
by removing the overlying layers of
earth 露天矿
vt. take(a mineral or ore) from a strip mine
露天开采（矿物）
scenic / a. of or having to do with natural scenery
天然风景的
clear-cut / vt. cut all the trees in ( a given area or
forest) 将…的树木砍伐光
drain / vt. carry away the surface water of 排(水等)
dam / n. a wall or bank built to keep back water
坝 , 水闸
vt. build a dam across
mess /mes/ n. state of confusion, dirt or disorder 混
乱，肮脏
wetland / n. land or areas containing much soil
moisture; swamp 沼泽地
grassland / n. land rovered with grass, esp. wild open
land for cattTe to feed on 草地; 牧场
overgraze / vt. allow animals to graze to the point of
damaging the grass cover 在…上过度放牧
power plant 发电厂
befoul / vt. make dirty 弄脏
wildlife / n. animals and plants which live and grow
in natural conditions 野生动植物
tourist / n. a person making a tour for pleasure 游客
slum / n. (often ph) street,alley,or building in a
crowded, run-down,dirty part of a city
or town, where the poorest people live
贫民窟
undertake / vt. take up (a duty, etc. ); start on (work)
承担; 从事
pledge / vt. make a solemn promise or agreement 发誓，
保证
predictably / ad. as one may predict
uncover / vt. remove a cover from; f ind out, discover
揭开…盖子；发现
know-nothing / a. ignorant
n. ignoramus
shade / vt. shelter from direct light or heat 萌蔽
maple / n. 槭树, 枫树
folk (AmE folks) / n. people
worn-out / a. used until no longer fit for use; very
tired 破旧的; 精疲力尽的
windmill / n. a mill operated by the action of the
wind on sails which revolve 风车
pasture / n. grassland for cattle; grass on such land
牧场; 牧草
rural / a. of or relating to the country, country
people or life, or agriculture 农村的
cornfield / n (AmE)玉米田;(BrE)小麦田,谷物田
heartland / n. any area or region that is the center of,
or vital to,a oountry 心脏地带,中心地带
hilly / a. full of hills
grandma / n. ( informal ) grandmother
secure / a. safe; having no doubt, fear, or anxiety
安全的
drought / n. a long period of dry weather, when there
is not enough water 干旱
crisp / a. dry; hard; easily broken 脆的; 易碎的
n. something crisp
rolling / a. rising and falling in long gentle slopes
绵延起伏的
haul / vt. pull or drag with force 拖曳
stock / n. farm animals, usu. cattle 牲畜
distinctly / ad. clearly
graze / v. feed on growing grass ( in) 吃(…的)草
rig / n. 钻塔
pump / vt. force (water, etc. ) out by using a pump
n. 泵
zigzag / vi. go in a zigzag 弯弯曲曲地行走, 蜿蜒曲折
n. a line shaped like a row of z's
freight /freit/ n. the goods carried from place to place by
water or by land 货物
freight train n. (AmE) goods train
uranium / n.
refinery / n. a building and apparatus for refining
sth.(metals,oil,or sugar)精炼厂,提炼厂
boom / vi. grow rapidly; develop rapidly in popula-
tiori and importance 迅速发展, 兴盛
graceful / a. (of shape or movement) pleasing to the
eye 优雅的
grace / n.
foothill / n. a low hill at the foot of a mountain 山
麓小丘
antelope / n. a deer-like, fast-running animal with
thin legs 羚羊
abound / vi. have or exist in great numbers or quan-
tities (物产)丰富
canyon / n. a deep narrow steep-sided valley ( usu.
with a river flowing through) 峡谷
distinct / a. easily seen, heard,understood; plain;
clearly different or separate 明显的;
不同的
pine / n. 松树; 松木
cling / (clung / ) vi. hold tightly; remain close 紧握着;粘着
steep / a. rising or falling sharply or at a large
angle 陡峭的
torrent / n. a violently rushing stream of water 激流
rampage / n. excited and violent behavior 横冲直撞,
狂暴行径
tetTain / n. a stretch of land, esp. when considered
in relation to its nature 地带,地形
hillsfde / n. the sloping side of a hill 山腰
picnic / n. 野餐
roar / n. a deep loud sound as of a lion, or
thunder, etc. 吼叫，轰鸣
western / a. of, in，from, characteristic of the west
lore / n. tradition and knowlege, esp. handed down
from past times (口头)传说
midway / a. & ad. in a middle position
halfway / a. & ad. at the midpoint between two things
continental / a. (typical) of a very large mass of land;
(AmE) of or in the North American
continent 大陆(性)的; 北美大陆的
van / n. a covered motor-vehicle for carrying
goods and sometimes people 客货两用车
level / v. bring or eome into a horizontal plane
downhill / a. (sloping or going) towards the bottom of
a hill
stretch / v. (cause to) become wider or longer;spread
out 伸延
procession / n. a line of people, vehicles, etc. moving
forward in an orderly way 行列, 队伍
massive / a. large,heavy and solid;huge 粗大的,巨大的
gasp / v. struggle for breath with open mouth,esp.
because of surprise, shock, etc. 喘息
n. catching of the breath through surprise,
pain, etc.
yell / v. make a loud sharp cry or shout, as of
pain, excitement, etc. ; say or shout
loudly
remotely / ad. to a very sxnall degree; far away 很少地;
极小地; 遥远地
remote / a.
initial / a. occurring at the beginning; first 最初的,
开始的
impact / n. a strong effect; the striking of one
thing against another 影响; 冲击

Phrases & Expressions

size up form an opinion or judgment about 估计; 品评
a bit to some degree; rather 有点儿, 相当
tear up destroy completely by tearing 撕毁, 毁掉
make a mess of disorder, spoil or ruin 把…弄脏 ; 把…弄糟
on the run running or hurrying from place to place; in
flight 奔跑着;奔逃着
do one's homework make necessary preparations before taking
part in an important activity 作必要的准备
by and large on the whole; in general
all in al ( informal ) on the whole
here and there seattered about; in various places 零星分散,
在各处
burn to a crisp burn black or dry 烤焦
cut throu 穿过, 穿透
cling to keep a firm hold on 紧紧抓住
be/go on the/a rampage go about in an excitad,mad and violent manner
横冲直撞
by chance unintentionally ; by accident 偶然地; 意外地
at one time formerly 从前, 曾经
level off/out move horizontally (af ter climbing) ; remain
steady (after a rise) (爬高后)水平移动 ;
(上升后)达到平稳
stretch out extend; prolong 延伸 ,延续
in truth truly; really 的确
have in mind be considering, intend 考虑, 打算

　

Proper Names

　

Wyoming 怀俄明(美国州名)
Montana 蒙大拿(美国州名)
the Big Horns 大霍恩山脉(美国山名)
the Bitterroots 比特鲁特山脉(美国山名)
the Swan 斯旺山(美国山名)
Wisconsin 威斯康星(美国州名)
South Dakota 南达科他(美国州名)
the Black Hills 布莱克山(美国山名)
Buffalo 布法罗(美国城市名)
Powder River 波德河(美国河流名)
Ten Sleep Creek 十眠河(美国河流名)
the Rockies 洛矶山脉(美国山名)
Togwatee Pass 托格瓦堤关(美国地名)
the Tetons 提腾山脉(美国山名)

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