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Yosemite Valley SELF-GUIDING AUTOqJ TOUR. YOSEMITE VALLEY Tunnel View Special Number YOSEMITE NATURE NOTES January, 1942 Yosemite Nature Notes THE MONTHLY PUBLICATION OF THE YOSEMITE NATURALIST DEPARTMENT AND THE YOSEMITE NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION VOL. lIXI IANUARY, 1942 NO. I SELF-GUIDING AUTO TOUR OF YOSEMITE VALLEY M. E. Beatty and C. A. Harwell This sell-guiding auto tour has GOVERNMENT CENTER been arranged for the visitor who TO INDIAN CAVES ants to discover and visit the scen- ic and historic points of interest in 12.0 miles) Yosemite Valley . It is a complete circle tour of the valley floor, a total Government Center, our starting distance of around 22 miles, and will point, is made up of the Yosemite require at least two hours. Museum, National Park Service Ad- We will first visit the upper or ministration Building, Post Office, eastern end of Yosemite Valley. photographic and art studios and Principal stopping points will be In- the Rangers Club . The Museum dims Caves, Mirror Lake, Happy is a key to the park . We will do well Isles, Stoneman Meadow, Camp to spend some time studying its well Curry and the Old Village . planned exhibits before our trip to 2 YOSEMITE NATURE NOTES learn what to look for; and again at a cost of over a million dollars. Its the close of our tour to review and architecture is of rare beauty. fix what we have learned and to Leaving the hotel grounds we have questions answered that have torn arisen south along the open meadow to the . next intersection where we turn left. Leaving Government Center, we we cross two bridges in quick suo- . The Merced Ritter here is a head east toward Half Dome which cession towers nearly a mile in height above the Valley floor . Directly to the left we see lndirm Canyon. the principal route of the early Indians in their fourneys between Yosemite and Mono Lake on the east side of the Sierra Nevada. During spring months Lehamite Fall may be seen cascading down a precipitous niche on thright hand wall of this can- yon . Lehamite is the Indian name for arrowwood which grows abund- Ahiit,, Carl antly along Indian Creek. Reaching favored swimming spot for summer the first highway intersection our campers . At the far left hand side of route continues straight ahead . The the second bridge stands the largest road to the right leads to a garage Sugar Pine tree on the floor of the and service station a few yards valley . It is seven feet in diameter. away .) On the right are the residen- Note the long cones at the tips of the ces of the permanent employees of branches which sometimes reach a the Yosemite Park and Curry Co. which operates all hotels, camps, length of twenty-three inches. On transportation, stores, shops and the Wawona Road and especially stables in the park for accommo- along the Big Oak Flat Road may be dation of visitors. On the left the seen the best stands of this beautiful Lewis Memorial Hospital named in pine to be found any place in the honor of W . B. Lewis, first Super- world. For the next half mile, splen- intendent of Yosemite National Park did views of the Royal Arches may under the National Park Service be obtained on the left wall of the administration (March 3, 1916 to valley . Streaking down over the September 1928 .) Royal Arches to the left is Royal Arch Cascades, a striking spring water- At the next intersection we take the fall. short spur road which continues The Royal Arches are the result of straight ahead through the large a combination of exfoliation and stone gates to visit the beautiful Ah- glacial plucking and are closely wahnee HoteL completed in 1927 at associated with the process of dome SELF-GUIDING AUTO TOUR OF YOSEMITE VALLEY 3 Mt. trill (I) .095 ff.) Ha 1,11 a. I osemite Valley . with as area of appraximotely seven squore miles, is but a small part of this notional park, whose boundaries embrace 1 .189 square miles—roughly, about the site of Rhode /shod . Over excellent highways one may reach Tuolumne Meadows and famed Tiogo Pass. the 1loriposa Grove, finest of three grove of big trees (Sequoia gigaruea) in the park, and Glacier Point where o matchless, breathtaking panorama of Me valley, the Clark Range and the Sierra nest a found. In addition . oter 700 miles of trots enable one to make numerous trips of varying duration to many interesting places "off the beaten track ." Thus short strolls in the vicinity of highways as well as longer hikes to the more remote parts of the park, where one encounters some of the most pitta, esque scenery of the central Sierra region, are available. To know the park is to know its trails . 4 YOSEMITE NATURE NOTES formation . The curved shells corn- Indian Caves is the site of the old prising the Arches vary in thiclme Indian Village Hol-low or Lah-koo- from ten to eighty feet and several hah which means "come out." Bark of them unite at the top of the main dwellings or umu-teas have been re- arch to form one shell nearly 200 constructed on original sites. On the feet thick. This arch rises 1,000 feet huge flat-topped granite rock r (measured from the underside) and front of the umu-teas, deep mortar has a span of 1,800 feet and can be holes in the granite show where likened to a cross-section of North acorns, the principal food of the Dome. rising directly above the Indian, were pounded . The lower valley rim here. To the right of the Indian Cave is easy of access, a low, broad, deep recess under a huge rock near the base of Wash- ington Column . The upper cave perhaps shows more and longer use by Indians . It is reached by a short, steep scramble up from the umu- tcas. Smoke from many campfires has blackened the ceilings . Al- though it is believed that the caves were not used as permanent dwel- lings, undoubtedly they were used xo>o~ A.ehn w,d wehlegrrs Coke. as places of storage and shelter from severe storms or as a retreat Royal Arches, Washington Column and hiding place from their enemies. rises like a tall skyscraper 1952 feet Yosemite Indians left the valley in above the valley floor. Although the winter. El Portal and desirable not particularly striking as sites in that region were their winter pared to the other rock features along the valley wall, Washington homes . Paiutes who spent the sum- Column would make nearly four mer here wintered around Mono Washington Monuments in height. Lake. This is the most easterly of The road takes us along the edge of thirty-five old Indian villages and Camp 9, on the right, reserved for camps located in the valley. At organization camping groups least six of them were occupied by summer. Shortly we at the road sign designating Indian Caves Indians as late as 1898. Indians of and turn left on a small loop road the park now live in the new Indian and park the car . Village below Yosemite Lodge . SELF-GUIDING AUTO TOUR OF YOSEMITE VALLEY 5 INDIAN CAVES TO yon not many hundred years ago. MIRROR LAKE The usual absence of wind during (1.5 miles) the early morning hours together Leaving Indian Caves, we con- with the relative darkness of the tinue east keeping left at the nearby deep canyon is responsible for the intersection . The road winds slightly perfect reflections . The best time is upgrade as we start up Tenaya around sunrise, which is rather late Canyon. named after old Chief at this point due to the sun having Tenaya, last chief of the Yosemites. to rise over Ahwlyah Point on the On the right we pass Iron Springs rim of Half Dome. Beyond Half Dome with its thick rusty colored mineral on the right wall of the canyon is deposit. From here to Mirror Lake, the road follows Tenaya Creek, where Water Ouzels may often be seen and heard at any time of year that there is water in the stream. Wa:e, oau! One of their moss nests is visible Mirror Late and Mt. Watkins from the road. The road ends at the Mirror Lake parking area where we ;loads Rest, which is nearly 10,000 leave our car and walk the short eet above sea level . Looking across distance to the lake. Although . canyon from Clouds Rest, we see practically all other of the 300 At. Watkins. the dome reflected in natural lakes in Yosemite National he waters of Mirror Lake and Park's 1,189 square miles are of Luther to the left is Basket Dome. glacial origin, Mirror Lake was formed by a rock slide from the cliff A short stroll along the border of walls which dammed Tenaya Can- he lake takes us to the main foot 6 YOSEMITE NATURE NOTES and bridle trail leading to Snow area, which is practically the entire Creek and to Tenaya Lake and list for the valley floor . See how other points beyond then Only many of them you can distinguish. a few hundred yards along this trail They are listed (common to rare for is to be found one of the two remain- Happy Isles) as follows : Ponderosa ing places where Glacier Polish is Pine, Incense Cedar, Douglas Fir, still evident on the granite walls of White Fir, Alder, Black Oak, Maple, the valley. It is well worth the short Dogwood, Canyon Live Oak, Ray, walk to rub your hand over this Cottonwood, Willow, Lodgepole polish and to realize the tremendous Pine, Sugar Pine and Red Fir.
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