| OCR Text |
Show APPENDIX NN. 1289 lands and points projecting into Lake Tahoe are considered as snob. A general account of the topographical features along the eastern border of Lake Tahoe may be appropriately given iu connection with the Eastern Summit. Beginning at the northeast corner of the lake we have the semicircular Todman's Bay, which has for the most part a sandy beach. In the northeast corner, black magnetic sand occurs on the shore. For the next 6 miles the banks of the lake are steep, and several low promontories extend from the shore. Just north of Olenbrook a bold rocky headland projects far out from the general shore- line, and forms a very conspicuous point in the northern half of the lake. Olenbrook, the most important settlement on Lakn Taboe, and the headquarters of the lumber trade, lies in a small bay. There is considerable arable-land in this vicinity. A strip of productive land extends back from the lake for a distance of 2 miles, where it is. called Spooner's Meadow. Proceeding south the coastline is quite uniform until* Cave Rock is reached. This is a very conspicuous point. The name is derived from the fact that a cave abont 20 feet loug and 10 feet high occurs on the south side of this projecting rock, which consists of porphyritic trachyte. There are three low, densely wooded tongues of land on the eastern side of Lake Tahoe south of Cave Rock. The shore- line is regular, and sandy for the remaining portion of this coast of the lake. A good wagon- road follows the eastern border of this sheet of water from Olenbrook to Lake Valley. There are no outlying ridges belonging to the Eastern Summit that run parallel to it. The Eastern Summit is bounded on the east by the alluvial valleys of Carson and Washoe. The low ridge of granite that separates these valleys may be regarded as a spur of this main range. There is no other place between Washoe City and Carson City where rock occurs in situ. The Eastern Summit consists chiefly of granite and syenitic granite. A few eruptions of igneous rock bave taken place throughout the range. Beginning at the northernmost part of the range explored by me, the first upheaval is Mount Rose, where a eonioal mass of basalt has broken through the granite. Many bowlders of this rook are scattered over the country for several miles to the east and south. The color of the rock in blue, and on the snmmit of Mount Rose the basalt is laminated and ferruginous. There are no trees within 300 feet of the top of the peak, the only vegetation being moss and occasional tufts of grass. There are many anticlinal ridges running in every direction on the west of Mount Rose. The rock forming the summit is much disintegrated, and the south side, which is quite steep, is covered with ddbris. This peak is 10,820 feet high. A spur of the Eastern Summit, near Carson, consists of trachyte. On the western side of ihe range, just south of Glenbrook, a mass of feld- Rpathic diorite, about 700 feet high, occurs. It has been called Shakspeare's Gliff, on account of a peculiar grouping of the lichens on the face of the cliff bearing a strong resemblance to the profile of tbe poet. The north side of this butte is perpendicular half- way down, with soil and debris sloping to the valley. The south side contains many pillars of the diorite, showing the prismatic structure finely. Some of these columns are curved, and of considerable length. Shakspeare's Cliff is 773 feet above Lake Tahoe. The butte knowu as Cave Rock has already been mentioned. It is about ir> 0 feet high. No igneous rock is found south of this point in the portions of the Eastern Summit explored by me. The conical mountains known as Job's Peaks and Freel's Peak form the southernmost limit of this range. These peaks, together with their outliers on the north and west, consist of grayish granite. Some of the ridges diverging from Job's Peaks have a serrated outline, aud are densely wooded with pine and spruce. The summits of these peaks are covered with loose fragments of granite, while the slopes are dotted with rocky tors and projecting crags, which present a very picturesque appearance. The altitude of these mountains is as follows: Freel's Peak, 10,662 feet; Job's Peak, 10,650 feet; Job's Sister, 10,700 feet. In general, it may be said that the ridge- line of the plateau- like range called the Eastern Summit consists entirely of granite, which is flanked iu several places by igneous rock?, which are usually spurs of the range. The average height of the Eastern Summit is about 9, h00 feet. Ore- deposits occur in the Eastern Summit, tbe principal of which are the following: 1. The Montreal mine. This mine is situated abont 2£ miles northwest of Carson City. It was first opened in lb70, and has been worked at intervals ever since. A tnnuel, several hundred feet long, has been < iriven in the side of the mountain, above which is still another tunnel 150 feet in length. The ore occurs in gray granite and quartz rock. The granite is frequently poor in mica. Dark- blue sandstone- veins traverse the country- rock. There is but little water in the mines. The ore is argentiferous ; some of it is said to assay as much as § 1,700 per ton. The main rock forming the slope of the mountain in which the Moutreal mine lies is syenitic granite. A small stamping- mill was in course of erection in September, 1876, and eighteen men were working at that time. 2. The Emerald mine adjoins the preceding. This mine was discovered in 1874, aud has been worked at intervals since then. A tunnel 400 feet long has been driven in the granite. The rock is darker within the tunnel than at the surface, where it is soft; and crumbling. The ore assays $ 90 to the ton. |
