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Show APPENDIX NN. 1291 Lake Tahoe, the more prominont of which are Blackwood and McKinney's Creeks. The water of all these Btreams is cold and clear. There are two pastes in the Western Summit that are traversable with vehicles: The Placervillestage- road, called the " grade," on the eastern slope, several miles south of Mount Tallar, which was constructed ia 1860, soon after the discovery of the Corn-stock Lode; the'other pass that is traversed by a wagon- road is the caflon of the Trnckee River, from the town of the same name to Tahoe City. The road runs along the south side of the river for 7 miles from Trnckee, when it crosses the stream and continues on the northern shore to the lake. A wagon- road traverses a spur of the Western Summit on the north side of Lake Tahoe, from Warm Springs to Trnckee. A road runs up to the head of Blackwood Canon, which might be continued across the range. A wagon route follows the lake shore from Warm Springs to Tahoe Ciry, and thence to McKinney's. There are no irrigating ditches in this range. The topography of the western shore of Lake Tahoe may be aptly described in the following manner: The south western shore of the lake presents bold and rocky headlands. Emerald Bay is an indentation of the coast, extending 2£ miles inward. The opening of the bay is about half a mile broad. Going northward, the shore is tolerably regular, but rises abruptly from the level of the lake. At Rubicon Point a steep rocky promontory juts into the lake. From this place to Tahoe City there is very little rock in situ, the shore being a comparatively level strip of alluvium, with a sandy beach, and bordered with a very thick growth of manzanita as far as Sugar Pine Point. The coast- lino rnns north, without, any marked features until Meigs's Bay is reached. This is a picturesque bight, about half a mile in breadth, which is bounded on the north by Sugar Pine Point. This tongue of land is the longest in Lake Tahoe, and covers at least 3 miles in width, including its sinuosities. Ou the northern side of this point the shore- line trends nearly due west for a mile, and then northward again, without appreciable curves, to Tahoe City, form in? the broad Upson's Bay. At this locality the land bears northeast to Observatory Point, a V- shaped, cape jutting far out into the lake. The coast- line then runs northerly and curves gradually until it has an eastward bearing, forming the semi- circular Cornelian Bay. The northern shore of the lake tends gently to the southeast until the western boundary of Tod man's Bay is reached, thus forming the rocky promontory known as State- line Point, which divides California from Nevada. This point stretches far out into Lake Tahoe, and diminishes gradually in width till the apex consists simply of a row of detached masses of rock, decreasing in size until the water- level is reached. There has been much more erosion and denudation in the Western than in the Eastern Summit. In the former range the gorges have precipitous walls. The slopes of many ridges aio covered with MUris. The scenery throughout the Western Summit is exceedingly picturesque. The variety in the landscape seen from any of the high peaks is unique. The rugged mountains azure lakes, and wiudii- g callous present a scene of surpassing grandeur. There is a striking contrast bui. ween the eastern and western slopes of this range iu reference to the timber; the former beiug for the most part bare aud rocky, wTiile the latter is densely wooded. There is abundant evidence of the former existence of glaciers in the Wostcru Summit. I have condensed the following extract from Prof. Joseph Le Conte's paper on " Ancient Glaciers of the Sierra,*" as he has studied the glacial phenomena thoroughly :. § < Between the Eastern and Western Summits lies a trough fifty miles long, twenty miles wide, aud 3,000 to 3,500 feet deep. This trough is Lake Vallev. It was formerly occupied by a great glacier rising near Pyramid Peak, filling Lake *? ahoe, aud escaping northeast toward the plains. Some of the ice escaped by Truckee Canon, for I have found glacial markings on the rocks iu this cafion. Dnriug glacial times the trough of Lake Valley, the lower half of which is now filled with the waters of Lake Tahoe, was a great mer de glace, receiving tributaries from all directions except the north. The tracks of the smaller glaciers are more easily traced than those of the principal one. _ Of tho two summits, the western is the higher. It bears the most snow now, and in former times gave origin to the grandest glaciers. Again, the peaks ou both these summits rise higher aud higher as we^ jo toward the upper or southern end of the lake.^ Ilence, the largest glaciers ran into the lake at its southwestern side. Between this point and Sugar Pinu Poiut, a distance of about nine miles, I saw the pathways of five or . six glaciers. North of Sugar Pine Point there are also several. They are all marked by moraine ridges running down from the summits and projecting as . points into the lake. Inasmuch as the highest mountains areon the southwesterly end of the lake, the greatest glaciers have been there as well as the piofoundest glacial scnlpturiiigs. I need ouly name Mount Tallac, Fallen Leaf Lake, Cascade Lake and Emerald Bay. These three fine little lakes, ( for Emerald Bay is a'so almost a lake,) mstled closely against the loftiest peaks on the western summit, are all pcr- * Am. Journal, Sor. Ill, vol. v, p. 125; Proo. Cal. Acad. Sciences, vol. iv, part 5, p. 259. |