76 THE MOUNTAINS OF CALIFOKNIA 



the trail ought to go must go. One of these In 

 dian trails crosses the range by a nameless pass 

 between the head waters of the south and middle 

 forks of the San Joaquin, the other between the 

 north and middle forks of the same river, just to 

 the south of " The Minarets " ; this last being about 

 9000 feet high, is the lowest of the five. The Kear- 

 sarge is the highest, crossing the summit near the 

 head of the south fork of King's Eiver, about eight 

 miles to the north of Mount Tyndall, through the 

 midst of the most stupendous rock-scenery. The 

 summit of this pass is over 12,000 feet above sea- 

 level ; nevertheless, it is one of the safest of the five, 

 and is used every summer, from July to October 

 or November, by hunters, prospectors, arid stock- 

 owners, and to some extent by enterprising pleasure- 

 seekers also. For, besides the surpassing grandeur 

 of the scenery about the summit, the trail, in as 

 cending the western flank of the range, conducts 

 through a grove of the giant Sequoias, and through 

 the magnificent Yo Semite Valley of the south fork 

 of King's River. This is, perhaps, the highest trav 

 eled pass on the North American continent. 



The Mono Pass lies to the east of Yosemite Val 

 ley, at the head of one of the tributaries of the 

 south fork of the Tuolumne. This is the best 

 known and most extensively traveled of all that 

 exist in the High Sierra. A trail was made through 

 it about the time of the Mono gold excitement, in 

 the year 1858, by adventurous miners and prospec 

 tors men who would build a trail down the throat 

 of darkest Erebus on the way to gold. Though 

 more than a thousand feet lower than the Kear- 



