AUTO TOUR 



97 



from time to time, parts of all vegeta- 

 tation, leaves, petals, etc., were em- 

 bedded in them, together with wool fib- 

 rs, butterfly wings, mica crystals, frag- 

 ments of nearly everything that part of 

 the world contained — rubbed in, em- 

 bedded and coarsely stratified, so that 

 these wonderful garments grew to have 

 a rich geological and biological signifi- 

 cance . . ." (John Muir) 



Siesta Lake on Tioga Road 



T SIESTA LAKE. This spring-fed 



C little lake encircled by lodgepole 

 pine and red firs is not over 5 feet 

 deep and hence any fish which might be 

 planted in it would be subject to winter- 

 kill. No live fish have been seen in the 

 lake since 19S4. The name is unofficial 

 and is probably given because it makes 

 a delightful spot along the Tioga Road 

 for rest or picnic. The road was di- 

 verted at this point to avoid despoiling 

 the charm of this lake. The rare Arctic 

 three-toed woodpecker nests here occas- 

 ionally. 



J WHITE WOLF. About 18 50 John 

 g Meyer, a cattleman, while leading 

 a posse to recover horses stolen by 

 Indians, came upon this lovely Alpine 

 meadow. An Indian encampment, whose 

 chief was White Wolf, had stopped here 

 for a short time. Meyer named the place 

 in honor of the chief. This is near the 

 junction of the new and old Tioga 

 Roads. The White Wolf Lodge is about 

 1 mile off the main paved road on the 



old Tioga Road. This popular high 

 Sierra camp, at an elevation of about 

 8,000 feet, is open from approximately 

 July 1 to September 1. 



J OLD TIOGA ROAD. Between 

 _ White Wolf junction and Tuol- 

 ' umne Meadows you drive along a 

 section of the old Tioga Road. Twenty- 

 one miles of this road remains in public 

 use and has been only slightly improved 

 since 1883 when the Great Sierra Con- 

 solidated Silver Company built 

 it for an access to their headquarters at 

 Bennettville near Tioga Pass where they 

 were driving the famed Sheepherder 

 Tunnel. It cost over $64,000. This old 

 mining road was purchased by Stephen 

 T. Mather and some friends and pre- 

 sented the National Park Service in 

 1915. A short distance beyond the junc- 

 tion starts a downgrade of some five 

 miles which drops about 1,300 feet and 

 terminates at Yosemite Creek. The name 

 Tioga comes from the Tioga Mining 

 District which may, in turn, have re- 

 ceived its name from Tioga County N. 

 Y. Tioga is an Iroquois Indian name 

 meaning "where it forks." 



Old Tioga Road - 1956 



