110 Part II. Chapter 1. 
with the width of the valley itself. Very little talus has accumulated at the 
foot of these cliffs, which further accentuates their height. The objects which 
arrest the attention are the great granite cliffs and crags rising, 3000 to 4000 
feet above the floor of the valley and the grand and beautiful waterfalls by 
which the many tributaries of the Merced River join that river in the level 
below by falling over the clifis from great heights. Chief of these is the 
Yosemite Fall, (2462 feet), the Bridal Veil Fall (630 feet), while the Vernal 
Fall 350 feet and the Nevada Fall 600 feet in height are of scarcely less 
importance. 
Small residual glaciers abound in the high Sierras‘). Muir found sixty-five 
in that portion of the range lying between latitude 36° 30° and 39°. The 
largest of these glaciers on Mount Shasta descends to within 9500 feet of 
the level of the sea, which is perhaps the lowest point reached by any glacier 
within the bounds of California, the average height of all being not far from 
11,000 feet (3350 m). Traces of the vanished glaciers abound on the Sierra, as 
far south, as latitude 36°. The polished rock surfaces, the most evanescent 
of glacial records, are still found in a perfect state of preservation on the upper 
half of the middle portion of the range. 
Glacial lakes also abound in this region. All the upper branches of the 
rivers are provided with lakes. They lie embosomed in deep woods, in the 
bottoms of canons, high on bald table-lands and around the base of icy peaks. 
The whole number in the Sierra can hardly be less than fifteen hundred and 
two thirds, or more of these, lie on the western flank of the range. Lake Tahoe 
22 miles (35 km) long by about ı0o wide and from 500 to over 1600 feet in 
depth, is the largest of all the sierra lakes. It lies just beyond the northern 
limit of the higher portion of the range between the main axis and a spur 
that puts out on the east side from near the head of the Carson River. Donner 
Lake, three miles long lies about ten miles to the north of Tahoe, and a few 
miles farther north lies Lake Independence about the same size as Donner. 
Muir states: “In the basin of the Merced River I counted ı31, of which ı11 
are upon the tributaries that fall so grandly into Yosemite Valley. Pohono 
Creek, which forms the fall of that name, takes its rise in a beautiful lake, 
lying beneath the shadow of a lofty granite spur that puts out from Buena 
Vista Peak. This is now the only lake left in the whole Pohono basin. The 
Illilouette has sixteen, the Nevada no fewer than sixty-seven, and Tenaya eight, 
Hoffmann Creek five and Yosemite Creek fourteen. There are but two other 
lake-bearing affluents of the Merced, viz., the South Fork with fifteen, and 
Cascade Creek with five, both of which unite with the main trunk below 
Yosemite.” 
Upon the filling up of these lakes either by the action of vegetation, Of the 
deposit of eroded material, glacier meadows are formed. These are smooth, 
level, silky lawns, Iying imbedded in the upper forests, on the floors of the 
1) MuIr, Joun: The mountains of California, p. 20. 1901. 
ee nt RS 5 
May N EN URFLER RE RT Te 
