Lawson.1 



The Upper Kern Basin. 



with Kern Canon, there is strong inferential evidence that the 

 canon follows the line of a rift fissure, and in connection with 

 this fissure there has been a certain amount of minor faulting'. 



THE GENERAL RELIEF AND DRAINAGE. 



Ill attempting to form just conceptions of the relief of the 

 Upper Kern Basin the best, and probably the only satisfactory, 

 method to be followed is to look down upon it from some of the 

 high peaks which command it. The only alternative capable of 

 yielding similar results would be to study the region from the 

 basket of a balloon: but that has its drawbacks. Moved by this 

 doctrine, several of the more commanding points situated either 

 On the rim of the basin, or within it, were occupied and very 

 comprehensive views obtained. The best of these for the study 

 of the relief are afforded by the summits of Mt. Whitney on the 

 eastern rim, Sawtooth on the western, and Mt. Guyot in the more 

 central portion of the basin. Perhaps the finest view of all, 

 judging from its situation, would lie that from Kaweah Peak; 

 but this was not occupied. A very impressive view of Kern 

 Canon is obtained from the summit of Tower Rock, which rises 

 sheer from the river 2150 feet just opposite the mouth of Coyote 

 creek; and from the volcanic cones of Toowa Valley the charac- 

 ter of surface of the unglaciated region of the southern Sierra 

 Nevada may be studied to great advantage. The observations 

 made from such points of view, supplemented by others upon the 

 character and form of the surface made at closer quarters, have 

 led to certain definite impressions as to the configuration of the 

 Upper Kern Basin and of its geomorphic evolution which it is 

 the purpose of the present paper to set forth and discuss. 



The Upper Kern down to the point where it is joined by the 

 Little Kern drains a hydrographic basin of about -400 square 

 miles. This area when delimited upon a map* is seen to be oval or 

 leaf-shaped, the north and south diameter being 35 miles and the 

 greatest east and west diameter 16 miles (Plate 31). The drain- 

 age scheme is like the veination of a leaf, the trunk stream of the 

 Kern flowing due south with a remarkably straight course as a 

 midrib through the center of the area. On either side tributary 



•LeConte's blue print "Map of a portion of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, No. :!. 

 Kings-Kern Sheet," is the best map of the region. 



