high, and the waves quite formidable. We shipped wave after
wave, so that those of us who were sitting in the bows got
drenched. It was very exciting. The wind became still
higher; several of the party got very sick, and two of them
_cascaded_. I was not in the least affected, but, on
the contrary, enjoyed the sail very much. About 2 P.M. we
concluded it was time to return, and therefore tacked about
for camp.

The wind was now dead ahead, and blowing very hard. The boat
was a very bad sailer, and so were _we_. We beat up
against the wind a long time, and made but little headway.
Finally, having concluded we would save time and patience by
doing so, we ran ashore on the beach about a mile from camp
and towed the boat home. The owner of the boat told us that
_he_ would not have risked the boat or his life in the
middle of the Lake on such a day. "Where ignorance is bliss,"
etc.

After a hearty supper we gathered around the fire, and the
young men sang in chorus until bedtime. "Now then, boys,"
cried I, "for a huge camp-fire, for it will be cold tonight!"
We all scattered in the woods, and every man returned with a
log, and soon the leaping blaze seemed to overtop the pines.
We all lay around, with our feet to the fire, and soon sank
into deep sleep.

_August 21_. Sunday at Tahoe! I wish I could spend it
in perfect quiet. But my underclothes must be changed.
Cleanliness is a Sunday duty. Some washing is necessary. Some
of the party went fishing to-day. The rest of us remained in
camp and mended or washed clothes.

At 12 M. I went out alone, and sat on the shore of the Lake,
with the waves breaking at my feet. How brightly emerald-green
the waters near the shore, and how deeply and purely blue
in the distance! The line of demarcation is very distinct,
showing that the bottom drops off suddenly. How distinct the
mountains and cliffs all around the Lake; only lightly tinged
with blue on the farther side, though more than twenty miles
distant!

How greatly is one's sense of beauty affected by association!
Lake Mono is surrounded by much grander and more varied
mountain scenery than this; its waters are also very clear,
and it has the advantage of several very picturesque islands;
but the dead volcanoes, the wastes of volcanic sand and ashes
covered only by interminable sagebrush, the bitter, alkaline,
dead, slimy waters, in which nothing but worms live; the
insects and flies which swarm on its surface, and which are
thrown upon its shore in such quantities as to infect the
air,--all these produce a sense of desolation and death
which is painful; it destroys entirely the beauty of the lake
itself; it unconsciously mingles with and alloys the pure
enjoyment of the incomparable mountain scenery in its
vicinity. On the contrary, the deep-blue, pure waters of Lake
Tahoe, rivaling in purity and blueness the sky itself; its
clear, bright emerald shore-waters, breaking snow-white on its
clean rock and gravel shores; the Lake basin, not on a plain,
with mountain scenery in the distance, but counter-sunk in
the mountain's top itself,--these produce a never-ceasing and
ever-increasing sense of joy, which naturally grows into love.
There would seem to be no beauty except as associated with
human life and connected with a sense of fitness for human
happiness. Natural beauty is but the type of spiritual beauty.
Enjoyed a very refreshing swim in the Lake this afternoon.
The water is much less cold than that of Lake Tenaya or the
Tuolumne River, or even the Nevada River.

The party which went out fishing returned with a very large
trout. It was delicious.

I observe on the Lake ducks, gulls, terns, etc., and about it
many sandhill cranes--the white species, the clanging cry of
these sounds pleasant to me by early association.

_August 22_. Nothing to do to-day. Would be glad to sail
on the Lake or fish, but too expensive hiring boats. Our funds
are nearly exhausted. Would be glad to start for home, but
one of our party--Pomroy--has gone to Carson City, and we must
wait for him.

I went down alone to the Lake, sat down on the shore and
enjoyed the scene. Nothing to do, my thoughts to-day naturally
went to the dear ones at home. Oh! how I wish they could be
here and enjoy with me this lovely Lake! I could dream away my
life here with those I love. How delicious a dream! Of all the
places I have yet seen, this is the one I could longest enjoy
and love the most. Reclining thus in the shade, on the clean
white sand, the waves rippling at my feet, with thoughts of
Lake Tahoe and of my loved ones mingling in my mind, I fell
into a delicious doze. After my doze I returned to camp, to
dinner.

About 5 P.M. took another and last swim in the Lake.

Pomroy, who went to Carson, returned 7 P.M. After supper,
again singing in chorus, and then the glorious campfire.




CHAPTER E

JOHN VANCE CHENEY AT LAKE TAHOE


One of America's poets who long lived in California, and then, after
an honorable and useful sojourn as Director of one of the important
libraries of the East, returned to spend the remainder of his
days--John Vance Cheney--in 1882, made the trip to Lake Tahoe by stage
from Truckee, and, among other fine pieces of description, wrote the
following which appeared in _Lippincott's_ for August, 1883:

One more ascent has been made, one more turn rounded, and
behold, from an open elevation, close upon its shore, Lake
Tahoe in all its calm beauty bursts suddenly upon the sight.
Nestled among the snowy summit-peaks of the Sierra Nevada,
more than six thousand feet above sea-level, it lies in
placid transparency. The surrounding heights are all the more
pleasing to the eye because of their lingering winter-cover;
and as we gaze upon the Lake, unruffled by the
gentlest breeze, we marvel at the quiet,--almost
supernatural,--radiancy of the scene. Lakes in other lands
may present greater beauty of artificial setting,--beauty
dependent largely upon picturesqueness, where vineyards and
ivied ruins heighten the effect of natural environment,--but
for nature pure and simple, for chaste beauty and native
grandeur, one will hesitate before naming the rival of Lake
Tahoe. This singularly impressive sheet of water, one of
the highest in the world, gains an indescribable but
easily-perceived charm by its remoteness, its high, serene,
crystal isolation. Its lights and shades, its moods and
passions, are changing, rapid, and free as the way of the
wind.

A true child of nature, it varies ever, from hour to hour
enchanting with new and strange fascination. The thousand
voices of the lofty Sierra call to it, and it answers; all the
colors of the rainbow gather upon it, receiving in their turn
affectionate recognition. Man has meddled with it little more
than with the sky; the primeval spell is upon it, the hush,
the solitude of the old gods. The breath of powers invisible,
awful, rouse it to the sublimity of untamable energy; again,
hush it into deepest slumber. Night and day it is guarded,
seemingly, by wonder-working forces known to man only through
the uncertain medium of the imagination. The traveler who
looks upon Lake Tahoe for a few hours only learns little of
its rich variety. Like all things wild and shy, it must be
approached slowly and with patience.

But our sketch must not include more than the hasty glimpses
of a day. The stage conveyed us directly to the wharf, which
we reached at ten o'clock, having accomplished our fourteen
mile ride up the valley in about two and a half hours. As we
boarded the little steamer awaiting us and looked over its
side into the water below, the immediate shock of surprise
cannot be well described. Every pebble at the bottom showed as
distinctly as if held in the open hand. We had all seen clear
water before, but, as a severe but unscholarly sufferer once
said of his rheumatism, "never such as _these_." The
day being perfect, no breeze stirring, and the Lake without
a ripple, the gravelly bottom continued visible when we had
steamed out to a point where the water reached a depth of
eighty feet. Two gentlemen on board who had made a leisurely
trip round the world and were now on their way home to
England, remarked that they had seen but one sheet of water
(a lake in Japan) of anything like equal transparency. It is
presumed that they had not visited Green Lake, Colorado.

Our course lay along the California shore, toward its southern
extremity, the steamer stopping at several points for exchange
of mail. These stopping places are all summer-resorts, where
the guests, snugly housed at the base of the mountain-range,
divide the time between lounging or rambling under the shadow
of the tall pines and angling for the famous Tahoe trout in
the brightness of the open Lake. All looked inviting, but we
were not wholly enchanted until,
gliding past many a snowy peak, we suddenly changed course
and put into Emerald Bay. This little bay, or rather lake in
itself, about three miles in length, is the gem of the Tahoe
scenery. Through its narrow entrance, formed by perpendicular
cliffs some two thousand feet high, we moved on toward an
island of rock and a succession of flashing waterfalls beyond.

*       *       *       *       *

For a time the dazzling mountain-crests and glistening gorges
absorbed attention. So high, white, silent! We longed to
be upon the loftiest one, from the top of which can be seen
thirteen charming little mountain-lakes, midair jewels,
varying in feature according to the situation. Two of these
lakes, widely dissimilar in character, are but two miles
distant from Tallac House, a comfortable resort at the base of
the noble peak from which it takes its name.

But not even the crystal summit ridges delighted us as did
the changing waters in the path of the steamer. Following
immediately upon the transparency preserved to a depth of some
eighty feet, a blur passed over the surface. This changed
by imperceptible degrees to a light green. The green, again,
speedily deepened, shading into a light blue; and finally,
in deepest water (where the Lake is all but fathomless), the
color becomes so densely blue that we could not believe our
eyes. Indigo itself was outdone. Description fails; the blue
deep of Tahoe must be seen to be appreciated.

*       *       *       *       *

The ride from Glenwood back to Tahoe City was not so calm. The
Lake was considerably agitated; less so, however, than on
the following day, when, as we learned afterward, our little
steamer lost its rudder. Owing to the gorges in the mountains
upon either side, through which winds rush unexpectedly, Tahoe
has her dangers. She is a wild, wayward child, but thoroughly
lovable throughout all her frowns as well as smiles, equally
captivating in her moments of unconquerable willfulness as in
her seasons of perfect submission. Reaching Tahoe City at four
o'clock, we found the stage standing in readiness, and, with
a last, hasty look at the Lake, we were soon on our way by the
banks of the Truckee, back to town.




CHAPTER F

THE RESORTS OF LAKE TAHOE


In the body of this book I have given full account of some of the
resorts of the Tahoe region, including Deer Park Springs, Tahoe
Tavern, Fallen Leaf Lodge, Cathedral Park, Glen Alpine Springs,
Al-Tahoe, Lakeside, Glenbrook and Carnelian Bay.

But these are by no means all the resorts of the Bay, and each year
sees additions and changes. Hence I have deemed it well briefly to
describe those resorts that are in operation at the time this volume
is issued.

It should be remembered that each resort issues its own descriptive
folder, copies of which may be obtained from the ticket offices of the
Southern Pacific Railway, the Lake Tahoe Railway and Transportation
Company, or the Peck-Judah Information Bureau, as well as from its
own office. All the resorts not already described in their respective
chapters are reached by steamer on its circuit around the Lake, as
follows:

HOMEWOOD

The first place for the steamer after leaving the Tavern is Homewood,
a comparatively new resort, but already popular and successful,
conducted by Mr. and Mrs. A.W. Jost. This is six miles from Tahoe
City. The hotel was built in 1913 and has hot and cold water piped to
all rooms.

In addition there are cottages of two and three rooms, which, together
with single and double tents, provide for every taste and purse. The
tents are protected by flies, have solid boarded floors, are well
carpeted, and afford the fullest opportunity for out-door sleeping.
Homewood possesses a gently sloping and perfectly safe bathing
beach for adults and children. It also boasts a unique feature in
an open-air dancing platform, with old-fashioned music. It owns
its power-boat for excursions on the Lake, and its fleet of row-and
fishing-boats. A campfire is lighted nightly during the season, and
song and story cheer the merry hours along.

For circulars address A.W. Jost, Homewood, Lake Tahoe, Calif.

MCKINNEY'S

Three and a half to four miles beyond Homewood is McKinney's. This
is one of the oldest and best-established resorts on the Lake, having
been founded and long conducted by that pioneer of Lake Tahoe, J.W.
McKinney, as fully related elsewhere. It is now under the management
of Murphy Brothers and Morgan, and is essentially a place that is
popular with the crowd. The resort was built, as are all the
older places, to meet ever-increasing needs, the main hotel being
supplemented by numerous cottages and tents. McKinney's has a fine new
dancing-hall, dark-room for amateur photographers, iron and magnesia
springs, fleet of fishing- and motor-boats, free fishing-tackle, etc.,
and during the season its accommodation for two hundred guests is more
than taxed to the limit.

For circular address Murphy Brothers and Morgan, McKinney's, Lake
Tahoe, Calif.

MOANA VILLA

The next steamer stopping-place, about two hundred yards from
McKinney's is Moana Villa, the comfortable, unpretentious and homelike
resort conducted by Mr. and Mrs. R. Colwell, who are also the owners
of Rubicon Springs, reached by daily stage during the summer season,
nine miles from McKinney's.

Owning its own ranch in the mountains where milk, cream, butter, eggs,
poultry and game are plentiful, the table at Moana Villa is provided
with all the substantials and luxuries, cooked and served in home
style.

One great advantage is offered to guests at Moana Villa, viz.: they
may divide their time between it and Rubicon Springs, as both are
under the same ownership and management.

The new Scenic Automobile Boulevard passes through the 700 acres of
delightful surroundings which belong to the place. The best fishing
grounds on Lake Tahoe are close by and numerous smaller mountain lakes
and streams afford excellent fly fishing. Deer, bear, grouse, quail,
ducks, geese and other game abound in the locality.

Hunting, fishing, bathing, boating, dancing, launch trips, beautiful
walks and drives and numerous games give ample opportunity for
amusement and recreation. The assembly hall and office is of logs.
Sleeping accommodations in cottages and tents or out of doors if
desired. Water is piped from a clear mountain spring, and an equipment
of up-to-date sanitary plumbing, bath and toilet appliances has been
lately installed.

For circular address R. Colwell, Moana Villa, Lake Tahoe, Calif.

*       *       *       *       *

POMIN'S

A little beyond Moana Villa is Pomin's, the latest acquisition to
the resorts of the Lake, having been opened in 1914. The hotel is an
attractive, well-equipped, up-to-date structure, located on a knoll
150 feet from the Lake, and is surrounded by pines. Enclosed verandas,
open fires in lobby and dining-rooms, electric lights, hot and
cold water in all the rooms, tents and cottages are some of the
conveniences and luxuries.

There is an attractive club-house on the Lake Shore. For circular
address Frank J. Pomin, Pomin's, Lake Tahoe, Calif.

Emerald Bay Camp and Al-Tahoe have both been described in their
respective chapters.

*       *       *       *       *

TALLAC

As explained in Chapter XVIII, Tallac House was built by E.J. (Lucky)
Baldwin. For many years it was the principal hotel on the Lake, but
what was a fine and superior hotel 25 years ago did not satisfy the
demands of modern patrons. Hence some years ago Mr. Baldwin planned to
erect a new hotel near the site of the old one. Unfortunately the work
was not much more than begun when he died and nothing has been done to
it since.

The hotel is now under the management of a San Francisco firm.

*       *       *       *       *

PINE FOREST INN

Built, as its name implies, in a pine grove of trees, this is one
of the older resorts of the Lake. It is unique in that it keeps open
throughout the year. Like the rest of the resorts of its class it
has hotel and dining-room with cottages and tents. Under its new
management a new casino has been built, and every room and cottage,
etc., equipped with electric lights. Especial attention is given to
camping-, fishing-, and hunting-parties. It is on the State Highway
between Placerville and Carson City, Nevada, and therefore makes all
provision for automobilists.

For circular address Lawrence & Comstock, Pine Forest Inn, Tallac
P.O., Calif.

*       *       *       *       *

CAMP BELL

Located between Al Tahoe and Bijou is Camp Bell, conducted by Russell
W. Bell. The camp consists of tents and an open-air dining-room.

For circular address Russell W. Bell, 128 Edgewood Ave., San
Francisco, Calif.

*       *       *       *       *

BIJOU INN

This is another well-known Inn and Camp at the southeastern end of
the Lake. It is on the Lake Shore Drive near to the State Highway and
close to Freel's and the other mountain peaks of this group. The
beach in front of Bijou is of clean white sand, with a gentle slope,
offering excellent facilities for bathing.

For circular address W.F. Conolley, Bijou, Lake Tahoe, Calif.

*       *       *       *       *

Lakeside Park and Glenwood have each been described in their
respective chapters.

*       *       *       *       *

BROCKWAYS

This old-established and popular hot-springs resort is on the north
end of the Lake, beautifully situated on State-Line Point between
Crystal and Agate Bays. The hot springs and mineral swimming-pool here
have a tested quality which thousands of guests can testify to, and
they are annually patronized by a large number. The resort and springs
are under the management of the owner.

For circular, address F.B. Alverson, Brockways, Lake Tahoe, Calif.

*       *       *       *       *

TAHOE VISTA

On the shores of Agate Bay a new resort was started two years ago,
known as Tahoe Vista. It has a modern hotel, equipped for convenience
and comfort.

Bathing, boating and fishing in Agate Bay at Tahoe Vista is at its
best. The white sanded beach is broad and is safe to the smallest
child, the bay being shallow for a distance of five hundred feet
from its edge and affording a temperature to the water that is more
pleasant than to be found at any other part of the Lake.

The fame of Lake Tahoe's trout fishing is world renowned, and in
Agate Bay that sport is superior. One of the public fish hatcheries
is located near Tahoe Vista, insuring a constant supply of the most
favored varieties of game fish. Twenty-five thousand Eastern brook
trout were recently placed in Griff Creek, a lively little stream that
dances through the glens of Tahoe Vista.

To those who wish to own their own homes on the Lake Tahoe Vista
affords excellent opportunities in that lots are for sale at moderate
rates. A direct automobile road connects with Truckee, and also with
Tahoe Tavern.

For circular address Manager Hotel, Tahoe Vista, Calif.

*       *       *       *       *

Carnelian Bay and its attractions are fully described in its own
chapter.

*       *       *       *       *

TAHOE CITY

This is the starting and the ending point of the steamer trip around
the Lake. It is a historic place, the first town founded on Lake
Tahoe, and destined ultimately to come into large importance. There is
a small hotel, together with housekeeping cottages, and free camping
facilities.

For full particulars address Tahoe Development Co., Tahoe, Calif.




INDEX

Titles of Books are in _Italics_.

Book chapters are in SMALL CAPITALS.

(q)=quoted.

Agassiz Peak
Agate Bay
Alleghany
Alpha
Alpine Spruce
Alta
AL TAHOE
Alverson, F.B.
_American Journal of Science and Art_
River (see N. & S. Forks)
Anderson Peak
Angel, Myron
Angora Range
Lakes
ANIMALS AND BIRDS OF T. REGION
Antelope Valley
Armstrong, Mrs.
Auburn
Audrian Lake
AUTOMOBILE ROUTE, THE WISHBONE

Baldwin, E.J.
Bannister, L.H.
Barker's Peak, Pass., etc.
Basketry Indian
Bath
Bear
Bear Creek
Lake
River Divide
Valley
Bell, Camp
Bigelow, R.L.P.
Bigler, Lake Tahoe Named
Bijou
BIRDS AND ANIMALS OF T. REGION
Bixby Lake
Blackwood Creek
Bliss and Yerington
Bloody Canyon Glacier
Bloomfield, North
Blue Canyon
Blue Jays
Boating
Boca
Bonpland, Amade
Bricknell & Kinger
Brockways
Brown, Sam
Browning, R. (q)
Buck Island Lake
Burton
Creek

California Ditch
Camino
Camping, Free
CAMPING OUT TRIPS IN T. REGION
Campoodie, Indians
CARNELIAN BAY AND T. COUNTRY CLUB
Carson City
Falls
Kit
Pass
River
Sink
Cascade Lake
Glacier
Castle Peak
Cathedral Peak
Park
Cave Rock
Cedar, Incense
Celios
Central Pacific Ry.
Chandler, Miss Katherine
CHAPARRAL OF T. REGION
Chase, Smeaton (q)
Cheney, John Vance (q)
Chipmunk
Chips Flat
Church, J.E., Jr., (q)
"Pap"
Cisco
Claraville
Clement, Ephraim
Coburn Station (see Truckee)
Cohn, A.
Cold Stream
Cole, D.W.
Coleman Valley
Colfax
Colgate
Columbia River
Colwell, R.
Comstock Lode
Conolley, W.F.
_Conroy, Gabriel_
Country Club, Tahoe
Crags, The
Creeks of Lake T.
Crystal Bay
Range

Dalles of Columbia River
Damascus
Dat-so-la-le
Deer Creek
PARK SPRINGS
Delano, L.P.
Desolation Valley
Devil's Playground
Pulpit
De Young, M.H.
Diamond Springs
Dick, Capt.
Digger Pine
Donner
Creek
George
Jacob
LAKE
Glacier
Road.
Downieville
Dubliss, Mt.
Dutch Flat
Swindle

Eagle Bird
Creek
Falls
Lake
Point
Echo
Lakes
Edgewoods
Edith Peak
Edmonds, Mark W.
El Dorado
Forest
Elevations
Ellis, Jock
Peak
Emerald Bay
AND CAMP
Freezes
Glacier
How Formed
Island
Legend of
Emigrant Gap
Road
Erosion, Glacial
Esmeralda Falls
Essex

Fallen Leaf Glacier
LAKE
Lodge
Fir, Red
Shasta
White
Fire, How Indians Got
Fish, Hatchery
FISHING IN TAHOE LAKES
Five Lakes
Creek
Floriston
Flower Display
FLOWERS OF TAHOE REGION
Folsom
Forest
_Conditions in Sierra Nevada_ (q)
Hill Divide
Rangers
TAHOE NATIONAL
Freel's Peak
Freeport
Freezing of Lake Tahoe
FREMONT AND THE DISCOVERY OF TAHOE
Discovers Pyramid Lake
Truckee River
Explorations
HOWITZER AND LAKE T.
Fulda
Fulton, R.L.

Gardnerville, Legend of
General Creek
Electric Co.
Genoa Peak
GEOLOGY OF LAKE TAHOE
Georgetown Deltas
Divide
Junction
Ghirardelli's Chocolate
Gilmore Lake
Nathan
GLACIAL HISTORY OF T. REGION
Lake Valley
Glen Alpine Canyon
Falls
SPRINGS
GLENBROOK
Gold Run
Goodyear's Bar
Granite Chief Peak
Graniteville
Grant's Crackers
Grass Valley
Grecian Bay
Greek George
Grizzly Gulch
Peak
Grove, The

Hale, Fort
Hangtown
Harte, Bret
Hastings, Lansford W.
Hay Press Meadows
Hazlett, Mr.
Heather Lake
Hell Hole
Little
Hellman, I.
_Heroes of California_
Hickey, Frances A.
Highland Peak