November 1937

El Capitan from Tunnel View Vol. xvi November 1937 No.

THE PUBLICATION OF THE YOSEMITE NATURALIST DEPARTMENT AND THE YOSEMITE NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION

Published Monthly Volume xvi November 1937 Number 11 The Story of Campgrounds in Yosemite Valley By Gabriel Sovulewski Retired Park Supervisor Many difficult questions are frequently asked by park visitors the new National Park areas. The first Army headquarters concerning the automobile camp was necessarily established at Camp numbering system in Yosemite. You understand that many of our Yosemite Valley was the property of A. E. Wood at Wawona since permanent employees are unacquainted with the State of California and state officials with the historical facts made it quite clear at that concerning this question. Upon the re- time that they did not want Army quest of Park Naturalist Harwell troops permanently situated in Yosemite Valley. In fact, when Army and Chief Clerk Sprinkel, I have consented to write a brief history of patrols came to Yosemite Valley the development of public camps from Wawona they were forbidden in Yosemite Valley. to camp further up the valley than Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Big Trees were Bridalveil Meadows and the movement of troops in the valley, even granted to the State of California when off duty, was quite restrictive. by the Act of Congress of June 30, 1864, for the use and recreation of From 1890 until 1905, the State the public. In 1890 Congress created of California continued to administer Yosemite Valley and the three National Parks in California-- Yosemite, Sequoia and General Mariposa Grove of Big Trees, both Grant National Parks—and the then situated within the boundaries creating Act authorized the use of of Yosemite National Park. In 1905 Army troops, detailed for duty under the Secretary of the Interior, to the California legislature voted to cede the Valley and the Big Tree

Grove to the United States. The great many visitors, not too sympathetic with Army administration, administration of Yosemite Valley was taken over by the department came to headquarters and complained that of the Interior in 1906 when Army "I camped there for Headquarters was moved from Wawona to Yosemite Valley, being many years before the Army ever came here, and I want to continue set up where the present Yosemite to camp there ". But in those days Lodge is located. Facilities were the administrative officers paid no built to accommodate two troops of cavalry, hospital, officers' quarters, etc., involving all the ground west of the Yosemite Creek Bridge and as far as Rocky Point, including Leidig Meadows. I was employed by the Quartermasters ' Department under General Funston and Colonel Clem in San Francisco during the earthquake and fire when Colonel H. C. Benson called me for duty in Yosemite Valley as Park Supervisor. I reported for duty in Yosemite on August 12, 1906. As Park Supervisor Colonel Benson held me responsible for a great many of the details of park administration affecting park visitors and in those early days many problems needed attention. As was always the case with army officers, sanitation took precedence over all other problems. There were no sanitary nor toilet facilities of any kind in any of the camp grounds below the Old Village and on that account camping in camp grounds numbered 1 to 5 was discouraged and by degrees these camps, all located west of the present developed area, were entirely abandoned, but not without many complaints and ill feeling. A Gabriel Sovulewski attention to the desires of park visitors when sanitation was involved. Colonel H. C. Benson was detached from Yosemite in October, 1908, in order to relieve General S. B. M. Young in Yellowstone National Park. I was left in charge of the

park and all of the Army property west end of the meadow near the with the title of "Custodian ". In Galen Clark house. May, 1909, Colonel William W. Camp No. 4: Leidig Meadows, including a portion of the present Forsyth, who was transferred from the Philippine Islands, took command. Yosemite Lodge grounds. This The matter of numbering camp was retired from public use the camps in the Valley was upon the establishment of Army brought to Colonel Forsyth 's attention Headquarters in Yosemite Valley and, after discussing the in 1906. problem for some time, I was instrumental Camp No. 5: Located east of the in convincing him to Yosemite Creek Bridge, extending leave the old numbers and go on as far as the apple orchard and with new numbers to avoid con- the Hutchings Cabin, including the fusing many yearly visitors who area later occupied by the Park were acquainted with the various Supervisor 's home, built in 1910, camping areas by number. I be- being the first residence built in lieved at that time that the old Yosemite Valley by the Department numbers 1 to 5 were so well asso- of the Interior. ciated with definite locations that Camp No. 6 : This is a very old to use these same numbers for new site and has remained without locations would be very confusing. change. The location of the original Camp No. 7: This is also in the camps, by number, were as follows, original location with the exception As stated above, soon after 1906 that it was divided in the middle when the valley was administered by a new road creating two by the Army, Camp Nos. 1 to 5 separate camps and No. 15, the were abandoned for sanitary reasons: next unused number was assigned to the east portion. Camp No. 1 : El Capitan Meadows. Camp No. 8: This was located It is to be noted that a meadow above Royal Arch Creek and, with was a requisite to early camps for the exception of a small portion, including pasturing horses and mules, included the present Ahwahnee Hotel Camp No. 2: Bridalveil Meadows. grounds. The erection of the Ahwahnee Hotel and the setting aside This camp was retired almost exclusively by army troops whenever of this area as the Ahwahnee they were in Yosemite Valley be- grounds in 1926 naturally retired tween the years 1890 and 1906, Camp No. 8. when it was abandoned. Camp No. 9: This is an old site Camp No. 3: Located west of the located on Tenaya Creek adjacent Old Village on the south side of the to and including Royal Arch Mea- Merced River in the trees at the dows. This camp is still in use, now

known as the "Organization Camp ". the original Camp No. 7. Camp No. 10: Was located near Camp No. 16: This was originally Iron Springs on Tenaya Creek, open to auto camping, but at present south of the Old Mirror Lake Road. has been reserved for visitors This area offered limited space and desiring rental equipment and as the demand for space in this housekeeping facilities. area grew, camping was discouraged Camp No. 17: This camp, known except on special request. Pro- at one time as "Camp Tecoya " is fessor Joe Le Conte used to love now utilized for permanent residences this particular spot and camped of employees of the Yosemite there for years with his family. Park and Curry Company. This camp was abandoned with the Camp No. 18: Is now occupied by change of the road alignment to the Post Office and photographic studios. Mirror Lake, under the administration of former Superintendent W. Camp No. 20: Is now occupied by B. Lewis. the Church Bowl. Camp No. 11: Was originally intended These three camps, i.e. 17, 18, and to include the area now occupied 20, have given way to modern development by the Company stables extending in the New Village area, tending eastward from the stables which took place in 1918. but this area was never released as Camp No. 19: This camp, formerly a public camp ground and number 11 a public campground, is now used was assigned to its present site by Government employees only, south of Camp 14 on the road to located about 600 feet southwest of Happy Isles. Sentinel Bridge. About 1912 we Camp No. 12: Is located where it discovered that we could not mix was originally intended, across the employees with park visitors in river from Camp 14. the camp grounds and a gradual Camp No. 13: This camp never segregation took place until all employees existed for superstitious reasons. It were completely isolated. was felt by many that to live in forbidding them camping space in a camp with this number would be the regular public campgrounds. sure to end disastrously— a tree The foregoing data has been would fall on you at night or you written purely from memory. It is might run into serious difficulties possible, of course, relying entirely with a bear. Hence we come to upon memory, that I have made Camp No. 14, which is in its original some mistakes in the above statelocation. ments. If anyone can correct any Camp No. 15: This has already part of this article, I would welcome been discussed. It is one half of the information.

Age of the Fir Trees at Glacier Point By Ranger Naturalist Elmer L. Lucas visitors to the Glacier Point diameter. The most striking feature camp ground have repeatedly asked observed in making the ring count the question—"How old are the was the irregularities in ring larger fir trees? " This question breadth, the rings being wider usually prompted an attempt to determine near the center of the trunk. at least approximately the age of Other noticeable variations were the average tree according to its probably due to changing climates, size. Fortunately, for my purpose, defoliation of the crown by insect there were a number of large firs attack years of plentiful seed production, in the area where trees were felled a more isolated position or in recent years by sawing. a response to action of gravity and Everyone is familiar with the mechanical forces. Eccentric diameter ring-shaped markings on the surface growth was also characteristic of the cross section. Applying of the cross sections studied. the term "annual rings" to them The ring count of the Red Firs requires some limitation. However, varied from 241 years with a diameter for all practical purposes a ring of two and one-half feet to includes the wood production of 289 years with a diameter of five one year and the age of the tree feet. The variation of the White Firs may be determined by counting the was from 186 years with an average annual rings. diameter of four and one-half feet. A total of twelve stumps including The average ring count of the White White Firs and six Red Firs firs was 246 years with an average were chosen that possessed clearly diameter of three and two-thirds defined rings. The cross sections feet. The Red Firs with an average varied from two to five feet in diameter radius of two and one-half feet

average 117 rings for each foot of growth and the White Firs with an average radius of one and eighty-five hundredths feet average 134 rings per foot of growth. The greater the number of cross sections studied, the more accurate the conclusion, but the lack of a greater number of stumps limits this brief study. The following conclusion is tentative and is subject to revision when further studies throw more light upon the age of the trees. The larger fir trees standing in the Glacier Point camp grounds today are probably about 300 years old. The application of these studies to the trees of the past indicates that it is entirely possible that 60 tree generations may have come and gone since the retreat of the last glacier from Yosemite valley.

PHONEY DISTRIBUTION

By Ranger Lon Garrison In a trip from Glacier Point down towards the Fish Hatchery and Happy Isles, (with a rescue party) about 500 feet below Glacier Point was noticed a Douglas Fir growing beside a Juniper tree. This is low for the Juniper and high for the Douglas Fir, and the first time I 've ever encountered them growing naturally in the same life zone. Other plants in the same area were Mountain Maple, Huckleberry Oak, Live Oak, Jeffrey Pine, Sage Brush, Rock Penstemon.

AMERICAN MAGPIE, NEW PARK RECORD

M. E. Beatty Assistant Park Naturalist It is always a thrilling experience to be able to add a new bird to the park check list especially when that list already numbers over two hundred. Such was the writer 's privilege, together with that of Jr. Park Naturalist Cole and Ranger-Naturalist Lowell Adams, while returning to Tuolumne Meadows after measuring the Lyell and Maclure glaciers. We were eating our lunch at the middle Lyell base camp, elevation 9,500 feet, on September 26, 1937, when we were attracted by a Jaylike call though decidedly softer and less raucous than the familiar cry of the Blue-fronted Jay. The bird was easily located about a hundred yards away teetering on the limb of a lodgepole pine. The black and white coloration together with the long streamer-like tail immediately identified the bird as a magpie. Yellow-billed Magpies had been recorded along the western boundary of the park, but this individual had the black bill of the species east of the Sierra and common around Mono Lake. We therefore decided to collect the bird for our study skin collection. It proved to be a female American Magpie (Pica pica hudsonius-Sabine) and is now number 470 in our bird study skin collection.

A NEW FOOD OF THE

bitter flavor but the most central

SIERRA CHICKAREE

part of the gall was quite free from this taste. It was also noticed that By Walter G. Heil the squirrels did not eat much of Ranger-Naturalist the gall but seemed to open it up and eat only a small portion of it. On the morning of July 23, about This leads one to believe that the 8:30, a group of about 25 observed galls are opened up and if an edible several Sierra Chickarees (Sciurus portion is found it is eaten while douglassii albolimbatus Allen) busily cutting the leaves from the Willows out the gall it is dropped and an- (Salix lasiandra abramsi Ball; other is opened up for the same S. lasiandra lancifolia of Jepson) purpose. which grow along the edges of Mirror Lake. The chickarees would reach up for a leaf, cut it loose

BEARS FEEDING ON

from the branch and after chewing

HONEYDEW

at the petiole for a moment would By C. A. Harwell, allow it to drop to the ground and park Naturalist then repeat the process. It appeared that the squirrels During early May 1937, Messrs. were finding the petiole of the leaf F. E. Todd, Wm. G. Watkins and G. H. Vansell, Apiculturists of the a good bit of food but after picking up some of the leaves that were Bureau of Entomology of the Department of Agriculture were in the dropped by them it was found that they were cutting into the insect park for several days. They called galls that are so numerous on the my attention to the scale insect, petioles of this tree. The reaction Xylococculus macrocarpae, which of the tree to the insect is to send was then secreting honeydew, especially an excellent supply of food into on Incense Cedars, these galls which the squirrels had the floor of Yosemite Valley. Bears discovered as an excellent food were observed licking the trees for supply. the honeydew. This is seemingly a Due to the fact that the willows new record of bear food for the as a group have an astringent bark California mountains. it seemed unusual that the chickaree would make use of these insect Bears often prefer to climb the galls that were covered with Incense Cedar rather than the pine or other tree, perhaps because the the green bark. By cutting the bark is thick and soft, providing galls open it was found that a better claw hold and perhaps also though the outer layer of the gall because of the possibility of finding had an astringent or somewhat honeydew.

ANOTHER ENEMY TO FISH

capable of catching small fish, the species is not numerous enough to Ranger Lon Garrison afford any distinct hazard to the Water Snakes, Kingfishers, Otters, trout. But it adds one more item predatory fish, and man are for the consideration of pisciculturists. usually considered the most common foes of the trout fry that are planted in the lakes and streams of Yosemite each year. To this list

YOSEMITE TRAVEL FOR YEAR

must now be added insects. Recently October, 1936... 13,501 when Given's Lake was planted November, 1936 8,176 by Ranger Ross Cecil and packer December, 1936 7,847 Harold Williams, they noticed a January, 1937 14,047 large bug busily nabbing into the February, 1937 15,799 newly released one-inch rainbow. March, 1937 13,540 The assassin was corralled in a fish April, 1937 16,943 can strainer lid and brought to Deer Camp. I took it to Entomologist May, 1937 58,109 June, 1937 80,703 Yuill at the Bureau of Entomology camp at Eight Mile, who identified it as the nymph of the genus

July, 1937... 120,736 August, 1937 90,437 September, 1937 41,654 Odonata, the dragonflies. According to Yuill, while the TOTAL for year 481,492 nymph is definitely predacious and

Digitized by Yosemite Online Library Dan Anderson