THE CHAPARRAL OF THE TAHOE REGION
The word _chaparral_ is a Spanish word, transferred bodily into
our language, without, however, retaining its strict and original
significance. In Spanish it means a plantation of evergreen oaks, or,
thick bramble-bushes entangled with thorny shrubs in clumps. Hence,
in the west, it has come to mean any low or scrub brush that thickly
covers a hill or mountain-side. As there is a varied chaparral in the
Tahoe region, it is well for the visitor to know of what it is mainly
composed.
Experience has demonstrated that where the larger lumber is cut
off close on the Sierran slopes of the Tahoe region the low bushy
chaparral at once takes full possession. It seems to prevent the
tree seeds from growing and thus is an effectual preventive to
reforestation. This, however, is generally not so apparent east of the
main range as it is on the western slopes. One of its chief elements
is the manzanita (_Arctostaphylos patula_) easily distinguishable
by the red wood of its stem and larger branches, glossy leaves,
waxen blossoms (when in flower) and green or red berries in the early
autumn.
The snow-bush abounds. It is a low sage-green bush, very thorny, hence
is locally called "bide-a-wee" from the name given by the English
soldiers to a very thorny bush they had to encounter during the Boer
War. In the late days of spring and even as late as July it is covered
with a white blossom that makes it glorious and attractive.
Then there is the thimble-berry with its big, light yellow, sprawling
leaves, and its attractively red, thimble-shaped, but rather tasteless
berries. The Indians, however, are very fond of them, and so are some
of the birds and animals, likewise of the service berries, which look
much like the blueberry, though their flavor is not so choice.
Here and there patches of the wild gooseberry add to the tangle of
the chaparral. The gooseberries when ripe are very red, as are the
currants, but they are armored with a tough skin completely covered
with sharp, hairy thorns. In Southern California all the fruit of
the wild _ribes_ have the thorns, but they do not compare in
penetrating power and strength with those of the Tahoe gooseberries.
One of the most charming features of the chaparral is the mountain
ash, especially when the berries are ripe and red. The Scotch name
_rowan_ seems peculiarly appropriate. Even while the berries are
yellow they are attractive to the eye, and alluring to the birds, but
when they become red they give a splendid dash of rich color that sets
off the whole mountain side.
The mountain mahogany is not uncommon (_Cereocarpus parvifolius_,
Nutt.) and though its green flowers are inconspicuous, its long,
solitary plumes at fruiting time attract the eye.
While the California laurel (_Umbellularia Californica_, Nutt.)
often grows to great height, it is found in chaparral clumps on the
mountain sides. It is commonly known as the bay tree, on account of
the bay-like shape and odor of its leaves when crushed. It gives a
spicy fragrance to the air and is always welcome to those who know it.
In many places throughout the mountains of the Tahoe region there are
clumps or groves of wild cherry (_Prunus Demissa_, Walpers), the
cherries generally ripening in September. But if one expects the ripe
red _wild_ cherries to have any of the delicious richness and
sweetness of the ripe Queen Anne or other good variety he is doomed
to sad disappointment. For they are sour and bitter--bitter as
quinine,--and that is perhaps the reason their juice has been
extracted and made into medicine supposed to have extraordinary tonic
and healing virtue.
The elder is often found (_Sambucus Glauca_, Nutt.), sometimes
quite tall and at other times broken down by the snow, but bravely
covering its bent and gnarled trunks and branches with dense foliage
and cream-white blossom-clusters. The berries are always attractive to
the eye in their purple tint, with the creamy blush on them, and happy
is that traveler who has an expert make for him an elderberry pie, or
distill the rich cordial the berries make.
Another feature of the chaparral often occupies the field entirely
to itself, viz., the chamisal or greasewood (_Adenostoma
fasciculatum_, Hook, and Arn.). Its small clustered and needle-like
leaves, richly covered with large, feathery panicles of tiny
blossoms, give it an appearance not unlike Scotch heather, and make a
mountainside dainty and beautiful.
The California buckeye (_Aesculus Californica_, Nutt.) is also
found, especially upon stream banks or on the moist slopes of
the canyons. Its light gray limbs, broad leaves, and long, white
flower-spikes make it an attractive shrub or tree (for it often
reaches forty feet in height), and when the leaves drop, as they do
early, the skeleton presents a beautiful and delicate network against
the deep azure of the sky.
Another feature of the chaparral is the scrub oak. In 1913 the bushes
were almost free from acorns. They generally appear only every other
year, and when they do bear the crop is a wonderfully numerous one.
A vast amount of wild lilac (_Ceanothus Velutinus_) is found on
all the slopes. It generally blooms in June and then the hillsides are
one fragrant and glowing mass of vivid white tinged with the creamy
hue that adds so much charm to the flowers.
The year 1913, however, was a peculiar year, throughout, for plant
life. In the middle of September in Page's Meadows a large patch
of ceanothus was in full bloom, either revealing a remarkably late
flowering, or a second effort at beautification.
Another ceanothus, commonly called mountain birch, is often found.
When in abundance and in full flower it makes a mountain side appear
as if covered with drifted snow.
Willows abound in the canyons and on the mountains of the Tahoe
region, and they are an invariable sign of the near presence of water.
There is scarcely a canyon where alders, cottonwoods and quaking
aspens may not be found. In 1913 either the lack of water, some
adverse climatic condition, or some fungus blight caused the aspen
leaves to blotch and fall from the trees as early as the beginning of
September. As a rule they remain until late in October, changing to
autumnal tints of every richness and hue and reminding one of the
glorious hues of the eastern maples when touched by the first frosts
of winter.
No one used to exploring dry and desert regions, such as the Colorado
and Mohave Deserts of Southern California, the Grand Canyon region,
the Navajo Reservation, etc., in Arizona and New Mexico, the constant
presence of water in the Tahoe region is a perpetual delight. Daily
in my trips here I have wondered at the absence of my canteen and
sometimes in moments of forgetfulness I would reach for it, and be
almost paralyzed with horror not to find it in its accustomed place.
But the never-ending joy of feeling that one could start out for a
day's trip, or a camping-out expedition of a week or a month and never
give the subject of water a moment's thought, can only be appreciated
by those who are direfully familiar with the dependence placed upon
the canteen in less favored regions.