A short distance further we pass Camp 17 at the right of the road. About a quarter of a mile beyond and on the opposite side is Camp 20. At a road junction is a small settlement called Kenneyville, which occupies the site of the former Indian Camp of Wis´-kah-lah. Here the Le Conte Road turns south, leading to Camps 15 and 7, and across Stoneman Bridge to Camp Curry on the Happy Isles Road. Doubling back to the westward is Sequoia Lane, a road leading to Camps 6 and 7, and to Yosemite Village, one mile distant.
We continue eastward, passing Camp 8, which is above the road and just at the west end of the Royal Arches. During the spring thaw the beautiful but ephemeral Royal Arch Fall descends over a cliff at the left. Its Indian name, Scho-ko-ya, meant "basket fall." In the next half mile our road is flanked by the overhanging cornices of the colossal arches. They must be viewed from afar if we would realize how aptly they were called by the Yosemites "Scho-ko-ni," which means "the movable shade to a cradle basket." At the left of the road and directly beneath the arches is Camp 9. As we continue along the road, breaks in the forest reveal intermittent views of Washington Column towering above to the left, and of the great face of Half Dome dominating all the east.
A short subsidiary road to the left now leads to Indian Cave immediately under Washington Column. The Yosemites named this retreat Hol´-low´, but sometimes called it Lah-koo´-hah, which means "Come out!" It is a low, broad, deep recess under a huge rock and is said to have been occupied as a winter shelter; also when the Yosemites were attacked and almost exterminated by the Mono Lake Piutes. The overhanging rock is black with the smoke of ages, and far back in the cave large quantities of acorn shells have been found.
Returning the short distance to the main road, we again turn eastward, soon passing a group of excellent mineral springs at the right. The highway now bears gradually to the north into the mouth of Tenaya Canyon and in one-half mile ends in a "loop" at the west margin of Mirror Lake. The relative darkness in this deep canyon and the absence of wind during the early morning hours insures a perfect reflection for almost every morning of the vacation season. Most perfect are the reflections of Mount Watkins (the Wei-yow or "Juniper Mountain" of the Yosemites) guarding the entrance to the forbidden gorge of Tenaya. Unfortunately the delta of Tenaya Creek has greatly encroached upon the mirror and has reduced it to but a remnant of the beautiful lake which the Indians called Ah-wei´-yo, or "quiet water." From the end of the road the Tenaya Lake and North Dome Trail (Trail Trips 4 and 6) continue around the western shore of the lake and up the canyon.
After the appearance of the sun over the shoulder of Half Dome, we retrace the last half mile of our route, turning aside for a short visit to the mineral springs. A little distance further the main road forks and we take the left-hand branch which crosses Tenaya Bridge. A detour to the westward now takes us around and over a portion of the lateral moraine left at the junction of the ancient Tenaya and Merced glaciers. Near this point was Hoo-ke´-hahtch-ke´, an Indian village inhabited up to about 1897.
A road which branches to the right offers a short-cut to Camp Curry, about three-quarters of a mile distant. It passes Camps 11 and 14, and the site of the Lick House, one of the inns of early days. The main road, however, bears to the left and parallels the beautiful banks of the Merced. Less than a mile takes us to the Happy Isles Bridge. Here the main trail to Vernal and Nevada Falls, Glacier Point, Half Dome, Clouds Rest, Merced Lake, etc. (see Trail Trips), turns south and ascends the Merced Canyon. At the right of the bridge is a U.S. Weather Bureau observation station. On the west side of the stream is the old power plant and from it starts the footpath to Happy Isles. The short side trip from island to island should not be missed. Especially are these charming garden spots noted for the beauty of their flowering dogwoods, maples and alders. The round trip to Sierra Point (Trail Trip 12) may easily be accomplished from this point in one hour. A refreshment stand is maintained in the vicinity. To escape the dust of the road one may follow the picturesque Happy Isles Trail from its beginning near the power house to Camp Curry, one mile westward.
Our road now bears to the northwest and rounds the imposing buttress of Glacier Point. One-half mile takes us to a spring at the left of the road which once supplied the large Indian village of Um´-ma-taw. A short distance beyond, our route is joined by the short-cut road from Mirror Lake. Near this road is a cabin often pointed out as having belonged to John Muir. It was really built and used by James C. Lamon, a pioneer and the first permanent resident of the valley. Muir's cabin has long since disappeared and its only existing photograph is in the possession of Dr. Wm. F. Badé. The orchard at the right occupies the site of Too´-lah´-kah´-mah, another vanished community of the Yosemite tribe.
Extending for a considerable distance along the road are the tents and bungalows of Camp Curry. If we have time to stop, we may be refreshed by a swim in the huge open-air swimming pool, by cooling drinks at the soda fountain or by a rest beneath the great pines and cedars.
From the camp center a road to the north leads across the Stoneman Bridge to Kenneyville. At the right of the road is the site of the old Stoneman Hotel, which was built and maintained in the early days by the State of California, but which burned down in 1896. Close to the bridge, on the banks of the Merced, was once the large Indian village of Too-yu´-yu´-yu.
West of the Camp Curry bungalows we pass Camp 16, between the road and the river. Near this point the Ledge Trail turns to the south and mounts the talus slopes above Camp Curry. A short distance beyond is the new Le Conte Memorial Lodge picturesquely set among the pines and incense cedars where once was the Indian village of Ho-low, and where the old schoolhouse stood until 1911. The lodge is an ideal place to spend the remainder of the afternoon amongst photographs, flowers, books and maps, and in a cool and absolutely restful atmosphere. To the right of the road, where the river makes a big detour to the north, is Camp 19. One should note the remarkably perfect reflections in the river below the rock wall parapet during the remaining half-mile walk to Yosemite Village.