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Nov., ?9o?. [ THE CONDOR I53 Here bird life was abundant; chickadees and nuthatches were at work on the numerous stubs; thrushes were making the deep woods ring with their choicest melodies; robins, sapsuckers, woodpeckers, white-crowned and thick-billed spar- rows, warblers and kinglets were all intensely busy, while the gaudy forms of tanagers appeared everywhere through the forest. Much has been told of the panorama which unfolds itself to the traveler on the summit, and the view is certainly an inspiring one. The east slope drops down abruptly and some miles to the east rises the second range of the Sierras, capped by numerous snow-covered peaks of 1o,ooo or more feet altitude. Between these two ranges lies Lake Valley, through which courses the Little Truckee River. To the north is seen Lake Tahoe, which is reached by h re-mile drive from the sum- mit. The crest of the Sierras followed in either direction presents almost every phase of sublime and rugged mountain scenery. The east slope of the ridge has been bereft of most of its timber growth and presents a desolate appearance when compared with the heavily-timbered west slope. In Lake Valley the country takes on.a Nevadan phase, with its sage-brush and sandy soil, and some of the des- ert birds, such as 51?izella breweri here finds a congenial home. To the ornithologist who can afford time to desert the stage road for a few days,