Lyon County times. [volume] (Silver City, Nev.) 1874-1907, 1905-10-07
the wABUSkA ROUTE TO BODif.
A Route for Freight, Mail and Passengers
That Would Accommodate More
People Than All Others.

A couple of weeks ago the TINES
called attention to the fact that the
Southern Pucifc people were look
ing into the feasibility of routing
San Francisco freight tor Bodie and
other Mono county camps by
way of Wabuska. This was no
dream, as since then S. P. represen-
tatives have visited Bodie with this
end in view, and, we are informed,
found Bodie merchants and mining
men quite favorable to the propo-
sjtion. In our former article 1t was
stated that the distance from Carson
to Bodie was about 100 miles. The
exact distance is Io8 miles and con-
siderable freight goes into Bod1e
over that route. From Wabuska to
Bodie, up through Mason Valley,
the distance is little less than so
miles, which would make a saving
of at least three days travel to team
sters on the round trip. This should
be something in favor of the Wa
buska route as it should lessen the
price of transportation to Bod1e
somewhat. 1t is true that the Wa
buska route is considerably longer
than the Hawthorne route, but it has
the advantage of the Carson route
by great odds, and now that Haw-
thorne is no longer on the line of
railroad it would make any route
from the railroad in that vicinity to
Bodie from eight to ten miles longer
over a very bad stretch of road.
While on this subject the atten-
ton of the postal authorities might
also be called to the fact that mail
route from Wabuska to Bodie
would be an accommodation to
greater lot of people than are the
several routes now in operation. In
the first place the mail route from
Hawthorne to Bodie takes in moth
ing on the line. The route from
Carson to Bodie via. Gardnerville
crosses 32-mile stretch of country
between Gardnerville and Yelling
ington wherein there is not an in
habitant. A mail route from Wa
buska to Bodie would take in the
following towns where postofhces
are located. Leaving Wabuska the
first town would be Yerington;
then would come Nordyke in the
upper end of Mason Valley; Smith,
in the lower end of Smith Valley;
Wellington, in the upper end of
Smith Valley; Sweetwater, in Es-
meralda county; then Bridgeport
and Bodie in Mono county. 1t will
be seen that this entire route is
through growing agricultural
section of country, and once estab-
lished there would be no necessity
of change for years.
The roads over this route are
fairly good tor the entire distance,
and better in winter than any other
route; in fact there would rarely be
any snow on the line except on the
stretch from Sweetwater to Bodie,
not over thirty miles. 1t seems to
US that a route of this kind would
be of better service to a greater
number of people than any route
that could be picked out, and that
it could be conducted less expen-
sively, all things considered, than
any other route. In view of the
fact that a change in freight and
mail transportation is evidently to
be made all around, it might be a
good policy to set these facts before
the postotfice authorities.
Mason Valley would profit by
such route as the animals en-
ployed would consume large quanti-
ties of our hay and barley and Bodie
trade for farm produce, flour, etc.,
would naturally drift this way,
while our neighbours on the hill tops
would in all ways eventually be
drown into closer communion with
their alfalfa and pumpkin fed cous-
ms of this great agricultural section
an alliance which, no doubt, could
be made mutually agreeable.