East Cleveland leader. [volume] (East Cleveland, Ohio) 1942-1970, 1956-07-26

gold. There before US lay the
beautiful, breath-taking Yosemite
Valley. The valley is dominated
by sheer black granite cliffs which
soar more than three thousand
feet from the valley floor, like
silent sentinels guarding the green
valley from any scar that might be
inflicted upon it by an intruder
In the midst Of these protectors
the valley floor is soft, green
carpet of pine trees, broken only
by light greener meadows where
the deer gather to feed in solitude
and the silvery thread of rivers
waters weaving its way through
the center of the cavity, sometimes
flowing with mirror-like smooth
ness, and at other times with the
fury of a mountain lion barring its
white teeth, only to return to its
former dalliance.
This rugged, beautiful valley
was carved by Natures knife, a
glacier in countless ages past.
When one leaves the valley, it is
with feeling of regret that some
thing intangible has been left un-
discovered and that some day one
must return to the peace of the
Valley of Yosemite.
Leaving the valley and getting
to the eastern slope of the majestic
Sierra Nevadas presented a prob
lem. Not only did a 21-mile stretch
of one-way road have to be nego-
tiated, but a pass, 10000 feet
above sea level, had to be crossed.
This pass, Tioga had been opened
Just the day before it was crossed
by the Lotus clan. Along the road
what we could find Of it, were
ten-foot snow drifts. We proceeded,
without difficulty, parallel to the
towering snow-capped mountains
on our left, along a level valley
floor.
The mercury on a Range Sta
tion thermometer was dancing be-
tween 105'F and 110'F in the
shade. This was Death Valley. In
a day the scene had changed from
one of snow and cold mountain
streams to one Of desolate sands
and blazing heat. This menacing
and treacherous place was aptly
named. The only life existing is
scrawny. clumps of Drowned sage
bush. Here and there bits of cactus
thrive on what water could be
found. There is deathly silence,
and the heat reminds one Of the
Devils furnace.
Near the sands of Death Valley
lies an oasis, an oasis where weary
travellers may refresh themselves
in cool swimming pools and air.
conditioned casinos - Las Vegas.
This is sometimes referred to as
Lost Wages for obvious reasons
which shall not be discussed at this
point.
Everything in this desert oasis
is on a roundthe-clo basis.
Hotels, casinos restaurants open "a
hours a day, seven days a week.
Breakfasts are served on this time
saving schedule. One can get mar
ried or divorced at any given time.
But it's novelty soon wears off and
one tires of the diamond Of the
desert, Las Vegas.
A short distance to the south,
out of the jaws of the Black
canyon, rises mans answer to Ma
lures floods, Hoover Dam. Behind
this monstrous mass Of concrete
is the largest man-made lake in
the world, Lake Mead. Although
the Power plant here is capable of
more electricity than
any other plant in the world, it is
only a by-product here. The dam
has two functions, flood control
and water conservation. The dam
IS an example Of mans reverend
ing battle against the elements.
Crossing the torrid Mojavs
Desert by night to avoid the in
.ense heat, we continued on to the
great city of Los Angeles. There
is no one thing that makes the
,ity great. Most prominent is the
made by its inhabitants.
They have fashioned a vast sys-
.em of freeways and through-ways
over which the city's four and
a-half million vehicles move in a
smooth, quick and efficient rate.
Here is progress tangible in every
way.
Soon we leave for Mexico, a
of contrasts in scenic
wonder and in customs. Later ]
would like to describe some of
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