A 2-mile routing bypassing Atascadero has been adopted.
Route 41 from:
Route 41 from:
East on Bass Valley Road, just north of the junction with Route 49, is Bass Lake in the Sierra National Forest. If you wish, you may stay at the Bass Lake Lodge, The Pines Resort, or Miller's Landing. Swimming and water sports are possible here, so bring those life jackets!
Of course, the most important one here is Yosemite National Park. The scenic paradise, then known as "the Incomparable Valley", was established as a national park on October 1, 1890 and became a World Heritage Site on October 31, 1984. The park is home to a grand collection of waterfalls, meadows, and forests that include groves of giant sequoias, the world's largest living things. Inside Yosemite is the Badger Pass Ski Area and the Wawona Hotel. Just before you enter the park, consider staying at the Tenaya Lodge and riding the historic trains of the Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad.
Part (a) is officially known as the "E.G. Lewis Highway", named after Edward Gardner Lewis, the owner of the Atascadero Rancho who was largely responsible for planning and designing the City of Atascadero.
The junction of Routes 41 and 46 at Cholame is called the "James Dean Memorial Junction", named after one of the most admired movie stars of all time, who on September 30, 1955 was killed in an automobile crash on Route 46 near its interchange with Route 41. He starred in such films as East of Eden (1955), Rebel Without A Cause (1955), and Giant (1956), and personified the restless American teenager of the 1950s.
Route 41 is historically known as the "Sierra-to-the-Sea Highway".