Trip to CA Eastern Sierra
Jan 27th, 2016, 01:17 PM
#1
Trip to CA Eastern Sierra
Sep 2016 Trip to CA Eastern Sierra
At the end of this past summer, I got a chance to drive the Tioga Pass before it closed for the winter. It was a short one day round trip through Tioga pass to Yosemite National and back to Mammoth Lakes; it proved to be a beautiful drive with lots of oohs and aahs. Life is full of surprises when one opens its path for adventuring.
I also visited a few of other parks and monuments along the way. I stopped at Lone Pines visitor center, and had a good view of Mount Whitney, drove part of the movie road in Alabama Hills, but did not stay for too long as the day was actually pretty hot. The main reason was to reach Mammoth Lakes before dark, so that I could visit Devils Postpile NM. Highway 395 is actually very scenic as it goes further north. I truly enjoyed the journey, and is already planning another trip to go further north (Mono Lake towards Lake Tahoe).
Arriving around 3:30pm at the Mammoth Lakes visitor center. After checking the direction and opening hours of Devils Postpile National Monument, I decided to press on before it got dark. It was a curvy road to the Devils Postpile NM. Since it was a good nice day, it made a perfect evening visit even with not being able to hike the Rainbow Falls trail. The hike to the postpiles was very good indeed.
Staying the night at Mammoth Lakes, and driving the Tioga pass the next day morning. Waking up early to see sunrise by Mono Lake. It was quiet and serene to see the day break by the lake. I continued onto Tioga Pass on a cold crisp day. It was a very good drive indeed. I made a number of pullovers for the views before Lake Tenaya. It will be absolutely a treat on a summer day to swim in these clear cold water lakes. There are numerous trails for this part of the country. It is absolutely a hiker’s heaven here. Olmsted Point is absolutely gorgeous. Just about every bend in the road reveals another awesome view.
I had been to Yosemite NP when the waterfalls were full and powerful, but Tioga Pass was closed then. So, this time was just the opposite. The waterfalls were dry, but Tioga Pass was opened. Even with just a day trip, it was worth all the effort of driving the curves and bends, and I got to do it twice in a day! I went back to Mammoth Lakes for the night, along the way, I drove to June Lake, also visited the Mammoth Lakes in the evening.
I left early the next morning as the sun was starting to rise. I wanted to visit Manzanar National Historic Site before the day got too hot. It was such beautiful morning as the sun just lit everything in gold. The mountain ranges just slowly transformed to gold as the morning rays shone on them. It was definitely a journey to remember. As always, I did quite a number of pullovers, before I knew, I was by the entrance of Manzanar National Historic Site just as it opened for the day. I was pretty much the first visitor of the day. It was such a good experience to walk the ground and learn the history of the camp.
It was a short but very nice trip over all.
Happy travels as usual!
Here is another picture collection of my trip: https://www.flickr.com/photos/119161...57663179739930
At the end of this past summer, I got a chance to drive the Tioga Pass before it closed for the winter. It was a short one day round trip through Tioga pass to Yosemite National and back to Mammoth Lakes; it proved to be a beautiful drive with lots of oohs and aahs. Life is full of surprises when one opens its path for adventuring.
I also visited a few of other parks and monuments along the way. I stopped at Lone Pines visitor center, and had a good view of Mount Whitney, drove part of the movie road in Alabama Hills, but did not stay for too long as the day was actually pretty hot. The main reason was to reach Mammoth Lakes before dark, so that I could visit Devils Postpile NM. Highway 395 is actually very scenic as it goes further north. I truly enjoyed the journey, and is already planning another trip to go further north (Mono Lake towards Lake Tahoe).
Arriving around 3:30pm at the Mammoth Lakes visitor center. After checking the direction and opening hours of Devils Postpile National Monument, I decided to press on before it got dark. It was a curvy road to the Devils Postpile NM. Since it was a good nice day, it made a perfect evening visit even with not being able to hike the Rainbow Falls trail. The hike to the postpiles was very good indeed.
Staying the night at Mammoth Lakes, and driving the Tioga pass the next day morning. Waking up early to see sunrise by Mono Lake. It was quiet and serene to see the day break by the lake. I continued onto Tioga Pass on a cold crisp day. It was a very good drive indeed. I made a number of pullovers for the views before Lake Tenaya. It will be absolutely a treat on a summer day to swim in these clear cold water lakes. There are numerous trails for this part of the country. It is absolutely a hiker’s heaven here. Olmsted Point is absolutely gorgeous. Just about every bend in the road reveals another awesome view.
I had been to Yosemite NP when the waterfalls were full and powerful, but Tioga Pass was closed then. So, this time was just the opposite. The waterfalls were dry, but Tioga Pass was opened. Even with just a day trip, it was worth all the effort of driving the curves and bends, and I got to do it twice in a day! I went back to Mammoth Lakes for the night, along the way, I drove to June Lake, also visited the Mammoth Lakes in the evening.
I left early the next morning as the sun was starting to rise. I wanted to visit Manzanar National Historic Site before the day got too hot. It was such beautiful morning as the sun just lit everything in gold. The mountain ranges just slowly transformed to gold as the morning rays shone on them. It was definitely a journey to remember. As always, I did quite a number of pullovers, before I knew, I was by the entrance of Manzanar National Historic Site just as it opened for the day. I was pretty much the first visitor of the day. It was such a good experience to walk the ground and learn the history of the camp.
It was a short but very nice trip over all.
Happy travels as usual!
Here is another picture collection of my trip: https://www.flickr.com/photos/119161...57663179739930
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