CAMPGROUND: Another night at Lower Lee Vining National Forest Service Campground. We talked with some neighbors who come here every year. They say this is the best of this type in the area.
LOCATION: Outside the entrance of Yosemite National Park in eastern California
WEATHER: Very pleasant. High 65. Near freezing at night.
Today's destination was Mammoth Lakes and the surrounding area, about 25 miles south of here. First we took the scenic loop to Mammoth. We drove through tall pines with snow markers about 15 feet high. Then, on to The Devil's Postpile National Monument, an interesting formation of rocks formed by lava flows, then glaciers about 80,000 years ago. (See my tiny head in the bottom of the photo).
It was surprisingly crowded. We had to wait at the entrance gate, then could not park near the monument. We had to park in a resort parking lot and then were shuttled to the trailhead to the Monument. I'm afraid that this is a preview of the crowds inside Yosemite.
On our way out of the Monument road, we picked up a hiker/hitchhiker and took him to the town of Mammoth Falls. He had been hiking in the forest for several days and was just too tired to walk the 15 miles or so back to his car. We are glad we did as he gave us some valuable information about places to go later in the day.
After dropping him off at his place, we had lunch in this brewpub, which claims to be at the highest elevation in the West. It was huge....I mean epic!
We followed the hiker's suggestion and drove around many beautiful lakes surrounding the town of Mammoth Lakes. All picture-perfect. There were a lot of fishermen - catching trout.
Then to the base of Mammoth Mountain, a very big and popular ski resort area. In the summer, they turn the area into a mountain biker's dream. Bikers take ski lifts up to the top of the mountain, then whiz back down on mountain paths. We decided to ride the gondola up and down to check out the views.
It was mammoth! We went up to 11,000 feet elevation. We can't imagine anyone skiing down these steep slopes.
Here is a biker getting on the lift....
We were even above some remaining snow....
The views are spectacular....
These are some of the paths that the bikers take....
They were having a bike race, so it was especially busy with bikers.
Back at the campground, we were disappointed to find that it had filled up with large groups. All the sites were taken. People around us were setting up mammoth bars and kids were running around. Quite different from last night with our quiet German and French neighbors. We are now concerned that we won't be able to find a spot for our friends Tony and Jenny when they arrive tomorrow.
George built a fire and set up our tripod to cook dinner. This is the first time we have used this in ages...
DINNER: Hot dogs with sauerkraut and the last of the leftover baked potato from one of our Harvest Host stays.
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