Travelogue

Cades Cove MeadowSomewhat groggy from the previous nights excesses, I tried to come up with a riding plan for the day.

Many cups of coffee later my will re-materialized and I realized that I would forever regret it if I did not take a ride through Cades Cove. It was most certainly the only time in my life that I would be able ride this on my motorcycle, and probably the first or second thing that friends would ask when they learned I visited the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. So, I decided to go, even though it would involve a 4 hour detour back through the park.

Once again, timing was in my favor. While I had heard horror stories of "bumper to bumper" traffic throughout the entire loop during autumn, on this early weekday morning in April, I almost had the entire loop to myself.

The clouds hung low over the Cove, but no rain materialized. Instead, I was treated to sunbeams breaking through the clouds and illuminating the morning fog in the meadows.

Honda ST1100 SupermodelI posed my trusty steed in an empty parking lot, and photographed her under the soft light with sunbeams in the distance as if she were a supermodel.

A little further on the loop I strolled around the grounds of the Cable Mill Visitors Center and photographed the gristmills.

OK,, I now had to make up some time and start riding west on I40. Coming out of Gatlinburg I had to pass directly through Pigeon Forge of Dollywood Fame. The entrance to the park was enormous with parking lots as far as the eye could see. I was glad that it was off-season and that without traffic I could make good time to Knoxville. I cannot imagine what this would be like in the height of the summer tourist season.

At Knoxville, Lorry had found another Chipotle so I set that as my destination and had my second lifetime dubious Chipotle lunch.

Full of beans, I headed west on I40 and tried to make up some time.

After a while, I found an Econo Lodge in Lebanon, Tennessee that was in walking distance to a highly Yelped restaurant named Los Compadres Mexican Grill. So after another dose of Mexican food I was sated and soon asleep in my room.

Travelogue

Highest Point on the Blue Ridge ParkwayWell rested and restored from my visitation to Biltmore Estate, I set out to plan the next few days of the trip. The Trader Joes stop had supplied both food and drink for a few days of unsupported travel so I could camp as well.

The original plan was to head over to Deals Gap and try to ride the "Tail of the Dragon" the next day. However, the weather forecast was for a slight drizzle for most of the day. In addition, the stop would probably add a day or two to the overall trip. Finally, I had already experienced some extreme twisties on my fully loaded bike through an inadvertent turn into a road that was posted as the "most crooked road in Virginia". With steep descents, horseshoe decreasing radius turns, and narrow lanes it was not an experience that I would intentionally repeat. Thus, I programmed the bike to head to Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

Those who know me might wonder why I would possibly subject myself to a monumental tourist trap, especially when the ride would take me directly through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where I probably could have camped and taken a ride through a highlight of the park, the "Cades Cove Loop".

Mountain Farm MuseumThe misting rain played a large part in my decision, and I figured that I could always backtrack a bit on the next day to do the Loop under better weather conditions. So I returned again to the last of my ride along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

I arrived at the Richland Balsam Overlook, which at 6053 feet, is the highest point along the parkway. A quick selfie and I was back on the road.

Next stop was the Oconaluftee Visitor Center in Cherokee, NC. It was a great spot for a break and to have a bit of lunch. I strolled through the adjoining Mountain Farm Museum and took some photos of the relocated dwellings from the 1800's. Despite the intermittent drizzle, the parking lot was full of motorcycles setting out to enjoy the twisty roads through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As I don't like riding in a group, or being in front of a group, I waited till they had a bit of a head start, and then headed out myself.

Moonshine Tasting ShotletsThe ride was thoroughly enjoyable, although I did give a thanks to the folks at Aerostich in Duluth, Minnesota who had the made the expensive, but very waterproof Darian Jacket and Pants that I was now my daily "office wear". Although they cost over $800 new, I consider it a good value since it has protected my butt and other vital body parts for over 40K miles through rain, sun, freezing and desert hot temperatures.

In far too short a time, I arrived at the kitschy tourist trap of Gatlinburg Tennessee. I wasn't sure what I had expected, but what I found was a very nice, clean, community filled with enough tourist attractions to fulfill the vacation fantasies of its millions of annual visitors. Fortunately, on an April weekday I was ahead of the crowds and pretty much had the place to myself.

I quickly secured lodging at an Econo Lodge Inn & Suites at the Convention Center, which was in walking distance to the main tourist drag and had a burger dinner at the Smoky Mountain Brewery.

Satisfied, I started my stroll down the main strip to see what adventures would await me.

Ripley's Believe It or Not! OdditoriumI lost my "moonshine virginity" at Ole Smoky Moonshine. It was an open air bar built to handle patrons 10 deep, but during this evening it was myself and a few other "tasters". I "think" it was free since I can't find any record of a charge and I also "think" that they offered up to 10 little "shotlets" of liquor that they labeled for the tourist trade as "moonshine".

Feeling warmed up, I continued down the street and found Davy Crocketts Moonshine. To my surprise, it was the same deal here. Stand at the bar and wait for a bunch of little shot glasses of moonshine to be delivered without cost?

Finally, in what can only be considered as an irrational act of excess, I found the last remaining moonshine emporium on the block. Doc Collier Moonshine provided the same deal as the rest, and I almost certainly should have declined. But... when in Rome..

I staggered back to my room, drank some water, and went to sleep....

Travelogue

ST 1100 at Cumberland Knob Recreation area overlookAfter two nights on the road, I was beginning to get into a bit of a rhythm. The "laundry", consisting of a pair of e-officio underwear, wool socks, and a long sleeve wool shirt which were washed in the sink with shampoo, and dried overnight using the motel rooms heater. Nourishment in the form of 2 packs of Maple and Brown Sugar Oatmeal and a mug of coffee were prepared using hot water from the microwave or coffee maker.

My clothes were contained in a black waterproof "river bag" that was strapped on top of a waterproof black Ortlieb bag which contained all the soft camping gear. (Big Agnes UL3 Tent, Mountain Hardware Ultralamina 32 sleeping bag, luxurious X-Ped large sleeping pad, and a Kermit camping chair.)

The rest of the bike was packed as follows...

• Left side saddlebag inner compartment - Nalgene water bottle, Jetboil cookset and Jetboil stove, Starbucks Italian Coffee, and a Nissan thermos.
• Left side saddlebag outer compartment - Propane, Bagels, Peanut butter, Quaker instant oatmeal, and a partial roll of paper towels
• Right side saddlebag inner compartment - Small soft cooler with beer, water bottles, wine in Arizona green tea bottles
• Right side saddlebag outer compartment - Progresso canned soup, purple mist Gatorade, Triscuits, Knorrs Rice Sides, Mountain House dinners, and a bag of cashews
• The rear Givi bag contained my Canon G12 camera, a Go-Pro, a small laptop, AAA maps of the country by state, and my Gerbing Heated Jacket when it was not needed to be worn.
• The tankbag contained my chargers for the phone, headset, and GPS, as well as a cover for the entire bike. A map for the current section was visible in the top clear pouch.

My pre-flight routine had also been refined somewhat.

• Start the bike and let it warm up while finishing the packing process
• Get Google Maps on the phone positioned to the next destination, start the Strava application to record the gpx track, and create a playlist for the day on Google Music
• Check tires, lights, and all controls
• Plug in heated jacket and adjust the vents on my Aerostich Darien Jacket for the forecasted temperatures in the early morning.

Bad Helmet Hair SelfieToday would be a great ride. I was heading down some of the most scenic parts of the Blue Ridge Parkway and Lorry had convinced me that I should treat myself with a few days in Ashville so I could visit the Biltmore Estate. Living in NJ we had often visited the Mansions of Newport Rhode Island, but had not yet visited the largest of the Vanderbilt Mansions. I wished that Lorry could be here with me, but I promised to take a lot of photos so she could vicariously enjoy the tour with me.

On the road one again, I enjoyed the two lane Blue Ridge Parkway that meandered down the ridge of the mountains past rolling hills and occasional farm fields. After 45 minutes I pulled over at the Cumberland Knob Recreation area overlook and photographed my trusty steed with the mountains in the distance.

Biltmore EstateAs I continued on, I got a call from Lolo with a suggestion for lunch. She had grown somewhat concerned with my diet so far on this trip, and had found what she thought might be a more healthy fast food alternative. By tracking my projected progress she directed me to a Chipotle in Boone, N.C. At the time I had never eaten in a Chipotle so I headed off the parkway to enjoy a "healthy" mexican style lunch. I have to say that it was tasty,, but by the time I had finished adding sour cream and other embellishments I am sure it was a high caloric meal of with dubious health qualities. (This was before the recent norovirus outbreak would have made this choice of dining venue even more questionable.)

Fueled up, I headed back to the Parkway and almost immediately pulled over to stroll around the Moses H. Cone Memorial Park. A few photos, and the next pullout was at the Hefner Gap Overlook at elevation 3067 where a "bad helmet hair" selfie was taken. I had already been over the Pilot Ridge Overlook with an elevation of over 4000' so the heated jacket was dialed up even though I was in North Carolina and had thought I would be enjoying warmer weather.

Biltmore Estate GardensThe Ridge Junction at 5160' was the next stop and then off to the Craggy Gardens Visitor for a quick pee break. I met a couple of older guys there on BMW GS 1200's that were on their way to a BMW camping event so they could ride the "Tail of the Dragon" near Deals Gap. For those unfamiliar with this road, with "318 curves in 11 miles" it is considered one of the top 5 rides in the world, and one that I would try to get to in a few days.

After a few more miles I managed to navigate to the Super 8 in Ashville where I would spend the next two nights, allowing for a "rest day" where I could tour the Biltmore estate.

Up early in the morning I rode for the first time on this trip, without the extra burden of all my extra luggage. It felt liberating and simpler even as I navigated my way to the ticket area of the Biltmore Estate. Lorry had researched this and already purchased my ticket for a Tour of the Mansion at 11:30.

Women in Period Costumes at Biltmore EstateStrolling the beautiful gardens and the interior of the mansion I started to feel a bit lonesome for the companionship of my lifelong partner. When riding long distances on the motorcycle I have no longings since I know that Lorry would not actually enjoy the experience as much as I do. However, I know that she would enjoy a good Mansion Tour and stroll in the gardens so I had to make do with a phone call where I tried to give her the best virtual description I could.

The Mansion was as impressive as expected, but the volume of tourists made it a bit crowded. Also, I had become accustomed to going my own way as a solo traveler and now had to adapt to being just another of the many cattle herded around from room to room.

Afterwards I had a stroll in the gardens and sat down on a bench by the lake for a snack. My phone rang and Lolo asked me how I was enjoying the view (she could see me location on Google maps). That cheered me up a bit as I described the scene in front of me.

I took a bit of a detour while leaving the estate to enjoy the grounds, stopped at a Trader Joe's in Asheville to replenish my stores, and got back to my room in time to rest up for the next days journey west.

Travelogue

Herb with Honda ST1100 at Bacon Hollow OverlookWith the aid of a few beers that were still cold from home, I managed to have a pretty good first nights sleep in my frugal motel. Upon awakening, the coffee maker yielded enough hot water for an instant oatmeal breakfast, and enough coffee to fuel me and my thermos for the day.

Today promised to be a good one. The weather was overcast, and I was poised at the start of the Skyline Drive in Front Royal. Yesterday had been a day of mostly congested highway traffic trying to get out of the NY and Philadelphia metropolitan areas. This should be the start of the "fun part" of the trip without the congestion of the northeast, and into the pretty twisting road that l had imagined when I first planned the trip.

It would have been easier and shorter to just head to San Francisco on I80, as we had done numerous times before in the Lazy Daze, but this was to be a motorcycle trip. One where I could enjoy all the twisty narrow roads on 2 wheels instead of fighting them in the 6 wheels and 7 tons of the motorhome. Besides, I this was probably my last opportunity to motorcycle on the east coast and I didn't want to leave without trying some of the "classic best motorcycle roads" that had escaped me for the last 40 years.

Mabry MillSpeaking of tonnage, my fully laden steed probably tipped the scales with a full tank of gas at close to 800 lbs. Once moving, the weight magically seems to disappear, but it would immediately return when stopping and/or attempting a slow speed turn. In addition, it was nearly impossible to push backwards up the slightest of inclines so I would have to be careful that I always parked the bike in a spot where the gradient would work in my favor when departing.

I headed out before nine and managed to ride for 1.5 hours to arrive at the Harry F. Byrd, Sr. Visitor Center at milepost 51 for a long anticipated pee break. It was great riding, but it felt good to get off of the bike and stretch a bit. The road was beautiful, but twisty and the posted speed limit kept my average speed well below 40mph.

After 20 more miles I stopped at Bacon Hollow Overlook for a few photos of my bike with the misty mountains in the backdrop. Someone notice me taking an awkward selfie with the phone, and I was able to have him take a real photo with my Canon G12 of myself with the bike.

I soon ran out of Skyline Drive and headed west to Staunton where I could get on I81 and make up some time going south to the better parts of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Technically, the Blue Ridge Parkway starts pretty much at the end of Skyline Drive, but I had read the the best parts of 469 mile park were actually the southern section, so in the interest of time efficiency I bypassed this section and barreled south on I81 past Roanoke, and south at Christiansburg towards the Mabry Mill in the Meadows of Dan.

Disturbing Morning Selfie in Country View InnFrom earlier research I had found that the Mabry Mill at milepost 176 is considered one of the most picturesque locations on the entire parkway. As an amateur photographer, it was a location that I did not want to bypass.

The Mill did not disappoint, and I spent some time there composing the usual Mill shots, and some arm's length selfies. The cloud cover gave great diffused lighting and spirits were high.

As I rode south I would occasionally come across signage on private farmland extolling me to Repent, and/or otherwise seek forgiveness for my sins. This seems to be a shared sentiment among many farmers throughout the country though I had never seen it in this part of the south before. While I am not personally involved with any organized religion, I did try to understand why some portions of the country and perhaps farmers in particular are more demonstrative in their religious beliefs.

Meanwhile, I soon needed a place to stay for the night, and Lorry had found the the Country View Inn in Fancy Gap which was just off the Parkway. I rolled into the parking lot, checked in, and was soon sheltered in a cozy room, complete with Bible opened to Hosea 9-11. I tried not to take it personally.

Travelogue

Up the Block to Start the TripAs an electrical/computer engineer of Germanic descent, it might be obvious that I would be a bit of a perfectionist, maybe a bit stubborn, and one who prefers to "do it all yourself", instead of depending upon the supposed expertise of others. I also have almost a clinical fear of failure and/or being made to feel like a fool.

As such, once the idea of this trip had been solidified, I started the process of trying to maximize my chances for a safe, uneventful, and enjoyable journey cross the continent. Both the bike and myself would need to be in top condition. I had the month of March and most of April to finalize my preparations.

My own physical condition was basically sound, as both Lorry and I regularly exercise daily throughout the year. However, I do have some spinal challenges. My lower back L4/L5 when misaligned can develop severe sciatica down to the left toe, and my neck C3/C4 vertebrae result in numbness in two fingers of my right hand. Sitting on a motorcycle without much opportunity for exercise could certainly aggravate both conditions.

Spelunker Burger DinnerSo,,, for the 5 weeks prior to the trip I would take extended rides once or twice a week on my bike into the Catskills and along the Delaware river from our home in northern NJ. I started off with just a hundred miles, and worked up to 350 miles prior to starting the trip. Fortunately, I had a Gerbing heated motorcycle jacket and heated grips on the bike that allowed me to ride even when the temperature dropped below freezing. I even had to dodge a snowstorm once in the Catskills before returning the the relative safety of I95 and the slab of highway for the ride back home.

My Bike, a Honda ST-1100 with a water cooled V4 engine that I purchased new in 1996 also needed to be in top shape for the trip. While it had over 40K uneventful miles on the odometer, there were still a few things I needed to take care of before this trip.

First on the list of bike maintenance was the brakes. This particular bike, especially when ridden over salted winter roads has a tendency to develop corrosion in the aluminum brake calipers where the piston seals are seated. As such, the brakes may seize in the ON mode at the most inopportune time, resulting in continuous breaking and possible overheating of the brake disks. Don't ask me how I know that it costs $450 for a replacement front disc. Anyway, I did a complete rebuild of all brake pistons, seals, and front and rear calipers.

I also changed all brake and clutch fluids, rear differential fluid, and cooling fluids. Spark plugs, air filter, and battery were also replaced. Finally, the rear drive shaft gearing was lubricated and wheels removed for new tires and balancing at the local Honda motorcycle dealership. FWIW, tire changes where the only maintenance items that I had performed by a dealer in almost 20 years of ownership.

I also put together a comprehensive repair kit of tools, spares, and even tire compressor and patch kit that I hoped would keep me on the road in case of mechanical failure.

Scottish Inns RoomI put together a packlist and organized my gear in both side saddle bags, the rear GIVI bag, front tank bag, and two waterproof duffle bags that held clothes and camping gear. The plan was to motel it most days, but camp out whenever a beautiful warm opportunity presented itself.

When the day of departure finally arrived it was with a mix of excitement, anticipation, and mild fear that I kissed Lolo and started riding up our block towards the west coast. We had rarely been apart for this length of time during our 30 years of marriage so I was uncertain if loneliness would be a factor. Fortunately, modern electronics once again would help. I had a new Sena motorcycle audio system with which I could use the cell phone to both navigate, play music, and also call Lolo periodically for updates. In addition, we were location sharing on Google Maps so that Lorry could literally track my progress on computer monitor. This would prove to be quite useful when crossing Texas.

Day one went pretty much as planned. I rode from our home south down 287, across the Delaware River on 78, to 81 past Allentown PA, Harrisburg PA, and eventually to the Scottish Inns in Front Royal, VA. This was primary interstate highways which Lorry and I had done once before so it was pretty uneventful. It did serve the purpose however of positioning me at the start of the scenic Skyline Drive which would be the highlight for tomorrow.

Travelogue

Lolo with Szukalski’s "Last Supper"Rhyolite is just 35 miles from Furnace Creek, with no big mountain passes to cross, so it’s an easy side trip from Death Valley.

As I mentioned, Herb had been here about 3 weeks ago when crossing the U.S. on his motorcycle, but he thought it was worth repeating so that he could see it with me. I thought that was so sweet. He won some spousal points on that one.

We went first to the Goldwell Open Air Museum, an outdoor sculpture museum in the middle of nowhere. We’ve been to so many outdoor sculpture gardens before, but this one’s setting in a dramatic desert landscape certainly ruled out the term sculpture “garden.”

However, it was precisely this stark setting that attracted a group of Belgian artists in the 1980s to choose this location to create their art in the first place.

Szukalski’s "Ghost Rider"There are seven monumental sculptures spread out across the landscape. My two favorites were both by Albert Szukalski, and they both involve an unusual technique he developed in which a live model is draped in plaster-soaked burlap and has to remain still until the plaster dries enough to stand on its own. I can’t even begin to imagine how uncomfortable this must have been for the models. It gets really, really hot here.

Szukalski’s largest work is entitled “The Last Supper,” and it consists of 12 white ghostly shapes arranged as in Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the same name. The shapes have no faces or bodies – just drapes hanging around an invisible form.

My second favorite was aptly called “Ghost Rider.” As in Szukalski’s other works, a ghostly draped figure – minus the body inside – stood beside an actual real bicycle, as if it was getting ready to go for a ride.

Fred Bervoets' "Tribute to Shorty"We went inside the small visitor center and chatted with the gentleman who was the caretaker of the museum. He told us that he was an artist himself and pointed out a series of 10 small paintings he had done, underneath which was the caption, “What if some favorite artists had visited the Rhyolite of today…what would they have painted? Can you recognize them all by their styles?” It would have been better if we had already been to the ghost town, because many of the scenes were taken from there, but it was really fun trying to guess what artist’s style he was trying to imitate in each of them.

Herb and I are both art buffs and a bit competitive with each other, so we immediately started blurting out “Van Gogh,” “Edward Hopper,” “Grant Wood,” “Cezanne,” “Seurat,” etc., trying to beat the other to the answer. We did pretty well, if I say so myself, and declared it a tie.

Rhyolite Train DepotA short distance up the road was the Rhyolite Ghost Town, which we had gotten a preview of in the Goldwell visitor center.

In addition to art, Herb and I love history. Having lived on the East Coast our entire lives, we know lots about Pilgrims, the Revolutionary War, Civil War battlefields, etc., but not so much about the irresistible allure of gold and how its discovery could create towns out of nothing within an instant, only to disappear just as quickly when the gold dried up.

Rhyolite is just one of many examples of that purely western phenomenon. Prior to 1904, the population of the area which became Rhyolite was about 5, consisting of Old Man Beatty and his family, who lived in a ranch about five miles away.

Rhyolite Train Depot DetailThen, as the story always goes, two gentlemen – one named Shorty Harris (they always seem to have cool names like Shorty) and E. L. Cross – discovered quartz covering a nearby hill. Since secrets about gold are rarely kept, word got out and thousands of gold-seekers descended on the area, settling in the sheltered desert basin that is now Rhyolite.

By 1908, the town’s population grew close to 5,000, and with all those people, you need the infrastructure to keep them supplied and entertained. At its height, Rhyolite had hotels, stores, a school for 250 children, an opera house, a railroad depot, an ice plant, an ice cream parlor, two electric plants, foundries and machine shops, and a hospital. Rhyolite even had a red light district which drew women from as far away as San Francisco.

Rhyolite Cook BankRhyolite’s heyday lasted less than 10 years. The financial panic of 1907 made it more difficult to raise capital, and soon mines began to close and the banks to fail. By 1910, production had significantly slowed and there were only 611 residents left in town. In 1911, the mine and mill were closed down and by 1916 the light and power in the town were turned off.

Today, there is not much left of this once lively and boisterous town. Not nearly as much to explore as there is at Bodie State Historic Park near Bridgeport, California, where we really got a feel for what life must have been like in one of these boom towns.

All that remains intact in Rhyolite is a beautiful, old railway depot and the Bottle House, a home made from 50,000 beer and liquor bottles. The most photographed image in Rhyolite is of the ruins of the old three-story Cook Bank. In fact, it is the most photographed ruin in the entire state of Nevada.

Rhyolite had been a very interesting stop and a good escape from the oppressive heat of Death Valley. Here it probably only hit a mere 97 degrees. Time to get back to the pool.

Description

The small town of Rhyolite is located just off Highway 394, near the eastern edge of Death Valley National Park. It is only 35 miles from the Furnace Creek Visitor Center.

For such a tiny, remote town, there are two very interesting sights, which make it a very worthwhile side trip from Death Valley:

Goldwell Open Air Museum

Sofie Siegmann's "Sit Here!"The Goldwell Open Air Museum is located just off State Highway 374, near the Rhyolite Ghost Town. The museum, which is open to the pubic 24 hours a day 7 days a week, has seven monumental outdoor sculptures that are colossal not only in their scale, but in their dramatic setting amongst mountains and the Mojave Desert.

It was this dramatic setting that led a group of prominent Belgian artists in the 1980s to choose this location as a place to create art freely. The museum was organized in 2000 after the death of Albert Szukalski, the Belgian artist who created the site’s first sculptures. His unusual technique involved molding shapes by draping plaster-soaked burlap over live models until the plaster dried enough to stand on its own. His largest work, “The Last Supper,” consists of 12 large white ghostly shapes arranged as in da Vinci’s painting of the same name. Another one of is pieces entitled “Ghost Rider” is a plaster figure getting ready to mount a bicycle.

Today artists continue to create in this spectacular and challenging landscape as part of an art residency and workshop program.
An on-site visitor center with exhibits is open from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, Monday through Saturday. In summer it often closes by 2:00 pm because of the heat. Admission is free.

Rhyolite Ghost Town

Like many western towns, Rhyolite sprang up from nowhere when in 1904 Shorty Harris and E. L. Cross discovered quartz on a nearby hill. Soon thousands of gold-seekers flocked to the area, settling in a sheltered desert basin which was named Rhyolite because of the silica-rich volcanic rock in the area. By 1908, the population grew close to 5,000, and the town had hotels, stores, a school for 250 children, an opera house, a railroad depot, an ice plant, two electric plants, foundries and machine shops, and a hospital. Rhyolite even had a red light district which drew women from as far away as San Francisco. One enterprising miner named Tom T. Kelly built a Bottle House, made from 50,000 beer and liquor bottles. That house is one of the buildings that still remains today.

As with so many other boom towns, Rhyolite declined as quickly as it rose. The financial panic of 1907 made it more difficult to raise capital, and soon mines began to close and the banks to fail. By 1910, production had significantly slowed and there were only 611 residents left in town. In 1911, the mine and mill were closed down and by 1916 the light and power in the town were turned off.

After 1920, Rhyolite became a tourist attraction and a setting for motion pictures. Today visitors can see several remnants of the town’s glory days: the railway depot, the Bottle House, and the ruins of the three-story Cook Bank and an old jail.

Travelogue

San Francisco Botanical GardensSince we were booked on a red-eye flight that night, Herb and I had an entire day to spend in San Francisco before we had to get to the airport.

Since I had become quite familiar with the city – at least the part around Golden Gate Park – when I spent 3 days here at the beginning of this trip while Herb was motorcycling across the country, I took charge of the day and pretty much took Herb on a repeat tour of how I had spent my first day. It’s funny how much more fun things are when doing them with someone you love and seeing it through their eyes.

The following is a very brief summary of our day:

We started at the Cinderella Bakery, a block from Andrew’s apartment, where we both ordered coffee and spinach croissants and sat at an outdoor table watching people go by.

Then we continued on to Golden Gate Park, stopping first in the courtyard between the de Young Museum and the California Academy of Sciences to watch all the people doing their morning Tai Chi.

Lolo Ascending Arched Drum BridgeFrom there we went to the Japanese Tea Garden, where there was no one collecting money at the gate. Apparently, it is free every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday before 10 am. As we wandered along its lovely stone paths, I excitedly showed him my favorite spots – the tall red pagoda, the peaceful zen rock garden, my koi friends, and the arched drum bridge, which this time I had the courage to walk over.

The next stop was the Botanical Gardens, which I had gotten in free last time because it was a Tuesday, but was $7 today because it wasn’t. Herb is much more skillful than I am with a map, so this time I really did get to see each of the gardens of the many world ecosystems that they are able to recreate so beautifully.

I probably should have been a little more original in my tour, but I admit to wanting to show off my new-found knowledge of this wonderful city, even if in reality I only knew a little piece of it.

Red-Eye Flight HomeSo, I marched Herb east through the park, passing through the National Aid Memorial Grove, out onto the panhandle, up the crazily steep Masonic Avenue, up to the top of Corona Heights where I allowed Herb a brief photo break, back down and up to the top of Buena Vista Park and another photo stop, then through the Haight and back to the park.

By this time, Herb was starving and begging for mercy, so we stopped at Velo Rouge Café for sandwiches and beer. Then I gave Herb free time on the lawn by the Conservatory of Flowers, where he immediately passed out under a tree. Okay, maybe my itinerary was a bit aggressive.

After lounging and reading our Kindles for a while, we walked back to Andrew’s apartment, showered, packed up, and called an Uber car to take us to the airport for our red-eye home.

I thought that if I made the day exhausting enough, we would sleep on the plane, but that never seems to happen for either of us on a red-eye. Exhausted but happy we were back home by 6:00 the next morning.

Description

Tai Chi in Golden Gate ParkThe following is in no way meant to be a comprehensive guide to San Francisco, as there are entire guide books devoted to just that. However, the following is a brief description of some of the sights in and nearby the city that Herb and I enjoyed during the last day of our vacation.

Golden Gate Park is to San Franciscans what Central Park is to New Yorkers. Its 1,017 acres make it 20% larger than Central Park. It is over three miles long (from east to west) and half a mile wide (north to south). The park design was the result of an 1870 competition, won by 24-year-old William Hammond Hall. Park highlights that I visited include:

• The Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park is the oldest public Japanese garden in the United States. Originally created as a one-acre Japanese Village for the 1894 California Midwinter International Exposition, the property was eventually left to the care of Makoto Hagiwara, a renowned Japanese landscape architect, who expanded the garden to its current size of 5 acres. For decades, Mr. Hagiwara poured his wealth, passion, and creative talents into creating the garden until he and his family, along with approximately 120,000 other Japanese Americans were placed in internment camps. He was never allowed to return. Today, the garden is one of San Francisco’s most popular attractions, featuring pagodas, an authentic teahouse, an arched drum bridge, stepping stone paths, plants from China and Japan, and a serene koi pond and zen garden. Admission is $8 for non-residents and $6 for residents. On Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays it if free if entered by 10:00 am.
• The San Francisco Botanical Gardens has 55 acres of both landscaped gardens and open spaces, showcasing over 8,000 different kinds of plants from around the world. The Bay Area's mild temperatures, wet winters and dry summers, coupled with that famous coastal fog, provide a range of climatic conditions that exist in few other botanical gardens in the world. As a result, the Botanical Gardens are able to recreate climatic conditions from round the world, such as those found in an Andean Cloud Forest, a Chilean Garden, Mesoamerica, Southeast Asia, etc.
• The National AIDS Memorial Grove, located in the eastern end of Park, is a 10-acre living memorial honoring all who have confronted this tragic pandemic can gather to heal, hope, and remember.

Corona Heights is a hill in the Castro neighborhood of San Francisco with one of the best views of San Francisco. Its prominent red outcrop is visible from many parts of the city. In the late 1800s, Corona Heights was quarried for brickmaking materials by the infamous Gray brothers who had a brick kiln on States Street. The steep, exposed rock faces and the “crown” we see today at Corona Heights are the result of this quarrying.

Buena Vista Park, in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, is the oldest park in the city, established in 1867 as Hill Park. Its name was later changed to reflect the spectacular views from its 575-foot summit. The park features secluded winding trails and one of the city’s few remaining coast live oak groves.

Travelogue

Salt Point State Park Coastline WildflowersThe vacation had entered its final stages, and in four days we would be back home in New Jersey. The only remaining event was a dual birthday celebration in Sebastopol for Celeste’s dad and me.

We left Lee Vining and headed back to Petaluma via the South Lake Tahoe route rather than driving across Tioga Pass. The drive back and the following day of RV maintenance and packing were uneventful. We tried to get everything that needed to be done completed on Friday, so that we could leave the entire weekend open to celebration, family time, and fun.

On Friday night, we moved the motorhome up to Sebastopol to park in Celeste’s parent’s driveway so that we could be close to all the action. Andrew and Celeste would be arriving later that night after driving up from San Francisco.

Salt Point State Park Sand EyesSaturday was Paul’s big day – his 60th birthday, although his activity level puts most people half his age to shame. The big question was how to spend it. He had already decided that a hike with good food and friends was the way he wanted to celebrate, but the weather wasn’t exactly cooperating. Heavy fog and drizzle was forecast for the coast, which was Hilda’s first choice for a venue worthy of this important milestone.

We debated back and forth as to whether to play it safe and stay somewhere inland, or take a chance and head to Salt Point State Park along the northern Sonoma coast. The consensus, although not unanimous, was to” go big or go home.” Determined to have a good time, and to prove Celeste (the one dissenting vote) wrong, we headed out in two cars towards the Salt Point.

There were eight of us –Herb and me, Celeste and Andrew, Hilda and Paul, and their dear friends Leanne and Guy – the most enthusiastic and fun group any birthday boy could ask for.

Salt Point State Park SurfThe drive was typical for the northern California coast – steep, twisting, a bit foggy, but stunningly beautiful. For us New Jerseyites, battling carsickness on a casual weekend drive was part of the event – a rite of passage if we ever hoped to be accepted when we moved.

I am so glad we went to Salt Point rather than an inland hike, not just because the sun came out, but because it was so very amazing. The entire northern California coastline is stunningly beautiful, but this place was particularly unique.

After a delicious birthday celebratory picnic atop a bluff, we set off along a rocky promontory overlooking the crashing surf below. As beautiful as the sea was, the rocks stole the show. Weathering and the sea had outdone itself in creating fantastical formations, like the three heads and another large rock that looked exactly like a pig. However, the most unusual and beautiful feature along the sandstone cliffs is the intricate honeycomb-like network called tafoni, formed by the salt in the sea spray crystallizing and interacting with the sandstone. They reminded me of the huecos we had encountered when rock climbing in desert areas such as Smith Rock in Bend and again in Bishop.

Climbers Bouldering at Salt Point State ParkIt must have reminded Andrew and Celeste as well, because they had a great time clambering on the rocks as if they were at an outdoor climbing gym.

The day was perfect. The only thing that could have made it better is if we had been here at low tide, when a vast array of tide pools is exposed. That’s okay. That gave us an excuse to come back another time.

The next day was my birthday – not quite as traumatic as Paul’s hitting 60, but pretty darn close. We had a delicious brunch at Peter Lowells, an organic cuisine in Sebastopol – is there anything but?

Since our flight was tomorrow night, we decided to take Andrew and Celeste up on their offer to stay at their place in San Francisco tonight so that we didn’t have to deal with the logistics of getting to the airport from Petaluma tomorrow. Plus that way we could go rock climbing at Planet Granite for my birthday.

Description

Sebastopol

Salt Point State Park CoastlineSebastopol is a charming town in Sonoma County, 52 miles north of San Francisco and about a 20-minute drive to the coast. Sebastopol is known for its apples and hosts an annual Apple Blossom Festival in April and the Gravenstein Apple Fair in August. Today, however, the apple orchards are becoming vineyards as wine-making moves more and more into the region.

Every Sunday, from April to mid-December, there is a Farmers market in the downtown plaza, where people congregate to enjoy delicious fresh regional food, live music, and dancing.

Sebastopol is home to the artist, Patrick Amiot, known for his whimsical, cartoon-like, junk-art sculptures. There are over 200 of his wacky, found-object works scattered throughout Sebastopol, especially on Florence Street.

Side Trip from Sebastopol

Salt Point State Park

Salt Point State Park Coastline WildflowersSalt Point State Park is a 6,000-acre park along the rugged northern California coast, about 90 miles north of San Francisco on State Highway 1, named for the cliffs and crevices where salt spray from the sea has crystallized in sandstone depressions forming intricate honeycomb-like network called tafoni.

The park features 6 miles of rocky coastline, line with jagged rock and steep ocean cliffs, including Salt Point which juts out into the Pacific Ocean. During low tide, these rocks provide an array of tide pools to explore. The park also encompasses one of the first underwater parks in California: Gerstle Cove, where fishing is prohibited.

There are two campgrounds and more than 20 miles of hiking trails in the park. Activities in the park include hiking, camping, picnicking, tide pooling, fishing, scuba diving, and rock bouldering.

Travelogue

Day 1 – Death Valley to June Lake

June Lake BeachBefore leaving Death Valley for the last time, we took advantage of the Furnace Creek Ranch hot springs pool for one more time. It isn’t often you come across such a lovely resort-like setting when camping.

Our goal was the June Lake and Mono Lake area back on the other side of the Panamint and White Mountains, but we wanted to get there with the least amount of harrowing mountain passes. A ranger at the Visitor Center suggested that we go out the east entrance of the park towards Beatty, Nevada and then take 95 north up to Tonopah and then head west. It meant adding a few miles and repeating our drive to Rhyolite the day before, but we didn’t really care if it meant we would have a more relaxing drive.

The ranger was right, and this route was much less nerve wracking than our way in. There was only one steep twisty part near Benton Hot Springs, but after that, the drive along Highway 120 (also called the Mono Mills Road) west into Lee Vining was beautiful.

Oh! Ridge Campground CampsiteWhen we got to Lee Vining, we headed south on Highway 395 with the intention of camping along the June Lake Loop. There are several forest service as well as commercial campgrounds along the loop, but it was a Saturday, so we hoped we wouldn’t have a problem.

The first lake we encountered on the Loop was Grant Lake, which is the largest of the four lakes along the drive. It was terribly low, and the whole southern section was bone dry. The multi-year drought in California was certainly taking its toll.

When we got to Silver Lake, we pulled into the Silver Lake Resort, a commercial campground right across the road from the lake by the same name, to inquire if they had a spot for us for the night. While the woman was hesitating about whether she wanted to give us a spot for just one night, we had a chance to look around and saw that the motorhomes were packed in like sardines. Before she got a chance to turn us down, we told her never mind and continued along the drive. I think the term “Resort” is used far too lightly.

Herb on Panum Crater HikeNext we pulled into the June Lake Campground, a forest service campground which was much nicer, but small and totally full. I was starting to get a bit concerned - we were almost to the end of the June Lake Loop road.

We saw a sign for the Pine Cliff RV Resort – oh good, another resort – and turned in. While I was waiting on line at the office to inquire about a site, Herb walked over to the nearby Oh! Ridge forest service campground. Although there was only one man ahead of me on line, it took the poor woman, who must have been a trainee, literally 20 minutes to check him in. It was a good thing, because before she got a chance to wait on me, Herb ran into the office and said, “Don’t do it! I found something much better.”

He was right. The Oh! Ridge campground was beautiful – spacious sites and beautiful views of the lake and mountains.

When we took a walk through the campground later that evening, we ran across our new friend Bill with the Lazy Daze motorhome, whom we had met a few days back at the Boulder Creek Resort in Lone Pine. He and his friend had had quite a successful day fishing in the lake and were planning to get up early to do some more of the same.

Day 2 – Panum Crater and Parker Lake Hikes

Panum Crater Rim TrailIt was a beautiful day for a hike, so we set out towards Panum Crater on the southern end of Mono Lake, not too far from Navy Beach and the South Tufa Reserve where the spectacular “tufa towers” are. Since we have seen the tufas several times, both from land as well as from our kayaks, we were ready for something new.

To be honest, despite having been here several times, I never even knew this crater was here. It was only when scanning our California hiking book for ideas that I found it. Herb and I love a good crater. We have become volcano groupees since the boys moved out West and we spend lots of time traveling between San Francisco and Seattle. Eventually, we hope to collect them all.

This one, which is a perfect example of a rhyolitic plug-dome volcano, is pretty small by volcanic standards – 220 feet high and 2,000 feet across. It last erupted in 1325 AD.

Lolo on Panum Crater Rim TrailFrom the parking lot at the end of a dirt road off Highway 120, we hiked up to and along the crater’s rim. The entire hike around the rim is about 2 miles, and the views along the way of Mono Lake and the Sierra are really beautiful.

About 1 ½ miles around the rim (if you are going counterclockwise), there is a short side trail down into the lava dome at its center where there are bizarre rock formations and huge chucks of obsidian everywhere.

The entire hike, including down into the dome, is about 2 ½ miles and takes about an hour and a half. The best thing about a short hike is that it allows enough time to do another one, and this time we chose one of a different sort – the hike to Parker Lake.

Parker LakeAlthough Park Laker is one of the lakes in the June Lake Loop area, it is not located along the road, but rather in a small canyon high above it. Most people driving along the loop, never even notice the sign for the turnoff to the trailhead. I don’t think we would have either, if we hadn’t been specifically looking for it. It’s located about 1.3 miles from the north end of the June Lake Loop. From there, we had to drive about 2.4 miles on a bumpy dirt road to the trailhead.

There were only two other cars in the small parking lot, which meant that we would pretty much have this trail to ourselves, which was nice. From the trailhead, we hiked through a sagebrush plain and then into a lovely forest of quaking aspens and Jeffrey Pines, with pretty Parker Creek flowing alongside us on our right.

After about a mile, we met one other hiker on his way out. He told us that it was possible to walk all the way around the lake as long as we were willing and able to scramble across logs and rocks to get across several stream crossings. We would have to see about that.

Herb and Lolo at Parker LakeAt 1.9 miles, the forest opened up and revealed a beautiful, crystal clear, deep blue lake at the foot of 12,861-foot, snow-covered Parker Peak. Wow! There was a lot of bang for our buck in this hike – so much amazing scenery for so little effort. I guess it helped that we had been in the Sierra for awhile and had gotten acclimated to the altitude, because the lake itself is at 8,318 feet.

We started scouting out whether there was an acceptable way for me to cross the fairly deep and rapid creek so that we could walk around the lake. I wasn’t exactly excited about it, but I wasn’t about to be the reason we didn’t, so I used my usual awkward, 5 point method, where I slithered on my butt across the logs and branches.

Once I finally got across the stream, we traced the shores of the lake, but there really was no clear trail to follow. We couldn’t get lost because the lake was right to our left, but we did have to bushwack a bit on the overgrown trail and get our feet wet several times. I don’t think many people do this. There really is no need to as the best views are from the shore that we first encountered at the end of the real trail. I guess it had to be done though.

Lolo Demonstrating 5 Point Creek CrossingThe hike back out was easy, and it wasn’t long before we were back at our campsite at Oh! Ridge, sipping Chardonnay and gazing out over June Lake below.

It had been a great day with two great hikes. I am always amazed when we are out West how much variety there is in such a small geographical area. One minute we were hiking on cinders and ashes along a treeless volcanic crater rim and the next we were hiking through a beautiful forest of quaking aspen and Jeffrey Pines on our way to a pristine mountain lake – and they were only, 10 miles away from each other. In New Jersey, I can barely get from one shopping mall to the next in that short a distance.

The hikes did have something in common though -- those beautiful snow-covered Sierra always in the background. I’m going to miss them when we go back home.

Day 3 – Lundy Canyon and Travertine Hot Springs

Lolo and Herb at Lundy CanyonAlthough we were at the doorstep to Yosemite and tempted by all it has to offer, we had not yet even come close to exhausting the wonderful hiking opportunities in the wilderness areas just outside its eastern boundary.

For today, we chose to do one of the classics – the hike to Lundy Canyon in the Hoover Wilderness Area, known for having some of the best waterfalls in the Eastern Sierra.

From the town of Lee Vining, we drove 7 miles north on 395 and then turned left on Lundy Canyon Road. After 5 miles we passed Lundy Lake and continued for another 2 miles on a dirt road to the trailhead. We were very lucky to get the last parking spot in the small lot. Most of the people in the lot were getting ready to set off on a multi-day backpacking trip, as the Lundy Lake trail is the backdoor into the 20 Lakes Basin Area, and many people use this as their starting point.

The girls that were parked next to us were packing up to take a group of teenagers on a backpacking trip to Saddleback Lake, about 6 miles up through the canyon. They had extra food that needed to be left behind and were concerned by the lack of bear boxes at the start of the trail, which was rather unusual since we were in black bear country. One of the girls told us that she had already had her car door ripped off 4 times by bears trying to get at the food inside it. She had no desire to go for a fifth, so she actually got back in her car to go look for a place where her food could be safely stored while they were away. Before setting out, we did a double check to make sure that there was nothing that would be tempting for a bear left in our car.

Lundy CanyonWe followed the trail through a grove of quaking aspen and in about a quarter of a mile came to a pond with a lovely view of Lower Mill Creek Falls and the snow-covered peaks of the western end of Lundy Canyon. Fortunately there was another couple there, so we took turns taking photos of each other.

At about ¾ miles we came to the Lower Mill Creek Falls, the first of the two waterfalls we would get to that day, and the one we had used as a backdrop for our picture at the beginning of our hike.

The trail traced Mill Creek for much of its way, and there were several spots where we had to cross it, hopping over rocks and logs. There were also several impressive beaver dams, which have created small ponds within the creek. .

After about another mile and a quarter of easy hiking through forest and meadow, we came to our turnaround point and the Upper Lundy Falls, the second of the two waterfalls on our hike. From this point, the trail rises steeply and somewhat treacherously up the canyon wall. Our hiking book warned about this section of the trail being steep and slippery with loose scree, making it possible to take a serious fall, especially if wearing a heavy backpack. Most day hikers turn back at this point, and we would as well. We did, however, go a short distance along the canyon wall, mostly so I could get to a little snow pile and make a snowball.

Lolo Hiking Lundy CanyonOn our way down, a nice, flat rock ledge above the Upper Falls called out to us, so we answered and sat for awhile enjoying the beautiful scenery and our picnic lunch.

The entire hike, out and back, was 4.4 miles with a 1,000 foot elevation gain and an awful lot of awesome scenery along the way.

We still had the whole afternoon ahead of us, so we drove north on 395 for about 17 miles to the turnoff for Travertine Hot Springs in the town of Bridgeport. Last summer, this had been the site of our first natural hot springs experience, and it had set the bar very high in terms of ease of access and a beautiful setting.

We knew enough to pass right by the partially-developed pool at the edge of the parking lot and continue down a short trail to the main pools, which are fed from water trickling over the edge of a colorful, “travertine”-stained rock formation that rises above them. Rock piles separate the water into three separate pools, with water flowing from one pool to the next, decreasing in temperature as it goes along. The rightmost pool, which has stone sides to sit on, is about 105 degrees; the middle pool also has stone sides and is about 100 degrees; and the leftmost pool has a mushy mud bottom and is about 90 degrees.

Lolo with Lundy Canyon SnowballThere is always someone in the rightmost pool, but the others are sometimes available. I’m not sure what the etiquette is in terms of joining people already in a pool if another one is empty, so I tend to not join. Herb takes the privacy thing a step further and goes across the field to a primitive pool that he likes to think of as his own. The whole area around the springs is very active geothermally, so new springs are continuously erupting forming new pools. However, “Herb” pool was here when we visited last year.

A gentleman, who was just leaving “Herb” pool, showed us how to regulate the temperature by using a rock to either block or open up the flow of spring water into it. It was surprising what a difference it made. Although I love sitting in my beach chair by this pool looking out at the Sierra and the town of Bridgeport below, I am not a fan of its muddy bottom. So, I kept watch over the three main pools, and when I saw the middle one free up, I would go there to soak for awhile. Just like in the “Three Little Piggies,” for me the middle pool was “just right” – good temp and stones rather than mud to sit on.

That evening we returned once more to our campsite at Oh! Ridge on June Lake and discussed the plan of attack for the next few days. We tried to sit out in our beach chairs to have a glass of wine and watch the sun set over the lake, but it was just too cold and windy. Oh! Ridge is, after all, at an elevation of 7,600 feet. Herb hates the cold and is terribly offended if he can’t sip wine outside in the summer, so, we agreed that the next day we would move to the Mono Vista RV Park in Lee Vining, which is at 6,300 feet, to see if that was any better.

Day 4 – Dog Lake, Lembert Dome, and Tuolumne Meadows

Dog LakeThe next morning we implemented our plan of moving our base camp from Oh! Ridge Campground on the June Lake Loop to the Mono Vista RV Park, just 15 miles up 395, but 1,300 feet closer to sea level.

Now we were just too close to the Yosemite entrance to resist its lure any longer, so we dropped the motorhome off at its new home and drove the Subaru into the Park. Every bit of elevation we lost driving down to Mono Lake, we regained and more. Beautiful Tuolumne Meadows sits at 8,600 feet, which is why even in late spring and early summer, the Tioga Pass Road sometimes closes due to snow.

We have done many day hikes and even a backpacking trip from Tuolumne Meadows, but for some reason we have never done the classic hike to the top of Lembert Dome. While Tuolumne Meadows is full of domes, Lembert Dome is probably the most iconic and the one that dominates the eastern end of the meadow.

Lolo Hiking Lembert DomeLike most domes, Lembert Dome has a steep face, which rock climbers like to play on, and a more gentle, yet still steep, backside that hikers can scramble up. I think we parked in the climbers’ rather than the hikers’ parking lot, because what we were looking at hopefully wasn’t its gentle backside. However, the trailhead did say Dog Lake and Lembert Dome. We would just have to hike a little longer to get to the backside, which was fine.

After hiking for about a mile along a trail along a wooded slope, we came to a trail junction – Dog Lake 0.4 miles straight ahead, backside of Lembert Dome 0.5 miles to the right. We went straight and soon came upon the south edge of Dog Lake, with views of Mount Gibbs and Mount Dana in the distance to the east. Although not as dramatic a setting as some of the other high country lakes we have hiked to, it was still a very lovely and peaceful spot.

Lolo Approaching Lembert Dome False SummitWe continued along the lake’s shoreline on an obvious path –much easier than our bushwhacking / stream crossing experience the other day at Parker Lake. Soon we came upon a nice sandy beach, which someone had already claimed. If it had been a little later in the summer season, I would have loved to have gone for swim, but the water was still too chilly, at least for me.

After our trip around the lake, we hiked back down to the trail junction we had passed earlier, took a left turn towards Lembert Dome, and after a half mile came to a sign pointing us to the right to ascend the backside of the dome. There is no official path to the top, so you have to figure out your own way up the steep granite slabs. I chose to follow a large crack, because it gave me the security of grabbing onto something if necessary.

Lolo on Treacherous Descent from Lembert DomeAlthough a little bit intimidating, it was nothing compared to going up the backside of Half Dome. There it is so steep that they have installed cables to hold onto as you ascend. Still even on this dome, there were more people choosing not to go up to the summit than did than to do so, which was good in that it gave us the top to ourselves. From the summit there is a wonderful panoramic view of the Cathedral Range to the South, the Sierra crest to the east, and Tuolumne Meadows to the west.

In retrospect, I really hope that we made it to the true summit. I read afterwards that there are several false summits, plus our Strava mapping of our hike seemed to show us a little bit to the right of the summit. I don’t know how that could be though. There was nowhere else to go up. I am going to officially count it as having reached the summit.

As always, the going down a steep surface is much scarier than going up. Going up you can at least reach your hands out and touch the rock for security, but going down you feel much more exposed. I admit to resorting to my trademark five-point contact method where I use my butt, hands, and feet to maneuver down the steeper parts. I didn’t care what I looked like.

Tuolumne River and MeadowOnce back on flatter ground, we continued back to the trail junction, turned right, and hiked about 0.3 miles down to the road to a parking lot that I think was the one that we should have to do this hike. From there, it was a long walk back to our parking lot (1.2 miles according to Strava) along a trail that ran alongside the road.

All totaled, our hike was 6.1 miles with an 900 foot elevation gain, but believe it or not, 600 of that elevation gain was made getting to Dog Lake.

Before returning to Lee Vining, we drove west a bit further along the Tioga Pass Road as far as beautiful Tenaya Lake, looking for a place to set out our beach chairs to just relax and enjoy the scenery. The lake was pretty busy with picnickers, so we found a quieter place where the Tuolumne River runs through the meadow. It was lovely.

The drive back to our campsite at Mono Vista RV Park in Lee Vining was only ½ hour. Although we much prefer staying in the Park, it was good to find a viable base camp alternative for future visits to Yosemite.

Day 5 – Black Point Fissures, Buckeye Hot Springs, and Travertine Hot Springs

Lolo Hiking to Black Point FissuresToday we decided to explore another one of Mono Lake’s volcanic features – the Black Point Fissures atop a flat-topped volcano along the north side of the lake. Black Point last erupted about 13,000 years ago when it was still beneath the water of what was a much deeper Mono Lake. When the cinder and lava cooled and hardened under water, the top split open to form several hundred-yard-long cracks, or canyon-like fissures, measuring from 20 to 50 foot deep and only a few feet wide. When the waters of Mono Lake receded after the Ice Age, Black Point became a peninsula. It is the only fully exposed underwater volcano on earth.

It is the fissures that make this place so interesting, but since they lie below the surface of what is now a rather indistinct flat-topped volcano, they are not that easy to find. If fact, even getting to the trailhead was a bit of a challenge, though not nearly as bad as the ranger in the Mono Lake Visitor Center had described it.

Mono Lake Islands ViewFrom our campsite in Lee Vining, we drove 5 miles north on 395 and turned right onto a paved road marked County Park. We stopped briefly at the park and walked along a boardwalk to the north shore tufa area and wetland. The lake has receded quite a bit over the years, so there are several tufas left stranded on the shore. There was a very large, bright white one just alongside the boardwalk, so close that I could have touched it, but didn’t because I thought that might not be good for it.

After the park we continued along the road, which eventually became dirt, for another 3.4 miles and then turned right on another dirt road signed for Black Point. Then it was 3 miles more along dirt to a parking lot marked for Black Point.

From the parking lot, you couldn’t really see much of anything, or for that matter, where you were even supposed to go. Unlike other volcanic features that rise above its surroundings, these fissures were below the surface and not visible until you were at their edge. All we saw was a gently sloping hill covered in ash, cinders, and sagebrush.

Black Point FissuresSince there is no official trail up to the fissures, we just followed the footprints, wherever they lead, but all too often there were footprints in every direction. As long as we kept going up, we figured we would be getting closer. Eventually we left the sagebrush behind and reached a rocky promontory, which appeared to be the highest point.

While we were trying to figure out which way to go from here, we sat on the rock and looked out at the spectacular scenery -- Mono Lake and the snow-covered Sierra. From this vantage point we had a great view of the lake’s two islands – Negit, the black island which erupted 1,700 years ago and Paoha, the white island which erupted only 250 years ago. When we visited Mono Lake last year we kayaked the 3 miles from the lake’s southern shore to Paoha and spent half a day exploring it. We didn’t realize at the time how lucky we were to be able to do that. Usually the lake gets too windy by early afternoon to be out on it.

We saw people to the southwest of us where there appeared to be rocky cliffs, so we headed in their direction. Finally we came to a large crack in a rock that dropped down about 30 feet into a narrow canyon. The entry was gently sloping enough for us to easily enter and come out again at a later point.

Lolo Hiking Black Point FissuresWe thought this was pretty cool and that we had finally found the fissures. I guess we did, but there were much better ones a little further – I wish I could say where, but we have no idea how we got to them. These were deeper (maybe 40 to 50 feet high), narrower (only a couple of feet wide), more colorful, and had walls covered with unusual knobby features that were attached to the walls like barnacles.

I don’t know if we saw all the fissures, but I think we saw enough to have made the trek searching for them worth it.

The way down was much easier to navigate as we could see our car in the parking lot. Good thing, because it was easy to get distracted by the expansive views before us of Mono Lake and the surrounding mountains.

Rather than return to Lee Vining, we continued north on 395 towards the town of Bridgeport to soak in Buckeye Hot Springs, another natural hot spring that we had read about in our guide book.

Herb Soaking in Buckeye Hot SpringsThis one was a bit harder to get to than Keough Hot Ditch or Travertine Hot Springs. We drove past the turnoff for Travertine Hot Springs and after passing through the north end of Bridgeport, we turned west onto Twin Lakes Road and continued for seven miles. Just past Doc and Al’s resort, we turned right and crossed a bridge going over a creek. From there, we continued on a gravel road up a hill, past the Buckeye Campground, to a parking area at the very top of the hill.

There was one pool located under a tree near the parking area, but it was not very inviting – too cool and slimy. The main pools were located right alongside Buckeye Creek, but required going down a short, steep trail to reach them. I made Herb scout it out first to see if it was worth me going down as well and whether we should bring beach chairs. He came back up and said no to the beach chairs but yes for me.

We grabbed towels and a cooler and hiked back down. These pools were very different than Keough and Travertine in that they were directly next to a creek, separated from its chilly waters only by man-made rock piles. The source of the spring was on top of the grassy hillside that we had just climbed down. The water emerged from the spring at about 140 degrees and flowed down, cooling along the way, until it cascaded over a cave into the largest pool, forming a nice little waterfall. Additional rock piles separate the hot water area into three separate pools, varying in temperature from 95 to 110 degrees.

Lolo Soaking in Buckeye Hot SpringsI chose the pool with the waterfall, and squished back as far as I could against the cave wall, so that I could enjoy the waterfall cascading down in front of me without getting pelted in the face. It was nice sitting in the warm pool and listening to the babbling brook, but we prefer the more expansive views we had at Keough and especially at Travertine. So, after a little while, we trekked back up the hill and drove to Travertine, which was on the way back to our campground anyway, and spent an hour there enjoying our soak with a Sierra view.

That evening we went out on the town for dinner at our favorite gas station restaurant – in fact, I believe it is our only gas station restaurant. Although technically located in a Mobil station, Whoa Nellie’s Deli is in a separate building and has quite an exotic menu. For example, Herb and I ordered Lobster Taquitos on a bed of Brazilian black beans and Wild Buffalo Meatloaf cooked cowboy style. You can even get wine and beer. The place was bustling. I highly recommend it to anyone coming into Yosemite via the east entrance.

Description

The Eastern Sierra Scenic Byway, officially known as Highway 395, runs the entire length of the Sierra Nevada Range, from south of Lone Pine to Carson City. The scenery along the way is breathtaking and full of variety – snow covered mountains, incredible lakes, ancient bristlecone forests, natural hot springs, and so much more.

I have broken up our journey along the Scenic Byway into two stops:
• South - from Mammoth Lakes to Lone Pine
• North - from June Lake to Bridgeport

The following is a description of a few of the stops we enjoyed along the Eastern Sierra northern section:

June Lake Area

The June Lake Loop, also known as Highway 158, loops away from Highway 395, just north of Mammoth Lakes, follows a horseshoe-shaped canyon for 16 miles, and then returns to 395 just south of Lee Vining. Along these highly scenic miles, it passes four lakes – June Lake, Gull Lake, Silver Lake, and Grant Lake -- each with dramatic mountain backdrops. There are campgrounds at each of the lakes. Activities along the loop include: world-class trout fishing, swimming, boating, hiking, rock climbing, and photography.

The major community along the loop is June Lake, which lies two miles from the south junction of Highway 395. The small downtown offers a number of lodges, shops, restaurants, and taverns. The lake itself is about one mile long and a half a mile wide, and is served by two marinas. At the northeast end of the lake there is a swimming beach, a private campground, and a national forest campground called Oh! Ridge. Oh! Ridge is located on a hill above the swimming beach with beautiful views of the lake and surrounding mountains.

Lee Vining Area

Mono Lake

Mono Lake is located just off Highway 395 near the town of Lee Vining, California, 13 miles east of Yosemite National Park. Mono Lake is extremely unique. First of all, at over 1 million years of age, it is one of the oldest continuously existing lakes in the continent. Secondly, it is about 2 ½ times as salty as the sea and about 80 times as alkaline. This is because Sierra streams flow into Mono Lake bringing trace amounts of salts and minerals, but the lake has no outlet other than evaporation. As a result, the concentration levels of salts and minerals keeps growing each year. Thirdly, and the main reason Mono Lake is so popular, are the hundreds of spectacular “tufa towers” that rise from the lake. These intriguing calcium-carbonate sculptures were formed beneath the water when carbonates in the water combined with calcium from freshwater springs feeding into the lake. As lake levels dropped, these extraordinary-looking knobs, spires, and minarets became exposed. Most of the towers visible in the lake are from 200 to 900 years old and rise as high as 30 feet above the water.

Panum Crater is a small, dormant crater located just south of Mono Lake and east of Highway 395. The Crater, which last erupted in 1325 AD, is a perfect example of a rhyolitic plug-dome volcano. A marked and maintained trail leads around the rim of the crater, with spectacular views of the Eastern Sierra, Mono Lake and the Mono Basin. The crater is about 2,000 feet across. A side trip leads down into the lava dome at the center of the volcano where there are bizarre rock formations and huge chunks of obsidian everywhere. The rim and trail into the dome is about 2 ½ miles long with a total elevation gain of about 200 feet.

Black Point is a flat-topped volcanic hill on the north side of Mono Lake. It last erupted about 13,000 years ago beneath the waters of what was once a much deeper Mono Lake. As the cinders and lava cooled and hardened under water, the top split open to form several hundred-yard-long cracks, or canyon-like fissures, measuring from 20 to 50 foot deep and only a few feet wide. When the waters of Mono Lake receded after the Ice Age, Black Point became a peninsula. It is the only fully exposed underwater volcano on earth.

There really is no trail to the Black Point Fissures, and they can be challenging to find because they are not visible until you are standing at their edge. The best thing to do is to start at the BLM trailhead and follow the lines of footprints up the gently sloping butte across cinders and ash to the level plateau on top of the point. The fissures can be found about 800 feet beyond the small rocky promontory near the southeast corner, radiating northwards away from a small line of cliffs along the south edge of the summit plateau.

All the fissures have sloping sides so they can be entered without much difficulty. Be sure to do so to see the unusual knobby textures and colors along their walls.

On the way down, expansive views of Mono Lake and the Sierra lie before you.

Lundy Canyon is located about seven miles north of Lee Vining, along the eastern boundary of Yosemite National Park. The Lundy Canyon trail is the backdoor into the 20 Lakes Basin area of the Hoover Wilderness and along its way are some of the best waterfalls in the Eastern Sierra. The trailhead is located at the end of Lundy Lake Road, about 2 miles past Lundy Lake. Although the entire trail goes to Saddleback Lake (in 6 miles), most people turn around at 2.2. miles when the trail becomes much steeper and treacherous alongside a steep wall of unstable shale. For much of the hike, the trail rises alongside Mill Creek, passing several beaver ponds, lower Lundy Falls near the beginning of the trail, and the Upper Falls near the turnaround point where the trail begins to climb out of the canyon.

Yosemite

Lembert Dome is a granite monolithic dome that dominates the eastern end of Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park. Its summit can be reached either by rock climbing its face from the parking lot just off Tioga Road, or by hiking around to its back side and scrambling up along low angle slabs. From the summit there are magnificent views of the Cathedral Range to the South, the Sierra crest to the east, and Tuolumne Meadows to the west.

Bridgeport Area

Travertine Hot Springs

There are many natural hot springs in the Sierra, but the Travertine Hot Springs are one of the prettiest and the easiest to get to. They are located just south of the town of Bridgeport along Route 395. To reach the springs, turn onto Jack Sawyer Road, then left again onto a marked, but somewhat rutted, dirt road.

There are several pools at Travertine. Right next to the parking area is a developed pool, which is the hottest of the pools in the area. There were even rugs placed around it to cushion the hard surface.

A short way down the trail are the lower three pools, which are fed from water trickling over the ridge of a colorful rock formation that rises above them. The beautiful tan, cream and rust colors of the rock are the result of a form of limestone, called “travertine” that is deposited by the mineral-laden hot springs. The water flows from one pool to the next decreasing in temperature as it goes along. The first pool is about 105 degrees, while the last, which is the largest and shallowest, is only about 90 degrees.

A little past the main pools there are a few more primitive pools that are much more private. The whole area around the springs is very active geothermally, and new springs are continuously erupting.

There are wonderful views of the Sierra while you bathe in one of its pools, sitting along a rocky ledge or in the mud that lines their bottoms. The mud is slightly sulfuric and soothing to the skin.

The area is designated “clothing optional,” but most people wear bathing suits.

Buckeye Hot Springs, near Bridgeport, CA, are considered by some to be the most beautiful pools in the eastern Sierra. The pools are quite unique in that they sit directly next to chilly Buckeye Creek. The two main sources emerge from the side of a steep grassy hillside at about 140 degrees and flow downward, cooling along the way before cascading over a cave in a mini-waterfall formation into the largest pool. The hot water is captured by man-made rock piles alongside the creek, creating three pools of varying temperature in the 95 to 110 degree range. Since the creek water cycles through the pools, they are cleaner than those at Travertine. The trail down to the creek from the parking lot is quite steep. As with most hot spring pools in the Sierra, this one is clothing optional.