Monday (Sep 19)
I did about as well as I could shade-wise, but by 10:30 the sun was baking everything on my scrub oak hillside, so my time was up. I stayed here 16 years ago on a pre-WHUFU trip, and had very fond memories of a breakfast place in a strip mall in Valley Center. It was super-busy in 2000, but seems to have disappeared here in 2016. So instead I went to … I think my third coffee shop named Common Grounds on this trip. They are a bakery, and I think they would be a great place on a normal day, but they were a little lacking today. Road construction out front had somehow cut their power on this Monday morning. It had been back long enough that they did have hot coffee, but their baking schedule was completely disrupted, so their pastry selection was down to pre-packaged muffins – boooring!
Thanks to the wonders of air conditioning I really enjoyed my leisurely drive through the 100° heat of the Sierra foothills. Even the little wasteland of century old mining waste I wandered through was interesting. Interesting, but kind of depressing. That place will be useless until the next ice age.
I drove through the beautifully named little hamlet of Copperopolis, then the road got very curvy past along a little lake that was obviously a rich person’s enclave, small lake, many big boats – Tulloch Reservoir? Then I caught up with CA 120, which will take me over Tioga Pass to Mono Lake.
There is an odd place not long after 120 leaves 49 where the marked road continues straight, but everybody is mysteriously taking the unmarked road to the right. I had been through here once years ago and this rang a vague bell, so I pulled over and re-checked Maps. Sure enough, the unnumbered road – Old Priest Grade – is the one to take. 120 – New Priest Grade – winds up the north side of the valley, it’s newer but longer. Old Priest Grade takes a shorter path up the south side. As long as I was stopped I also checked Yelp, and one of the few plausible lunch places – Priest Station Cafe – is right at the top where the two roads rejoin. It turns out to be a cool place. Great panoramic view down the valley, and even more fun you are looking right down at the intersection, where the two Priest Grade roads rejoin.
Yosemite was a zoo. It was super busy driving through Groveland and after, then traffic stopped dead, the line to get in the park. It took 12 minutes to get to the entrance gate, with with all three gates manned and processing entrants. The parking lot at the liter Visitor’s Center by the gate was full, Buck Meadows was full, everything was full.
The real excitement came at the intersection where Big Oak Flats Road splits off to go to the valley floor. Yosemite Valley is closed today! Dunno why, I’m guessing fire danger, but whatever the reason, that left 95% of the people in my traffic jam without their reason for being here, so they were just milling around like an ant colony that just got kicked. It was quite a clusterfuck at that intersection. The rangers were getting pretty snippy, because everyone wanted to stop and get an explanation. Not me, I happily took the left and headed on up 10. to leave that madness behind.
To my surprise it stayed in the high 90’s low / 100’s all this time. Finally at about 4,000′ it started cooling off. It is my fond hope I won’t see 90° again till next June.
The first 2/3 of the Tioga Pass Road is quite boring, Just another two lane road through pine trees. It could be any pine forest in the Sierras. But then it gets really scenic and amazing, an exfoliated granite wonderland!
I had planned to stay up here, at Porcupine Flats or White Wolf or even Toulomne Meadows. The first two were just too boring to contemplate that early in the day, and the third is the opposite. It’s in a beautiful spot, but is such a hive of activity it wore me out to think about it. Also the campground road is really awful. Also I can’t breath today. So onward to the Inyo National Forest campgrounds outside the park.
I stop at the Olmsted Overlook, how could I not? I usually bound around the rocks a bit, walk down to one of the close-in overhangs, but today it was a real effort to get from the car to the retaining wall. I am fucked up.
Then came all the familiar landmarks, Tenaya Lake to the right and those perfect climbing domes to the left. Then Tuolumne Meadows, which was very familiar to me. I guess I’ve been here 3-4 times in the last ten years! No stopping today though.
After Tuolumne there is a little more of the endless granite, then the mountains shift to some kind of red sandstone, which is always surprising and very un-Sierra Nevada like to me.
Soon after that comes the eastern entrance to the park, then almost immediately on your left (north) is Tioga Lake and the first of a few National Forest campgrounds.
[I’m going to try something new here, instead of just listing the place I stay I will describe all the campgrounds along the way since this decision comes up often for me.]
WHUFU page for: Aspen Campground
The third campground after leaving Tioga Pass. It is a few miles and a few thousand feet elevation down, more properly thought of as up from Mono Lake than down from Yosemite.
As you're angling down the canyon wall you see a road hundreds of feet down in the valley below. This campground and Big Bend Campground are here. Eventually you get to the turnoff and drive up the road almost two miles and there you are. For some reason the signage is for Bid Bend, but Aspen is the first option you get to.
Shady, near the same stream as Ellery Lake, lots of happy trout fishermen, a lovely meadow at the east edge of the campground. Nice enough place, but it ain't no Tioga Lake.
tonight:
The third campground after leaving Tioga Pass. It is a few miles and a few thousand feet elevation down, more properly thought of as up from Mono Lake than down from Yosemite.
As you're angling down the canyon wall you see a road hundreds of feet down in the valley below. This campground and Big Bend Campground are here. Eventually you get to the turnoff and drive up the road almost two miles and there you are. For some reason the signage is for Bid Bend, but Aspen is the first option you get to.
Shady, near the same stream as Ellery Lake, lots of happy trout fishermen, a lovely meadow at the east edge of the campground. Nice enough place, but it ain't no Tioga Lake.
In my plan I would have spent tonight at Porcupine Flats and rolled in here in the early afternoon tomorrow. Instead here I am at 6 pm today.
This is where I should have stayed. All sites were occupied, but there was a cool Euro couple in the camp host site (not actual camp hosts). They had been told to say it was ok to just set up in the extra parking spaces if I want. I gave it some thought but did not. This is by far the coolest of the campgrounds up here, and it is always full. I had set up this whole leg of the trip to nail a site here and now I am walking away because I feel too crappy to enjoy it.
This new situation of extreme breathlessness has me kind of spooked. It seemed like a bad idea to spend the night at 9,700′ so I bailed. :(
WHUFU page for: Ellery Lake Campground
The second campground after leaving Yosemite at Tioga Pass, a little bit down from the Tioga Lodge. Unlike the first campground, there is no spectacular view. You're tucked in a little alcove created by a huge rock. There is a lovely stream however.
tonight:
The second campground after leaving Yosemite at Tioga Pass, a little bit down from the Tioga Lodge. Unlike the first campground, there is no spectacular view. You're tucked in a little alcove created by a huge rock. There is a lovely stream however.
This place is only a few hundred feet lower but a lot less interesting. Fishermen like it I think, because it’s right next to the stream. But you have little sense that you’re in this beautiful, wide canyon, so what’s the point?
After those two campgrounds with after Yosemite there is a long spectacular drive down the north wall of the canyon. At some point you start noticing a paved road that snakes up the valley floor far below you. The next two campgrounds are here, so drive forever till you get to the junction with that road and double back a couple of miles up the canyon. That is where I stayed:
WHUFU page for: Aspen Campground
The third campground after leaving Tioga Pass. It is a few miles and a few thousand feet elevation down, more properly thought of as up from Mono Lake than down from Yosemite.
As you're angling down the canyon wall you see a road hundreds of feet down in the valley below. This campground and Big Bend Campground are here. Eventually you get to the turnoff and drive up the road almost two miles and there you are. For some reason the signage is for Bid Bend, but Aspen is the first option you get to.
Shady, near the same stream as Ellery Lake, lots of happy trout fishermen, a lovely meadow at the east edge of the campground. Nice enough place, but it ain't no Tioga Lake.
tonight:
The third campground after leaving Tioga Pass. It is a few miles and a few thousand feet elevation down, more properly thought of as up from Mono Lake than down from Yosemite.
As you're angling down the canyon wall you see a road hundreds of feet down in the valley below. This campground and Big Bend Campground are here. Eventually you get to the turnoff and drive up the road almost two miles and there you are. For some reason the signage is for Bid Bend, but Aspen is the first option you get to.
Shady, near the same stream as Ellery Lake, lots of happy trout fishermen, a lovely meadow at the east edge of the campground. Nice enough place, but it ain't no Tioga Lake.
I was pretty tired. I had made it through a lot of traffic and a few climate zones since waking up on New Hogan Reservoir this morning. There was a little unwanted drama when the camp host came and shooed me out of my spot because it was a (poorly marked) official double spot. The quality of camp hosts seems to be going down.
Sun is setting earlier, about 7:30, After settling then being told to re-settle I don’t really have that much time to enjoy the magic time around sunset. Whatever the hell is going on with my respiratory system makes it a production to walk the 120 yards to pay at the check-in station.
The evening did confirm why I love this time of year. Well after dark, I hung out in the van with the door wide open and the orange party lights on, lap-topping away. No bugs! Well, one determined moth, but no swarms of anything. I could hear the stream, I could hear the lovely sound of the aspen leaves rattling in the breeze, it was very, very pleasant.
I bestirred myself for a short wheezy walk back to the meadow about 11pm. The waning gibbous moon was up by then and I wanted to enjoy the stream and meadow by moonlight. I wish I felt better.
To complete the record my experiences on Route 120 to Tioga Pass, here is the last campground before you get to 395, with the description of when I stayed there last year:
WHUFU page for: Lower Lee Vining Campground
In the style of Inyo Forest campgrounds(*), this one is hard to find(**) and kind of shabby and rough, but it's in a really beautiful location.
This one is on Lee Vining Creek, in the aspen/pine forest on top of the glacial till. It's the first campground on CA 120 west of Mono Lake heading up to spectacular Tioga Pass.
It's pretty cool. It's very popular with fishermen.
(*) Except the Inyo campgrounds around June Lake/Mammoth. They are run by a concessionare. They are a little nicer, cost twice as much, and have three times as many rules.
(**) There is an arrow for "camping", but you must turn off the road to see the "Lower Lee Vining" sign.
tonight:
A sense of closure! I tried to stay here three nights ago and it was full beyond capacity.
Maybe it's the time of year or my mood, but I am preferring the sites with space around them to the cozy tucked away sites. #9 is at the far western edge of the roundabout where the bathroom is. I can hear the creek and could see it when the leaves fall, and I have lots of sky and pine trees and yellow aspens.
Tuesday
Lovely morning. Turns out my site is in the middle of everything in the daytime, many people walking and driving past. No a big deal really, I just stayed in the van, then took the little walk over to the creekside picnic table to enjoy the creek and the view for a few minutes. Around noon I left and headed to Mammoth for coffee at Looney Bean. Thence to Von’s, because that’s what I do in Mammoth. I have a super short driving day, so I researched lunch places and came up with the Garden Cafe, which turned out to be pleasant and unassuming. Then the very short drive to:
WHUFU page for: Convict Lake Campground
Large campground at the foot of Convict Lake. Really cool place, mountains on three sides, nice little bite-sized hike around the perimeter of the lake (2.6 miles). Quite popular, but it's a big campground so there are usually open sites.
Downtown Mammoth is fifteen minutes away.
tonight:
First time I've been here when they're not repaving!
Price goes up every year. That's what happens when you sign away government functions to for-profit companies.
It is still a couple of weeks away from peak fall colors.
This is a great site, shielded from the road and the bathroom light, facing onto a meadow that gives a great view towards the lake.
I am early enough in the day that I got a great spot, shielded from the road and backed by a large meadow with a great view of the mountains surrounding Convict Lake. The bathroom is close, but the van shields me from the very bright light that comes on at night.
I am such a mess that the quarter mile walk back to the pay station at the entrance is a major endurance feat. Had to stop like four times each way. No hike around the lake for me tonight. Yuck.
Wednesday
What a beautiful place to wake up! Through the side and front windows I can see across the meadow the sheer mountain faces that ring Convict Lake. So I can watch the progress of sunrise from the comfort of bed.
Today is sort of a repeat of yesterday, and yesterday wasn’t half bad. There is the short drive to Mammoth, the hour or so of wifi-ing at Looney Bean, then I returned to the little restaurant I liked yesterday (skipped Von’s today). Yesterday’s sandwich wasn’t inspiring, so I convinced him to make the 3-egg breakfast with the chorizo he had for other dishes and it was really yummy!
The difference from yesterday is that it started raining pretty hard when I was in Looney Bean. In normal times this might have been enough of a damper on my outdoors plans that i would just head on home tonight instead of tomorrow. But since I can’t walk anywhere I’ll be mostly in or at the van anyway so I decided to stick to my plan to stay at Silver Lake tonight.
I enjoyed a very leisurely drive around the first third of the June Lake Loop, where it started raining pretty hard again. I cranked up the wipers and got most of the bugs off my windshield!
WHUFU page for: Silver Lake Campground
at the end of beautiful Silver Lake. Probably has great lake swimming/kayaking in the summer. Sites 16-27-ish have best lake access. Spectacular fall color spot.
All the June Loop campgrounds no longer allow checking yourself in at the kiosk. A stressed-out concession employee must come and personally check you in. A step backwards, IMO.
tonight:
quite a bustling place this time of year. It's before fall color time, so it's all fishermen, either in bro-packs or with their wives. Site 36 is near the bathroom in the open with a spectacular view of the mountains behind the lake.
As I have whined many times in the last few days, no hiking for me – I’m just here for the view, I guess. It rains quite hard all the rest of the day. Close to sunset I don the raincoat and get out the umbrella to wheeze my way over tot he pay station. That was my big adventure for the day.
It was very, very pleasant in the van in the driving rain with the spectacular mountains barely visible through the haze.
Thursday
The day in the rain yesterday was pretty fun. Last night was cold and miserable. I didn’t have much interest in my usual morning blogging since I will be home tonight, so I rolled out a little earlier than usual. It’s kind of exciting to think I will be home tonight. I wish I felt better.
Coffee in little place in the motel in Lee Vining. It was hopping today.
Still pretty rainy, so I decided a good indoor activity would be the Mono Lake Visitors Center. As always for me, the main attraction was the relief map. That wore me out (sad!) so I took a little nap in the parking lot before heading on home.
My other little treat for today was that I decided that today would be the day I actually drive up Virginia Lakes Road. The Mono Tourist Facebook page had said that the fall color was starting up there. Saw the colors, saw some pretty nice storm clouds, then came back down to power my way though the rest of the beautiful drive up 395 – Bridgeport, Walker Canyon, Antelope Valley, Topaz Lake, then stop for that dependable excellent steak and eggs at Topaz Casino.
My parking lot nap threw me behind schedule a bit, so that it was pretty much dark by the time I emerged from the casino after my 6pm breakfast. Driving after dark isn’t my favorite thing, but I know that road well so I got ‘er done in a workmanlike manner as was home by 9-ish.
Welcome Home Me!