Driving around the Sierras
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First off - thank goodness for the wonderful ranger we met in the foothills visitor center as we descended out of Sequoia. I wanted to ask for advice about taking the Sherman Pass road over theRead more
First off - thank goodness for the wonderful ranger we met in the foothills visitor center as we descended out of Sequoia. I wanted to ask for advice about taking the Sherman Pass road over theRead more
The drive really was spectacular. I kept pulling over to take pictures. I also kept thanking my lucky stars we were driving around and not over these browned out behemoths.
We pulled in to the moderately prosperous town of Lone Pine to gather supplies and stretch our legs. We then turned west and went through some remarkable rock formations on our way up the campgroundRead more
We got up and went to the store at the base of the trail and saw lots of serious hikers! Turns out you need to enter a lottery to climb to the summit. We decided to do the 2.5 mile steep climb to LoneRead more
It was a tough climb! The kids were troopers but it was touch and go. We thought a storm might blow in but we took our chances and kept going. We had to take our shoes off at one stream crossing - boyRead more
Wow - the lake is gorgeous! It sits at 9,850 feet but given that we had to hike down to it, we're pretty sure we crossed 10,000 feet!
Crossing over the snow bank was a bit scary! A slip or sudden avalanche meant we would be going for an unexpected swim!
The hike down was great as well. I kept noticing the little micro-climates we would pass through. Lots of pretty flowers and trees.
We drove up to Mammoth Lakes after the hike. I wondered where the skiing was as we approached as the mountains looked steep! We camped at Old Shady Rest right in town. The site was great and it wasRead more
We got up early (thanks to Franklin's insistence) and got our tickets and rentals fairly quickly. It was a Friday so it wasn't crowded at all.
Notice we are wearing jackets at first - they won'tRead more