Ridin' in the Rockies

We spent a fabulous week with our friends, Greg and Elaine in Cortez, Colorado. They thought it was hot but we were delighted with highs in the low 90s and lows in the upper 40s. They took us to lots of tourist sites including the Crow Canyon Archeological Center, Dove Creek where the famous Anasazi beans are packaged, the Methodist Thrift shop, and the Indian Pow Wow (photos) at the Ute Mountain Casino. There were many dancers in fine native dress and plenty of vendors and Indian Fry Bread to make a fine day. But no Indian taco could match Greg and Elaine's cooking!
Our favorite excursions were those we spent riding our quads in the San Juan Mountains. Our first ride was Willow Divide (photos). The temperatures at 10,000 feet were even chilly. On the Roaring Forks (photos) ride we were delighted to see Elk in the forest as we rode among the spruce, firs and aspens. We were pleased that Cecil and Linda accompanied us in the forest.
We finally headed east and after two days and 1100 miles we arrived back at the dead end where everything appears to be dead due to the dry, hot August weather. But those that stayed home and watered didn't seem to fair much better.

Moab, Ut

The Smothers Brothers were great; just like in the 60s but very gray. We left Tahoe with new tires and a new battery. In Carson City we turned the heater off - a chilly morning in the low 40s. We drove across Nevada and spent the night in Delta, Utah. An early start led us to Moab by noon.
We seized the opportunity to drive out to a couple of viewpoints in Canyonlands National Park. The views of the canyons from atop the large mesa are amazing. My favorite is the view from Mesa Arch.
Then we drove down the road and visited Arches National Park. We passed Balanced Rock and viewed some of the arches but due to the warm temperatures we did not make any hikes. More photos.
From here we drove on to Cortez, Colorado to visit our friends.

So. Lake Tahoe, Ca

The temperatures and ambiance of south shore Tahoe seemed to call us back so we returned to large weekend crowds and plenty of traffic. We settled into a fine spot at Fallen Leaf campground where we parked amid pines, cedars, manzanita, stellar jays, and ground squirrels. We spent a couple of days exploring the area on the western side of the lake doing some biking, hiking, and geocaching. We even found time for a couple of yard sales and people keep asking why we have snow skis on the back of the van. I think they will be nice out in the yard. I didn't expect them to be a conversation piece so soon.

Then we managed to obtain a spot in the Nevada Beach campground just across the Nevada border for four days. At night we listen to owls and coyotes and yet we are one mile from the hustle and bustle of Stateside, Nv. While back in Tahoe we of course have revisited the buffet but have spent more time just relaxing. After all when we leave here we expect to drive more than 60 miles in a day. We are camped on the south shore and have a beautiful view of the sun setting across the lake. I guess it is time for the sun to set on our visit to California also. We will laugh at the Smothers Brothers at Harrah's on the 17th and then cross Nevada the next day. More photos.

Gold Country, CA

From Tahoe we took the scenic 50 mile route through the Sierra Nevada mountains on Highway 50 to Leon's old stomping grounds, Pollock Pines, Ca. Highway 50 was first opened in 1852 and was the Pony Express route in 1860. We settled in at Ghost Mountain Ranch, an rv park in need of a little spiffing up.
We spent a delightful day exploring Coloma, (photos) an historical state park, where gold was discovered by James Marshall in 1848. Marshall and John Sutter were building a sawmill when the gold flakes were discovered in the south fork of the American River. It became a sizable town of 10,000 during the gold rush that followed before the town was mined out and many of the old landmarks still exist.

Placerville is another old gold town, 10 miles from Coloma, named after the placer gold found in the streams. It is in the center of the Gold Country. It served as a supply town for the surrounding gold towns during the heyday. We toured old "Hangtown," as Placerville was also called for the people that died by the rope. (Photos) There are many other gold towns along highway 49 that we would like to visit but we are not well adjusted to these August temperatures in the low 80s, (VBG) and most of the towns are along very slow winding roads.


After a visit to the Boeger Winery to pick up a bottle of wine, the day ended with a delightful visit and dinner with Inge and Don, Leon's former neighbors. Of course we had to sample a few wines to know which to buy. I especially enjoyed seeing Inge's creativity displayed throughout the house and yard. We could hardly see Leon's former home across the steet for the many pine trees growing tall on the front slope.

The hillside between Placerville and Pollock Pines is known as Apple Hill and there are numerous fruit orchards, berry farms, Christmas tree farms, and vineyards covering the hillside. Their busy time is October due to the apple harvest but we enjoyed roaming on a warm summer afternoon before meeting Bud and Sandy for dinner. It is a little warm in Pollock Pines, perhaps mid 80s, so we think we will head back over to south shore Tahoe.

S. Lake Tahoe, Ca

What a fun place! The south shore of Lake Tahoe is brimming with people and we are proud to be among them. We took a most scenic route over the mountains coming into town from the south. We have set up housekeeping at Montbleu in the casino row that is only a couple of blocks long. We wasted no time taking a thrilling 2 1/2 mile ride on the Heavenly Valley Ski Resort gondola to over 9,000 feet with a breathtaking view of Lake Tahoe, Carson Valley, and Desolation Wilderness. We studied the map of ski trails and then finished a little shopping frenzy just in time for an early dinner at the Harrah's buffet at the bottom of the mountain. The 18th floor restaurant provided a fine view of the lake. The sky is a bright blue, the lake is brighter shades of blues, and the temperature at the summit was 60 degrees in mid afternoon. Can it get much better?
Tuesday morning we embarked on the 72 mile drive around the lake. Our first stop was an interesting tour of the Tallac Historic Site which includes a cluster of 100 year old summer homes on the edge of the lake. It is a fascinating glimpse into Tahoe’s past. During the August Great Gatsby Festival volunteers dress in period costume and the buildings are all open for touring. Further along the south shore we stopped at Emerald Bay for the most picturesque scene imaginable that looks out across the lake’s emerald green waters across the only island in the lake, Fannette Island. Nearby is the Vikingsholm, a 38 room Scandinavian castle built in 1929. After a nice lunch in the parking lot we took the steep 1 mile walk down to the beach and mansion. We continued driving around the lake stopping at several vistas. There was so much eye candy that I think I gained 5 pounds on the tour. It is amazing how crowded and developed one section can be and not far around the corner you are driving through cedars and pines in the Lake Tahoe Basin National Forest. There are plenty of beaches and forest service campgrounds all around the lake. It must be one of the country's most scenic drives! And then there are the casino buffets! I think it is time to leave.

Mammoth Lakes, Ca

Being in Mammoth Lakes is like going outside for recess. Everyone is playing and the playground is large. Just behind the visitor's center is the New Shady Rest campground, a part of the Inyo National Forest, but in the middle of town. And a shady rest we did need. We did not get much rest but we did get done the laundry, email, shopping, groceries.
This is where Leon skied his first Black Diamond, Dave's Run, on Mammoth Mountain but that was winter and this is summer. We are still at 7,000 feet so August weather is delightful. The first day we missed the bear that wandered through our campground while we were washing clothes but we sure smelled him during the night.
In Mammoth Lakes you can bike, hike, ride dirt bikes, 4 wheel, fish, boat .. it seems endless. I bought a one day fishing license and first dried Hot Creek, one of the nation's top 10, which was teeming with fish rising to I know not what. I did manage to catch one. The stream is in the open in meadows near the fish hatchery. Nearby hot water bubbles up from beneath the surface in an area where a tremendous volcano once spewed ash as far as Nebraska. You can no longer swim in the creek there so we had a picnic.
Then we took the backroads to Owens Creek, a beautiful stream meandering through the meadows. I honed my fishing skills a little and again caught my limit but a much larger fish. We spent the rest of the day exploring Old Mammoth Road and Mary's Lake Road. We hiked to an old stamp mill and stopped by what was once a mining town called Mammoth City. The Lake Mary Road was a scenic drive through the forest that took us to many high mountain lakes. The view of Twin Lakes from the top of the waterfall was breath taking.
Day three was dedicated to the Devil's Postpile. We took the shuttle and rode through the forest to the trailhead for Rainbow Falls. After a 1.3 mile hike downhill we came to an overlook with a fantastic view of the falls that are created by the middle fork of the San Joaquin River. The mist at the edge of the falls creates a rainbow effect. The hike seemed like 3 miles back. We then shuttled over to the National Monument portion of the park and hiked to the 60 foot tall columns of basalt that give the area it's name. We climbed the trail to the top where the glacial action had polished the rock and it looked like octagonal stone laid flooring. After five hours and about 4 miles of hiking we caught the shuttle back to the top. It was amazing to watch the driver maneuver hairpin turns on single lane roads with steep cliffs on one side. We would have to stop for oncoming cars to hug the mountain and manage to pass us.
Recess was over and we headed north towards Tahoe.
We stopped at Mono Inn on the shore of Mono Lake for a delicious dinner. Ansel Adams used to stop here to eat and his grandaughter now owns the restaurant. We tried some Fess Parker (Davy Crockett) wine since we didn't stop at his winery when we were in the Solvang area.
We stopped north of Bridgeport at Chris Flat campground in the Toiyabe National Forest, a nice little spot on the West Walker River, and quiet even though it is on highway 395. People appear to be camping all along highway 395 at fshing pullouts beside the river. More photos.

Yosemite NP, Ca

After breakfast in Oakhurst we arrived in Yosemite later than we should have. We stopped to inquire about first come – first served campgrounds as it is hard to plan ahead usually. We were told we better grab a spot at the first one on the mountain, Bridalveil Creek and we got very lucky. We found a wonderful spot among the cedars and pines with giant boulders standing like walls between sites. We couldn’t have chosen a better place. The temperatures at 7,000 feet ranged from the mid 40’s to the mid 80’s whereas the high in Yosemite Valley was 101 the first day we went down. It was only a 30 minute drive so we would go down early and return to the campground when it got hot.
One of our favorite views in Yosemite is Glacier Point, which was only about 15 minutes from our home in the wilderness. From there we could look out at the mountains (this one is Half Dome) and waterfalls or peer straight down 3,000 feet into the valley floor where the cars looked like toys. We went for sunset one evening and to watch the full moon rising but the clouds obscured the moon. It is amazing to watch the changing colors on half dome as the diffused light from the sun causes the colors to change. We even got to see an alpenglow on the further peaks.
We explored the southern portion of Yosemite where we hiked in the Mariposa Sequoia Grove to the largest tree in Yosemite, the Grizzly Giant. We toured an area of historic buildings and wagons and learned much about the vibrant history in the Wawona area. The Wawona Hotel, the oldest in the park, is near the entrance and provides a glimpse into the past also. Not far from our campground we hiked down to the McGurk cabin, an early settlement in the area. We stopped on the way back to the campground and gathered enough wood for a great fire over which we roasted marshmallows.
One morning drive into the valley led us past a coyote jogging down the bike trail. Then in a lush green meadow nearby 3 bucks grazed while keeping an eye on the nearby doe. Our favorite mode of travel in the valley was our bicycles and we rode the mostly shady winding bike paths everywhere among giant Incense Cedars, Jeffrey Pines, and all sort of tall firs new to me. If we missed anything we don’t know what it is.
One day we had a picnic lunch near El Capitan while we watched some climbers scaling the next rock. We made a steep 1 ½ mile hike to the footbridge at Vernal Falls and then went for an elegant lunch at the Awahnee Hotel, a marvelous lodge type structure built in 1927. Our most memorable hike would have been the one to Yosemite Falls, the largest falls in the US, but the falls dried up early this year due to less snow last winter. We also toured the nearby Mowak Indian village that showed how the early inhabitants of the area lived, not to mention the visitor’s center, museum, deli, village store, etc.
On August 1 we ventured 67 miles further in the park along a scenic drive to Toulomne Meadows. We got on the waiting list for a campsite and luckily, two hours later, we got the last of 13 sites available. We took a 2.2 mile walk to the Soda Springs where the carbonated water bubbles from the ground. The scenery from the hillside was awesome. There are large lush meadows in the area with streams running through them and mountains for backdrops. The campground was a bit crowded but the crowds dispersed well on the many hiking trails in the area.
The next morning we went about 1 ½ miles towards the John Muir trail across the Dana and Lyell Forks of the Toulumne River. We visited with a volunteer along the way that was one of many search and rescue members looking for a lost 80 year old woman. After our hike we drove across Tioga Pass and descended down a steep hill from the 8,000 foot elevation, as we exited the park and entered Inyo National Forest. We stopped in Lee Vining at the Mono Lake Visitor’s Center and when asking where to eat lunch and do laundry the lady suggested we drive 30 minutes south to a larger town, Mammoth Lakes. What a surprise! More photos.