Northern California 2015, Yosemite to the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, June 16th to June 24th.

There's only one way to get back to Yosemite from Sequoia National Park and that's to re-trace our route back through Fresno. As we descend Highway 180 from the Sierra Nevada Range into the San Joaquin Valley we end up behind two tandem bicycles. It's fun watching them carve the sweeping corners but soon we out pace them and have to pass.

A pair of tandem bicycles on the descent into the San Joaquin Valley.

We drive through Fresno.  It's hot and we drive on through back to Bass Lake to spend the night. Our plan is to get to Yosemite early the next morning, drive to Glacier Point and then ride our bikes on the loop through the Yosemite Valley to see the spectacular scenery. Since we don't have reservations we won't be able to spend the night but we'll have the day to do these two things.

A view across Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point.

We enter Yosemite at the South Entrance on Highway 41 then take the Glacier Point Road to Glacier Point. It's about 17 miles on a curvy narrow two-lane road from the intersection to the Point and worth the drive for the fantastic views of Yosemite Valley and Half Dome. The Point has an information center, restrooms and paved, universal walkways to the overlooks. The parking lots fill up at times so it's hard to find a space if you don't get there early. Although tour buses go out there I wouldn't recommend large RV's because there may not be enough parking and the road gets very narrow.

Half Dome as seen from Glacier Point.

Jim and Half Dome.

From one of the overlooks you can look 3,214 ft. straight down into Yosemite Valley. How does this view grab you?

3,214 ft. down to the valley floor.

After Glacier Point we drive into Yosemite Valley and find an easy parking space along the loop road where we can unload our bikes. The great thing about the loop is that it's one way and makes it really easy to move along with the continuous flow of traffic. There is also a separate paved bike path at the upper end of the loop if you wish to go slower or have small children.

Here we are at Yosemite Falls on a bucket-list bike ride in Yosemite Valley.

At the upper end of the valley a paved path goes to Mirror Lake.

Mirror Lake.

The two-lane, one-way road has parallel parking.

Looking up at El Capitan on our bike ride.

Bridalveil Falls.

In the afternoon after our ride we leave Yosemite Valley on the Big Oak Flat Road and head east on Highway 120, the Tioga Pass Road. This is a wonderful scenic drive over the Sierra Nevada Range in the central part of Yosemite. We're looking for a National Park campground to spend the night and settle on Porcupine. It's a primitive campground with vault toilets, no hookups, dump or water and rough, potholed interior roads. Maximum RV length is 24 ft. so most of the campers are tenters and a few small RV's. Sites are close together. We got the last site available and it was right at the entrance to the campground. The cost is $12 per night or $6 with the Senior Pass. The nice thing about our site was it's location next to a little stream were deer came to browse.

Porcupine Campground in Yosemite National Park.

In the morning we head over Tioga Pass on 120 and stop at Olmsted Point along the way. From the point you can get a spectacular view of the east side of Half Dome. A dedication plaque tells about Frederick Olmsted, the father of American landscape architecture, who designed New York's Central Park, was the chairman of the first commission to manage Yosemite Valley and wrote recommendations for the protection of Yosemite's scenery and wildlife. 

About Frederick Olmsted.

Our portrait with Half Dome at Olmsted Point.

A view of the east side of half Dome with Glacier Point in the horizon on the right.

The Tioga Pass Road doesn't fail to impress with gorgeous scenery as the highway passes along the shore of Tenaya Lake at 8,149 ft.

Tenaya Lake.

On the east side of the pass the road descends in long sweeping curves into the Mono Valley and junctions with US Highway 395 near Lee Vining. 

The east end of Highway 120, the Tioga Pass Road, descends into the Mono Valley.

The east side of Yosemite National Park from the Tioga Pass Road.

We stop at the the Mono Basin Visitor Center in Lee Vining. It's worth the visit. There's a lot to be learned about the formation of the tufa formations and wonderful views of Mono Lake.

The Mono Basin Visitor Center in Lee Vining.

To visit the Mono Lake tufa formations we go south on 395 to junction where 120 continues east. Signs along 120 direct us down a graded road for a few miles to South Tufa on the south shore of the lake. Here is were we find the spectacular tufa formations Mono Lake is known for.

Mono Lake and tufa fromations.

A path takes visitors to the lake were we walked through the tufa towers.

Tufa reflections.

People can launch canoes and kayaks at Navy Beach near the tufa formations

People kayaking around the formations, a great way to go birding.

Jim meets tufa. Navy Beach is along the shore on the left.

The day was getting hot and instead of kayaking we decide to head for our next camp. An interesting spot on the map has caught our attention, Obsidian Dome. We drive back to 395 and head south to a forest road that takes us to Hartley Springs Campground in the Inyo National Forest. This is an ideal primitive National Forest campground. The 1.5 mile gravel road to the Obsidian Dome is in good shape but the 1 mile dirt road into the campground has a few potholes and is a little slow going but worth it for this little jewel of a campground.

The campground is on flat terrain in a stand of big Red Firs. There were a few other large rigs but the campground was so spread out we could camp out of sight of everyone else and spent a very peaceful night. There are pit toilets and no dump or water. There is no fee but the entry sign recommends a $5 donation to help with upkeep. Since there are so many forest roads in the area they've made nice signed ATV trails although no one was riding when we were there.

Our camp at Hartley Springs among the California Red Fir.

The next morning we drove to the Obsidian Dome. The road is good to the parking area. There is no interpretive signage. The dome is a mile-long, 300 ft. mound of volcanic black glass that has fractured into large boulders. This is a protected area and taking any of the rock is strictly prohibited. This is a really fascinating place.

The Obsidian Dome.

Obsidian boulders.

The road past the parking area gets rougher and a mile further we find a gated road were we can hike to the top of the dome. From the top we see other volcanic formations and look south to the Ansel Adams and John Muir Wildernesses. The road continues one as a 4-wheel drive so we back track to US 395.

A view from the top of the Obsidian Dome.

Our destination for today is Mammoth Lakes and to find a campsite at Lake Mary. There's supposed to be some great bike riding. Mammoth Lakes is a picturesque resort town with several large lakes that offer fishing and boating in summer and winter sports and recreation.

Mammoth Lakes.

We get to Mammoth Lakes early on Friday hoping to get a camp site for the weekend rush and are in luck. As we pull in a big motor home pulls out and we slip into the empty site. For the rest of the day people will be driving through the loop looking for a spot. Getting a site at a destination on the weekend is risky if you don't make reservations.

The Lake Mary campground is a Forest Service campground but it doesn't cover a large area. The loops are paved and the RV sites are marked off in parallel or back-in parking spaces around the outside of the loop. Each site has a picnic area in the pines facing out from the loop. There are flush toilets, and water at faucets around the campground, but no hookups or dump. The cost was $23 per night or $11.50 with the Senior Pass. We were camped on the upper part of the campground without a lake view and it was a 5 minute walk to the lake. We thought we'd get internet here but we're too far into the mountains.

Our camp at Lake Mary.

Lake Mary.

The Thumb in the John Muir Wilderness south of the lake.

Lots of fishing opportunities at Lake Mary. The campground is on the opposite side of the lake. A very pretty setting.

We spend Friday and Saturday night here so we can take a bike ride on Saturday. Jim found a loop on the map that we could ride. It goes from Mammoth Lakes on highway 203 to US 395 then north to a rest area near the junction with the Mammoth Scenic Loop and back to Mammoth Lakes on the Scenic Loop. It's an easy ride through rolling hills and forests with great mountain views. There's a good bike lane and shoulder all the way.

We start our ride by following the loop road around Lake Mary and then make a fast descent of over 1,000 ft. down the mountain to Mammoth Lakes. There's a paved bike path parallel to the road but it's posted with a 15 mph speed limit. We know we'll be going a lot faster so we take the road down and will take the bike path on the climb back up to Lake Mary.

Mammoth Lakes nestled in the middle of spectacular scenery.

The Lake Mary bike path parallels the road on the descent to Mammoth Lake.

A view of Mammoth Mountain as we ride north on US 395.

Lupins bloom along the Mammoth Scenic Loop.

The climb from Mammoth Lakes back to Lake Mary is slower so we take the bike path.

A little stop to take photos of the view as we climb into the mountains.

As it turns out the bike path had some pretty steep sections while the road had a more even grade and would have been an easier climb. The advantage of the bike path was that it was away from the traffic and it had shade which offered relief from the noon sun on the climb.

We finish our ride by taking the bike path by Lake George to the end of the road and then back to our camp at Lake Mary. We'd highly recommend this bike ride.

Lake George, next to Lake Mary, with The Thumb on the horizon. .

We leave Lake Mary and Mammoth Lakes and head south on Highway 395. It's our plan to do a couple bike rides into the east side of the Sierra Nevada Range. There should be some good climbs. We select the Rock Creek Road, only 25 miles from Mammoth Lakes, where there are several Forest Service campgrounds to choose from. 

When we turn onto Rock Creek Road we find it's being resurfaced and really torn up. We hope the road gets better but it doesn't. We go as far as Big Meadow Campground. The sites are small and crowded so we head back to French Camp near the junction of 395. 

French Camp is a nice Forest Service campground in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in the Inyo National Forest. It's a great place to overnight if you're passing through the area. The campsites are widely spaced among Single-needle Pinyon Pine and Rock Creek flows along one side of the campground. They've done a good job of preserving the naturalness of the area. There are flush toilets and water taps. There's also good internet which we haven't had for a long time. The cost is $22 per night or $11 with the Senior Pass. There's a dump station at the campground entrance which is an additional $7 or $3.50 with the Senior Pass. Although French Camp is near the highway there isn't any road noise. 

Driving down Highway 395 towards Bishop in the Owens Valley. The Sierra Nevada Range on the horizon. 

The next day we continue south on 395 to Bishop in the north end of the Owens Valley. At Bishop we decide to take Highway 168 into the Sierras to camp for a few days and do a bike ride. 

We stay at Four Jeffery Campground on the South Lake Road in the Inyo National Forest. It was named because it had 4 big Jeffery Pines, now only 3. It has mountain views, Aspens and the South Fork Bishop Creek flowing by. The larger sites are on a bushy hillside with no shade. There are smaller back-ins with shade and great sites for tenters along the stream in the Aspens. 

We found one shady site available. There are flush toilets and water taps. The cost is 

$23 per night or $11.50 with the Senior Pass. A dump station at the campground entrance is $7 or $3.50 with the Senior Pass. 

We discovered this area is popular with local people and a large family group of tenters had constant music playing from sun up till after dark. There are pull offs for fishing all along the South Fork. The other campgrounds and those on 168 going up to Lake Sabrina are probably just as busy in the summer. It's a place to go to get out of the heat in the Owens Valley.

Our camp in the Aspens at Four Jeffery Campground.

The birding was good however and we found Red-breasted Sapsucker and Mountain Bluebirds nesting in the Aspens. We also saw American Dipper in the creek.

The female Mountain Bluebird pops out of her nest in an Aspen Tree. We can hear babies cheeping inside.

The male Mountain Bluebird comes and goes. Both parents are very busy feeding the young.

We spend 2 nights at Four Jeffery so we can ride the South Lake Road into the Sierras and enjoy the mountains before we leave the valley. It's only about 7 miles to South Fork Lake at the end of the road but it turns out to be a strenuous ride. The campground is at 8,000 ft and we'll climb 1,700 ft. to the South Lake Dam. Traffic is light, the road is generally in good condition and very scenic as it curves up the valley. The grade is steady but just before we get to the dam there are some short 10% pitches that take our breath away, especially at over 9,000 ft. I'd swear the last 1/4 mile of the climb to the dam was 20%. We ran out of breath and had to get off and walk our bikes to the parking lot. I was hoping no one would come along and have to witness this sad event. My motto is "Never get off the bike."

It was only a 13-mile round-trip ride but we were pretty spent when we got back to the rig. Must be the altitude. Anyway, I highly recommend this ride because it'll do you good.

Jim coming down the South Fork,

As we've driven down through the California interior we've seen first hand what we've seen on TV about the drought conditions; low reservoirs and very dry vegetation. The Sierra Nevadas which should have an abundance of snow, are almost bare. It's sad to see. Fortunately we started our trip at the beginning of May and no fires had started yet.

South Fork Lake is very low, the boat ramp is way above the water and the Sierras have no snow pack.

The South Fork Lake level doesn't reach the dam.

From Four Jeffery Campground we take 168 back to Bishop and head south to Big Pine where we junction with Highway 168 going east toward Nevada. Our last stop in California will be the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. At Westgard Pass we take Highway 01, the White Mountain Road, to the Schulman Grove Visitor Center. The road is very curvy and steep at times as it climbs to the grove at 10,000 ft on the crest of the White Mountains. I wouldn't recommend this road for large RV's,

On the way we stop at the Sierra View Overlook for a majestic view of the Sierra Nevada Range across the Owens Valley. You can see how high we are.

A majestic view of the Sierra Nevada across the Owens Valley from the Sierra View Overlook on the White Mountain Road.

At the Schulman Grove Visitor Center there are several trailheads through the Bistlecones. The trails are of various lengths so you can select your distance. The Bristlecones aren't as tall and imposing as the Redwoods and Sequoias but they are much older. The oldest are over 4,000 years and have revealed much about the conditions and climate of the past in ongoing research at the White Mountain Research Station under the direction of the University of California. 

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Bristlecones lead a hard life here at 10,000 ft. in adverse conditions and poor soils that made them resilient and long lived. The oldest trees grow in the most difficult conditions. They have fascinating growth patterns and reproductive processes. The older trees retain only part of their bark and the bare wood on the dead side of the trunk and branches is colorful and beautifully weathered.

The Bristlecones are half dead but the remaining bark keeps the trees growing.

At the Visitors Center we take the short one-mile Discovery Trail Loop that takes us to some magnificent trees.

The wood twists into wonderful forms as it grows.

The old Bristlecones continue to grow from the roots so that one tree can be a great grandfather, grandfather and father all in one. Here in one tree are several generations of growth.

A hillside of Bristlecones.

Artistic trees.

Our California trip could be subtitled, "Tour de Trees. We've seen beautiful spreading Valley Oaks, California Cypress, Red Firs, Jeffery Pines, Redwoods, Sequoias and Bristlecones.

We're going to make our last California camp at Grandview Campground, a primitive Forest Service, on the White Mountain Road in a saddle about half way between the Visitor Center and Highway 168. We camped by a gorgeous Juniper. It's all dirt and the interior roads are bumpy and potholed but it's such a nice, quite place with an open sage brush clearing, Mountain Bluebirds and dark skies with the ark of the Milkyway to light up the night. There are pit toilets but no water or dump. There's no fee but a $5 donation is recommended.

We watched several people cruise through the campground and go on their way apparently not impressed.  We really enjoyed this campground because it was the most primitive we found on our California travels and we really appreciated it for what it was, just a quiet, comfortable, peaceful setting with nice scenery. Another camp to remember if you're on your way to the Bristlecones.

Morning at our camp at Grandview Campground.

This is our last day in California and we're leaving camp early to make it across Nevada in one fast sprint. We'll have one more blog as we take our Sprinter home. Next time learn about our camping and bicycling at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon as we work our way back to Silver City.

Until then,
Jackie