US 98 Boondocking Snowman's Summit

We were planning to head into the forest to camp but came to this sign and decided to camp in a large pullout along Route 89. It appears to be a section of the old road and is large enough for any vehicle. 

I looked up Sierra Pacific Lands to make this post and they do allow hiking, bicycling, fishing, and hunting but not camping, campfires, off-road vehicle use, target shooting, and gathering forest products. No activities are permitted when the fire danger is high. Sierra and the national forest have checkerboard land ownership in this area. It is possible to camp in the national forest. Just check to make sure you're on public land before setting up camp. 

Directly across Route 89 there's a parking lot and a couple of interpretive signs about a ski jump built in the 1930s by a group of who called themselves Snowmen. Eventually a lift was installed but by the 1970s skiers had moved onto larger runs and the hill is now a sledding area. Boondocking  41.26923, -122.21537

Curly Jack Campground

Twelve sites in this small campground are regular sites and four are group tent sites. Amenities include picnic tables, fire rings, and vault toilets. There's a put-in and take-out spot for whitewater rafting. 

Our GPS missed the turnoff to the campground and directed us to a private campground. Watch for the right turn onto Curly Jack Road off of Elk Creek Road. 

None of the sites are designated as accessible but most are usable. Campground  41.78535, -123.39

US 395 Boondocking

 Traffic along US 395 makes this a very noisy spot but it's good for one night. We camped close to the highway but if you camp farther in near the Walker River the sound of the water may drown out most of the traffic noise.

The large river rocks and crushed rock are very difficult to push through. 

The site is large enough for any vehicle. It's a little hard to spot as you driving on US 395 because it's camouflaged by a row of trees. Boondocking  38.45279, -119.45855

Owens River Road Boondocking

The tourist town of Mammoth Lakes is surrounded by Inyo National Forest which has widely spaced trees and low ground cover. Boondocking spots are easy to find.  We camped off of Owens River Road with a group of nomads at a Homes On Wheels Alliance gathering and had a great time playing games, taking hikes along the dirt roads, and sharing potluck food. 

The forest roads off of Owens River Road are in good condition but get rutted as you travel farther in.

The ground is hard packed but uneven so rolling is bit difficult. The dirt is ash from old forest fires, volcanic ash, and pumice sand. It's very fine and gets everywhere! Forest  37.74239, -118.95487

Glass Creek Campground

The roads in Glass Creek Campground ramble around and the sites are scattered without much of a discernable pattern. It's popular with ATVers that can stir up the dust. We found site 46 tucked in a back corner, a little secluded, away from all of the main roads, and steps away from little Glass Creek. The campground has all of the normal amenities of a primitive campground - tables, fire rings, vault toilets (no water) - and for some reason it's free. A pleasant surprise after all of the other campgrounds in California which are higher than normal even with our discount passes. 

The ground is hard packed for easy rolling. Most tables have extended tops and the fire rings have high sides.  Campground   37.7505, -118.98951

Mono Mills Historic Site

Even though the ghost town of Bodie, California is less the 40 miles from the Mono Mills site, the environment is completely different. Instead of the sagebrush covered hills of Bodie, there are towering Jeffrey and Lodgepole pines. In 1881 the trees were just what rapidly growing Bodie needed for housing timber, beams for 30 gold mines, and fuel for machinery and heating. It only took seven months to build a railroad from Mono Mills to Bodie. A small town grew beside the sawmill with two boardinghouses, 30 houses. and one store to support the 200 millworkers, railroad maintenance workers, loggers, mule teamsters, cooks and laundry workers. Like most mining towns Bodie had boom and bust years, but the railroad kept operating until 1917 when it was sold for scrap. 

Today there's nothing left of Mono Mills except for rotting timbers and rail ties. There's a very nice kiosk with interpretive signs and a deck that overlooks the mill site.

The kiosk is accessible.

The parking area is large enough for any vehicle. Mill  37.88809, -118.96024

South Tufa Loop Trail

Don't miss this short trail for great views of the lake and a close up look at the tufa towers which were created by dissolved calcium bubbling out of the underwater springs and combining with the carbonate rich lake water to form limestone. The towers formed under the water and were exposed when the lake level dropped. 

Besides the towers you'll also see thousands of tiny alkali flies. They don't bother people and are a great food source for all of the birds. Historically the Kootzaduka’a Tribe dried alkali fly pupae and used them in stews to provide fat and protein. 

The trail makes a .8 mile loop. It starts as asphalt, then becomes boardwalk before hitting the beach and changing to soft sand. The asphalt and boardwalk are accessible. The sand is loose and there's a spot where pieces of tufa block the trail so only the first part of the trail is accessible.

The parking lot is large enough for any vehicle. Trail   37.93882, -119.02646

Mono Lake Trails

Two trails can be accessed from the small parking lot. One is very short and goes down to the shore where it can be extended by following the shoreline. The other, that goes to the shore too, is part hardpacked sand and part boardwalk. For a longer walk take the spur trail uphill to the Mono Basin Visitor Center. 

Both trails have views of the lake but neither is fully accessible. The short trail is blocked by large rocks.

The longer trail starts as hardpacked sand then becomes boardwalk, but the last section is grass and dirt. The trail to the visitor center is too steep to be accessible. 

The lot is large enough for RVs.  Trail   37.97689, -119.13383

Mono BasinVisitor Center

 Mono Lake is 760,000 years old and fed by small creeks that flow into a closed basin. With no outlet salt builds up in the lake. This high salinity makes the lake uninhabitable for fish but the lake's microscopic algae support an enormous number of brine shrimp and alkali flies which in turn fed migratory shore birds and regional nesting birds. 

But the coolest thing about the lake are the tufa towers created by dissolved calcium bubbling out of the underwater springs and combining with the carbonate rich lake water to form limestone. As the lake water receded, due to thousands of years of climate change and more recent diversions to supply Los Angles with water, the underwater towers were exposed. 

The small visitor center has exhibits on the formation of the towers, the ecology of the lake, and the human history in the area. The theater features a short film. The center sits on a hill with good views of the lake.

The center is accessible. The trails are not accessible.

One of the parking lots is signed for RVs. Look for the concrete walkthrough paths to easily get to the center entrance or park in the main lot if it's not busy.  Center   37.96595, -119.12048

Lower Lee Vining Campground

The first group of campsites are located on the edges of a large dusty clearing. They're small and close together. Pass by these and head deeper into the forest where the campsites are more secluded. We camped in site 21 which is large and surrounded by trees. The sites closest to it look like they get little use. Amenities include tables, fire rings, bear boxes, and vault toilets. 

None of the sites are designated as accessible but most are usable with high fire rings and tables with extended tops.

The campground road has several small loops and dead ends in a turn around. Most RVs will fit in the larger sites.           Campground  37.928210, -119.152990