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

Yosemite National Park - Tioga Road

 Unlike the Yosemite Valley, Tioga Road is mostly a drive through for anyone who is not physically fit. There are plenty of trails but the mountainous terrain means they aren't accessible. We drove from the west to the east and our first stop was at Tuolumne Grove Trail. The trail is an old road with some of the asphalt still in place. It's only a mile to a hollow tree trunk- dead now but the stump is still standing - that can be walked through. We walked/rolled a short distance before we decided that the downhill grade was too steep. 

Our next stop was a large overlook with interpretive signs and a view of Half Dome.

An accessible trail, actually a sidewalk along the road with great views of the lake, starts at the picnic area and Sunrise Trailhead parking lot. This is the only truly accessible trail that we found along Tioga Road. It's about a mile one way and ends at a scenic picnic area overlooking a beach on the lakeshore. The beach is not accessible.

The Tuolumne Meadows Visitor Center hadn't opened for the season yet and we didn't try any of the trails. Some of the trails may be accessible with assistance but none are paved.

The roads west and east of Tioga Road are winding without guardrails in places. Use cation on the grades, both when descending and climbing, to avoid overheating your brakes or engine. Most of the parking lots have spaces where RVs will fit.    Yosemite National Park- Tioga Pass     37.800010, -119.875300

Lost Lake Recreation Area

We spent five days at Lost Lake Campground while were waiting for Tioga Road to open so that we could go over the mountains to Mammoth Lakes, California. The campground is pretty with large trees and access to the San Joaquin River. The picnic area is a popular local spot, but the campground doesn't get busy even on the weekends, most likely because the campsites are not reservable. Anyone over 62 is eligible for a substantial discount. There isn't a fee box and the camp host works during the day. She pounded on our door at 6:00 in the morning so try to catch her when she comes home in the afternoon. One of the regulars told us that he puts his payment in an envelope and throws it in her yard which is fenced to keep the free roaming dog contained. It's all a bit strange but we enjoyed staying there. 

The campsites are roomy but there's little privacy because of the lack of vegetation. Most of the sites are usable for wheelchairs. The sites designated as accessible have large parking pads with concrete under the table, the fire ring and the water faucet. 

We spent a few hours every day exploring the park. The road through the picnic area makes a nice walking trail.

A sandy trail at the south end of the park makes a loop through boulders with grinding holes made by the Native Americans. The trail is not accessible due to the loose sand.

A paved trail at the north end of the park leads to the San Joaquin Fish Hatchery. The Salmon Conservation and Research Facility is not open to the public but trout hatchery building and the outdoor trout tanks are all open to the public. Fish food is supplied for visitors to feed the trout in the outdoor tanks.  

A short trail for kids with facts about trout and play equipment branches off the main trail. Native California plants line the trail near the hatchery. 

The trout hatchery building is accessible, but the tanks are too high to see into from a seated position. The outdoor tanks are easy to see into and feed the fish. The kid's trail is accessible.  Park   36.98276, -119.72553

Hearst San Simeon State Historical Monument and Mansion

William Randolph Hearst, publishing tycoon,  was a hoarder but instead of hoarding miscellaneous trash and flea market finds, he hoarded European antiques and entire rooms from estates and castles. All of this was stored in two huge New York warehouses and several smaller ones. The largest warehouse, in the Bronx, was five stores and spanned five square blocks. 

Many of his treasures found a home in his sprawling mansion over looking the ocean on a hill above San Simeon, California. For over 20 years Hearst collaborated with Julia Morgan, the first female architect licensed in California and a pioneer in the use reinforced concrete as a building material, to create the 115-room mansion. 

Hearst fell deeply in debt during the 1930s due to overextending his credit to buy newspaper outlets, magazines, and radio stations and more antiques. His treasures had to go! Over 15,000 pieces were put on display on the fifth floor of Gimbles in New York - tapestries, silverware, Egyptian antiques, pottery, china, terra-cotta, Roman objects, guns, frescoes, swords, jewelry, rugs, flags, and more.

Fortunately most of the items sold were the extras stored in the warehouses and his mansion is still an example of the excesses that are possible with extreme wealth. Five tours were listed on the website when we visited but all of them except for the Accessibly Designed Grand Rooms Tour have hundreds of steps. The Accessibility Tour is almost the same as the Grand Rooms Tour but goes in a round about way that skips the stairs. It also skips the gardens. We did get to go through the kitchen which isn't part of the Grand Rooms Tour.

Shuttles take visitors from the parking lot up the hill to the mansion. The shuttles can accommodate two wheelchairs. Visitors who need to use a wheelchair must fill that information in on the form when reserving their tickets. Because of the limited wheelchair spaces, the tour groups may be small. Our tour only had two people besides us so we had an almost private tour. 

Both the bus drivers and our tour guide were very nice and accommodating. The road going up the hill is twisty but the tie downs kept my wheelchair secure. After departing the bus we boarded an electric cart to travel from one accessible entrance to another. The tour through the rooms of the mansion is accessible. 

The visitor center located at the parking lot has a small museum that doesn't require a ticket to visit. The museum is accessible. There's also a theater that shows “Hearst Castle – Building the Dream.”  A tour ticket is required to enter the theater. The accessible seats are in the top tier and the view is good.

The parking lot has long spaces for RVs.  Mansion  35.64891, -121.18458