I know, I know… Doc and I have been out for over a week and you’re anxious to hear about our adventures. Until Mrs. Doc got here, Wednesday, we had very little to report. Until that point in time, we were merely driving the Safari from point A to point B. Cartop carrier inside the van, fast food in our bellies, bored out of our minds (thru Iowa and Nebraska, respectively) we trekked from Fort Wayne to Reno, NV. Little to report other than some planning for our Phase II. I won’t tell you what we decided… if it took us 3 days to plan, you shouldn’t be able to find out in less than 3 minutes where we’re going.
After the Mrs. joined us, we realized that she was the only lucky occupant of her plane to undergo the delightful realization that her bag had not arrived with her. After sorting that out, we embarked for Lee Vining, CA, home of Mono Lake and supposed “Gateway to Yosemite.” This year, that last statement is totally false. The pass (which normally allows for less than an hour of drive time from the town to the park) will probably not be open for another month. Furthermore, the alternate route takes about 5 hours by Safari. Trust me, we’ve now done it twice. I’m getting ahead of myself… that will be the next blog.
Anyway, so the first full day that Mom was with us we went to Mono Lake in the morning to observe the rare Tufa Towers (it’s a rock thing, ask Doc) and to observe the local wildlife (it’s a bird thing, ask Joe). The rock formations looked spectacular, and it was neat to show Mom, since Doc and I had traveled here about 4 years ago thru Yosemite and Mono. We did manage to go to one new site in the morning, and it was well worth it. The mountains, which were totally devoid of snow during our meanderings 4 years ago, are now covered with a solid 10-12 feet at the higher elevations. The contrast between the snow-capped peaks and the low, subtle Tufa towers was enough to steal your breath. If you are one of those people who reads the end of the book before reading the beginning, this is the part where you cheat and scroll down to see the photos. If not, read on.
After our stroll thru the Tufa, we decided to eat lunch at our favorite gas station. You read correctly. Believe it or not, this one carries a 4 star rating from many credible sources. I had baked Brie with freshly baked French bread and grapes, a fact that seems comical in light of the environment. Doc and I had eaten there once before, but the Whoa Nellie Deli did not disappoint. This may already seem like a packed day, but we actually still had our biggest stop in the afternoon.
After lunch we journeyed on the partially-dirt road (under construction, to boot!) to Bodie, CA, a historic park worthy of the 26 mile drive, the last part of which practically rattles your teeth out of your head. Bodie is an abandoned mining town, and most of the original items are still in the homes, school, shops, and church. So neat. Even though we had been there once before, Doc and I were still in awe of the whole thing and so glad to be able to show Mom. Well, that pretty much sums it up. So that this isn’t an 8 pager, I will save Yosemite for next time and let you look at the good stuff (photos). Until next time, we’ll be makin’ like a bread truck and haulin’ buns.
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