Wandering Around: Lone Pine: Leah's Birthday Haul; Mono Lake; Cerro Gordo ghost town

March 7-March 10, 2016

From Leah's journal:

"Calling for a big storm tonight so we decided to go to Bishop for the day. Drove the same way we went to Big Pine earlier in the week, but it seemed to be more beautiful….maybe the sun or the clouds….not sure why but very beautiful as we drove through the wide valley with the snow capped Sierras on one side and the stark rocky Inyos on the other. Bishop was bigger than we expected. First we went to the top rated restaurant for lunch. This was a bakery/deli called Erik Schats Bakkery." No, that's not a typo; that's the way he spells the name of his business. Had delicious food there, then Leah went next door to a Trading Post, while I looked for a library and took some photos of an old ('57 or '58) Cadillac:

Late 50s pink Cadillac outside the Trading Post

Someone had installed a table where the seats used to be, converting it into an outside dining spot

I neglected to mention that the Trading Post was going out of business...and it sold turquoise jewellery.

Leah and her jewellery haul outside the Trading Post. Happy Birthday, Leah!

Mono Lake

We'd both heard and read that Mammoth Lake, CA was an interesting town worth a visit. We thought we might even move the trailer up there, but, at 8000 ft., it was too cold. Still, we wanted to see it and Mono Lake, which was nearby, so we decided on a day trip.

From Leah's journal:

"The drive to Mono Lake reminded us both of the drive to Flagstaff. … The lake itself was awesome! It has tufa (more than one but the computer keeps autocorrecting) growing out of it. These are basically limestone formations of every size and shape. A lot of the water from the lake was diverted to LA in 1941, and now many of these limestone 'sculptures' are on dry land. There was a 1 mile walking path down from the parking lot, the original water level, to the shore and then back on a different route. Although still light, the sun kept going behind cloud cover making less interesting pics for Richard. The place itself is magical….especially at the water. There were stretches of beach with huge tufa outcroppings that looked like the ruins of forts and castles. Wandering amongst them was so cool. Also there were old sage bushes that were dead and bleached white and these in combination with the texture of the sand and the tufa(s) were amazing. …really like nothing I have ever seen before. I kept thinking about the rocks in the Alabama Hills and noting how different these were and yet how beautiful they both were."

Tufa formations, Mono Lake, CA

Cerro Gordo Ghost Town

I'd heard and read about this town, and since it was only about 45 minutes away, I really wanted to see it. But first, I had to call Bob, the live-in caretaker for the town, which is on private property. It's at 9,000 ft, so weather and road conditions are iffy quite a bit of the time. In fact, I'd called the day before and he'd said there was too much snow. However, when I called this time, Bob confirmed that we should have no problem, "Just go slowly, and keep your eyes on the road. We've lost people coming up here."

From Leah's journal:

"At the top of the road was Cerro Gordo, what we thought was a ghost town. And yes, it is, but this was not entirely abandoned or as run down as one would expect. Yes, there were crumbling structures (the most beautiful of which was a large stone chimney left from the smelter), but there were a number of buildings in good shape with signs and the doors open for exploration. There was also a sign that said, “ask the caretaker if you would like a tour.” Others were already there and on a ‘tour’ so while Richard got out his camera, I joined the men. The caretaker’s name is Robert and he is a real character. He was a miner there and then stayed on to help the various owners maintain the place. It is his personal mission and life’s work to keep this place going, get it protected and added to the registry of preserved historic locations. He sells rocks, rents out the bunkhouse, and has parties in the old saloon to make money. He stays there alone all year, and they get some pretty severe weather. He is afraid to leave the town unattended as it has been plundered on several occasions. He is thrilled to talk about the lineage of the mine and town, the animals and rodents and snakes that inhabit it, the occurrences during its heyday, as well as the value and the quirks of the original items. He has written 2 books: one about the mine and town, and one about his life there. In the poker room he showed us a bullet hole that went thru the wall, a spray of bullet holes and a blood stain on the floor beside the poker table. All the buildings are a combination of original stuff and old crummy stuff that is there for when he rents it out. Although a very beautiful location, I sure wouldn’t want to sleep in any of those rooms or beds. I must say, he really does keep it clean: no mouse turds anywhere and the outhouses are all stocked with toilet paper, sanitizer and wet naps (according to Richard)."