Mono Lake - Lee Vining, California

I can't believe that it's been over a month since my last blog. It's crazy how time can get away from you, isn't it? The below average cold weather we've been having for the past few weeks has had me longing for the warm California sunshine that we enjoyed this past summer on our vacation. One of the coolest places that we visited while in Yosemite National Park was Mono Lake. While in the high country of Yosemite, we headed out a day trip to visit this interesting lake. It took well over an hour to get there from our campsite, but it was well worth it!

photo by dturner

Mono Lake is 65 square miles and is between 700,000 and 1 million years old. It is one of the oldest lakes in North America. Unlike most lakes, Mono Lake has no outlet. Streams from the High Sierra wash into the lake bringing salts and minerals. Over time, freshwater evaporation from the lake leaves the salts and minerals behind. Mono Lake is 2.5 times saltier than the ocean and very alkaline!

photo by dturner

At one time the city of Los Angeles, hundreds of miles to the south, began taking water from Mono Lake to meet the growing demands for water. That diversion cut the lake volume in half and added to the lake's alkalinity and salinity. An extended court fight stopped the water diversion and Mono Lake is starting to grow, but the process is VERY slow.

photo by dturner

Mono Lake is a geologist's paradise. It is ringed by volcanoes--new and old. Two of the islands on the lake are volcanic domes. No area volcanoes are active at the moment but the area shows many signs of potential eruptions.

What I love the most about Mono Lake are the tufa (pronounced "toofah") towers that line the shoreline. These towers are made from calcium carbonate that comes into the lake from underground springs. The calcium and carbonate combine to form limestone which builds up over time around the lake bottom spring openings. Declining lake levels have exposed the tufa towers that you can see today. Some of these tufa towers are up to 30 feet high.

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

When you visit Mono Lake, it seems a little desolate as far as an ecosystem goes. As I read the signage on the interpretative trail, I learned that Mono Lake supports a simple but amazingly productive food chain. At the bottom of that chain are microscopic, single-celled algae. The algae serves as food for two other species--brine shrimp and brine flies which, in turn, serve as the major food source for literally millions of water birds. It's estimated that some 85% of California's seagulls start their life at Mono Lake. There are at least 80 species of water fowl that call Mono Lake home.

photo by dturner

As we were walking several feet from the shoreline of Mono Lake, my wife was telling me a story about the Great Salt Lake in Salt Lake City, UT. She recalled watching a program about that lake that talked about the millions of brine flies that lived there too. She remember that it looked like a black cloud over the lake when the brine flies were flying. She walked the shoreline right next to the lake. The brine flies were there by the masses! She said she couldn't help it...she had to walk through a swarm.

As she walked the shoreline, the flies moved out of her way by the thousands! The flies didn't land on her, they just simply moved out of the way. She said that the sound of the flies as they took off in one black cloud around her was really neat. I trusted her on that one...I didn't want to see for myself. She kept walking through the fly swarms over and over again - all the while trying to get me to do the same. The picture below gives just a snapshot of the black flies that pile up on the shoreline of Mono Lake.

photo by dturner

Mono Lake is one of the coolest lakes I have ever seen. It's story is really unique, and I am really glad that we took the time to visit it. We didn't swim in the lake, but I read that many people do. Because of the high salt concentration, people are very buoyant when they swim. Many people claim that the high salt concentration has healing power...just don't get it in your eyes - ouch!

Hetch Hetchy - Yosemite National Park

With the mammoth wildfire still burning in Yosemite National Park, it seems fitting to talk about one of the things that firefighters are working so tirelessly to protect - Hetch Hetchy. We visited Hetch Hetchy while we were vacationing in the high country of Yosemite National Park this summer.

Hetch Hetchy is the name of a valley that once was in Yosemite. In 1923 a dam was built to hold back water from the Tuolumne River that ran through the valley. Hetch Hetchy is now a reservoir that provides fresh drinking water to the people who live in San Francisco and the surrounding bay area.

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

Our day trip to Hetch Hetchy included a 5 mile hike to Wapama Falls. It was one of my favorite hikes in Yosemite. The trail is moderate at times, but is very well marked and maintained.

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

The views from the hiking trail are amazing. The huge granite monoliths are remarkable, and there are beautiful wildflowers and manzanita trees lining the trails.

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

Wapama Falls is not a huge waterfall, but it is definitely an amazing one. We filled out water bottles with some water near the bottom of the falls...it was ice cold and awesome! The mountain water that fills the Hetch Hetchy reservoir is very clean and pure.

photo by dturner

There is a lot of history surrounding Hetch Hetchy...and a lot of controversy. There are many people that want to see the O'Shaughnessy Dam removed and the Hetch Hetchy valley restored to its original state. No matter where I stand on the controversy, I am glad that I got to visit Hetch Hetchy. It is an amazing place for sure!

The Tioga Road - Yosemite National Park - High Country

After a week in Yosemite Valley, we headed to the high country of Yosemite National Park. I didn't know what to expect. I had spent so much time reading about Yosemite Valley in preparation for our trip that I hadn't had a chance to learn much about what was above the valley floor. It didn't take long for me to fall in love with the high country of Yosemite National Park. It is much less crowded than the valley and, in my opinion, even more beautiful. 

For me the highlight of our week in the high country was a day trip down the Tioga Road. This 39 mile drive is one that you will not soon forget. You pass meadows, lakes, forests, giant granite domes and slabs, and the soaring Sierra Nevada. There is beauty all around you. Almost every turn in the road brings you to another gorgeous vista, and you just have to pull over to take it all in. 

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

The Tioga Pass is the eastern entry/exit point for Yosemite National Park. It sits at 9945 feet and is actually the highest highway pass in California. The first day that we traveled the Tioga Road we stopped at the Tioga Pass to play in some snow that was still on the ground (in the third week of June.) The second time that we went through the Tioga Pass, which was on June 21, it was actually snowing and the wind was howling like crazy.  

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

The beauty of the high country of Yosemite National Park is unlike anything I have ever seen. The colors of the granite are so different from one area to another. The meadows are so serene, and the mountains are mesmerizing. 

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

Driving the Tioga Road is a great way to see some of the amazing scenery that the high country has to offer. A word of caution though...plan to spend a whole day driving it. You'll be getting out of the car many times to stare in amazement and to snap a few hundred pictures.

Yosemite Valley - Yosemite National Park

After just returning from a 24 day vacation, it's hard to choose which amazing place to blog about first. Our vacation started in beautiful Yosemite Valley and then moved after a week to the less crowded, breathtaking high country of Yosemite National Park. Our vacation's third week started out with 6 days in Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park and then ended with a 2 day visit to San Francisco. I've been asked several times what my favorite part of our vacation was. It's truly an impossible question to answer. It was all amazing.

photo by dturner

Yosemite Valley is really beautiful. Our first view of Yosemite's most famous granite monoliths is pictured above. El Capitan is clearly visible on the left. This monolith is a rock climber's dream. While we were in the valley, we spent a lot of time (both day and night) watching climbers on the face of El Capitan through the binoculars. The average length of time that it takes a climber to reach the summit of El Capitan is 3 days. While rock climbing is far beyond our physical limitations, hiking Yosemite Valley was top on our priority list.

photo by dturner

One of our favorite places was Glacier Point. We watched the sunset from this amazing overlook. There was a small wildfire burning in the high country, and the smoke from the fire made for some really amazing color of the face of Half Dome as the sun went down.

photo by dturner

Our campsite was right on the Merced River. It was a gorgeous spot, and I was lucky enough that a friendly neighbor let me borrow his kayak one afternoon. 

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

A favorite view of mine was of Nevada Falls from the John Muir Trail (below.) This area is so beautiful, and the blue sky this day made it picture perfect.

photo by dturner

Prior to leaving for vacation, we had been given permits to hike Half Dome, one of Yosemite Valley's most famous granite structures. Hiking to Half Dome is an 8.5 mile hike with almost a 5000 foot elevation gain. Right before Half Dome there is a sub dome on which you have to climb several hundred stairs before getting to the base of Half Dome. Half Dome greets you with steep, slick granite and a pair of cables that you grab onto and pull yourself up 424 vertical feet to the summit. Once you have made it to the summit and enjoyed the view from the top, it's back down the cables and then back down the hiking trail another 8.5 miles. The entire hike takes 10-14 hours for most.

photo by mrbturner

My father-in-law, my wife, and I started our Half Dome hike at 3:30am on June 15. It didn't take long for the hike to get steep. We were huffing and puffing within the first mile. We had just arrived in Yosemite Valley the day before and getting used to the elevation wasn't something that we had time to do. We largely underestimated the steepness of the trail, and although we had been training for the hike for a few months, our training proved to be less than adequate. After 7 hours of hiking toward the Dome, my wife and I turned around. At that point, we were a mile from Half Dome. My father-in-law continued toward Half Dome and met its summit with success. My wife and I were both very disappointed that we did not reach our goal of getting to the top of Half Dome. It took us 6 hours to hike back to the trail head. It was a difficult day - both physically and mentally. We are glad that we tried the hike, and we know, without a doubt, that we will get to Half Dome's summit someday.

Yosemite Valley is a really amazing place. Although it was a little crowded, we enjoyed our stay there very much. The scenery is breathtaking, and we look forward to returning some day.

Kitchitikipi - "Big Springs" Palms Book State Park - Thompson, Michigan

This past Memorial weekend we went to one of my favorite places, Munising, Michigan. On the way home we stopped at a state park near Thompson, Michigan. My wife had heard about this natural spring that pulled yourself across on a raft. It's called Kitchitikipi - "Big Springs" Palms Book State Park. We decided that it would be cool to check out. We got there at about 8am, and we had the whole spring to ourselves. It was pretty amazing. The spring is about 200 feet across and 40 feet deep. The water is crystal clear and is always 45 degrees. 10,000 gallons of water per minute come into the spring, and you can see the sand bubbling on the floor of the spring as you go across on the raft. 

photo by mrbturner

photo by mrbturner

photo by mrbturner

photo by mrbturner

In the video below you can see the sand moving as the water gushes into the spring. 

I'm really glad that we visited Kitchitikipi. It is definitely unlike anything I have ever seen.  

Ruby Falls - Chattanooga, Tennessee

I have seen many waterfalls, but the most impressive one that I have ever seen is an underground waterfall called Ruby Falls. This 145 foot waterfall is located inside of Lookout Mountain near Chattanooga Tennessee.

www.shltrip.com

There are a couple different tours to chose from when visiting Ruby Falls. I took the lantern tour, and I would highly recommend it. The group was limited in size, which was kind of nice because it was less crowded. The tour started with a 260 foot elevator ride. Head lamps were given to people in the group. This helped us navigate our way through the cave as we passed some really cool stalactites, stalagmites, and some really neat limestone formations.

www.rubyfalls.com

www.travelwithdorothy.blogspot.com

The tour continued as the guide lead us all into a large area where we could hear the sound of water rushing but could not see anything. This intentional darkness is meant to help build the excitement of seeing Ruby Falls. As the lights began to come up, Ruby Falls was brought to life.

www.rubyfalls.com

www.rubyfalls.com

My favorite part of the Ruby Falls tour was when they changed the colors of the lights illuminating the falls. It was really amazing to see how the colors changed the look of the water and the cavern.

www.creativeplanetnetwork.com

www.luxefinds.com

www.skianything.com

If you are ever in the Chattanooga, Tennessee area, I would highly recommend a trip to Ruby Falls. It's a really cool experience and is unlike anything you will see anywhere else.

Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan's U.P.

The Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan's U.P. is an awesome place to explore any time of the year, but it is especially amazing during the Fall. We spent an entire weekend in October discovering all that the peninsula has to offer. We started our trek in Ontonagon and then traveled on the west side of the peninsula stopping along the way to pick some rocks at Agate Beach.

The scenery in the Keweenaw is breathtaking. I bet we pulled over 20 times to take pictures on the way to our destination. Here are some of our favorites.

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

photo by mrbturner

Our destination for the weekend was Copper Harbor, which is at the very tip of the Keweenaw. We spent time picking rocks, hiking, and getting lost. Note: do not depend on your GPS to get you around the Copper Harbor area...bring a map!! On the way home, we took a drive down what locals call the "Tunnel of Trees." It was one of the coolest roads I have even been on during the Fall.

photo by dturner

photo by mrbturner

photo by dturner

After an awesome weekend in Copper Harbor, we set out for home by traveling down the east side of the peninsula. We stopped at many places on the way, but I think my most favorite place was Oliver Beach. There was some really interesting shale on the beach that made for some really great photos. Here are some of my favorites.

photo by dturner

photo by dturner

photo by mrbturner

Exploring the Keweenaw Peninsula was a great experience. I can't wait to go back again.

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