Hello Friends,
On Sunday, July 11th, we drove about 30 miles north on Route 395 from Mammoth Lakes, to a majestic body of water that covers about 60 square miles, called Mono Lake( Moe-No). One of Mono Lake's most characteristic features is the tufa towers (two-fah) that line its shores.
This one below looks like a queen sitting on her throne, doesn't it?
Because the lake has no outlet, trace amounts of salts and minerals brought into the lake by freshwater streams have accumulated over the centuries, leaving Mono lake with a salinity two to three times that of the ocean.
Tufa formations are the result of the combination of underwater springs seeping through the bottom of the alkaline lake, and calcium in the spring water mixing with carbonates in the saltwater. A calcium carbonate deposit precipitates out and solidifies over time into a substance similar to limestone.
As these solids build and grow they become the tufa towers we see today. These towers are formed underwater and as the water level recedes in the lake they become exposed.
The reason the lake has receded is that the city of Los Angles began excessive water diversion from the streams that feed Mono Lake in 1941. It took until 1994 to get the California Water Resources Council and several court battles to get them to stop depleting the water resources for the lake. Now, they are under court order to try and reverse the damage done.
As we left the lake and headed back to the main highway we encountered another man-made disaster.
This is what an otherwise healthy high desert area looks like after it is ravaged by a wildfire. This one was caused by a careless smoker.
The Mono Lake area is filled with dormant volcanoes. One was right down the road from the lake, so we stopped to explore it.
Notice the volcanic plug right in the middle of the cater.
After Mono Lake, we stopped in the nearby town of Lee Vining to get some information on Yosemite National Park, to get ready for our trip there on Tuesday. Here is Dad clowning around again.
Later we decided to drive around the June Lake Loop, which winds around several alpine lakes in the mountains.
June Lake is a popular spot to beat the summer heat, for both the locals and tourists.
The next lake in the chain of alpine lakes is Gull Lake right on the other side of the village of June Lake, strategically located in the middle of the first two lakes.
Silver Lake is next, with far fewer people, but never the less majestic.
We stopped for lunch in a day-use area between lakes in a canyon between the mountains.
Lastly, we saw Grant Lake the biggest of the chain of lakes.
Tomorrow we are getting up early and will be exploring Emerald Lake, near Mammoth Lakes😊.
No comments:
Post a Comment