Of Volcanic Mountains and an Ancient Lake

Road Trip ~ eastern Sierras ~ Mono Lake

We spent the night in Lee Vining.  We have passed through this eastern Sierra blip on the map more times than we can count, but this time we decided to actually stay.  The town's claim to fame is that it sits at the intersection of Hgwys 395 and 120 after the latter road passes through Yosemite, and it sits square and center in full view of Mono Lake, a Sierra treasure 3 million years in the making.  We decided to slow down and spend some quality time at the lake.

Our accommodations were Lake View Lodge.  Since a lot of this town closes shop during the winter, making our choice of where to stay rested on what was open this time of year.  The lodge doesn't have much of a view of the lake anymore, thanks to some very mature trees, and it's in the middle of a major remodel.  But our room was quiet and functional.  Dinner was grabbed at the only open restaurant, but the homemade soups made up for the lack of choices.

We later went out into the dark, cold night to shoot photos of the surrounding mountains and stars.  While our results were less than stellar, we couldn't blame it on the subject matter. A half moon provided some nice lighting but we are still too amateurish in our photography skills to do the scenery justice.  Having said that, we had a fabulous time.

The next morning we headed straight to the lake where we were the only car in the parking lot.  The views were 360 degree- stunning.  And our daytime photographs captured it all. 

I realized once again how the beauty of nature stirs and nourishes my soul.  I'm not knocking city life  but there is simply nothing like being in the midst of God's creation.