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October 2024
- Oct 20, 2024 Three Days of Fall Colors in the Eastern Sierra Oct 20, 2024
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May 2023
- May 18, 2023 Cloudy with a 100% of Spectacular May 18, 2023
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December 2022
- Dec 30, 2022 20 Yards of Track Dec 30, 2022
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July 2022
- Jul 9, 2022 Channeling Huell Howser in the Eastern Sierra Jul 9, 2022
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June 2022
- Jun 24, 2022 Quiet Moment - Waterfall Jun 24, 2022
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May 2022
- May 1, 2022 Cloud's Life Lessons May 1, 2022
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January 2022
- Jan 17, 2022 Best Images 0f 2021 Jan 17, 2022
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December 2021
- Dec 12, 2021 Owens Valley: The Tule Elk on Hwy 395 Dec 12, 2021
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November 2021
- Nov 5, 2021 Five Reasons to Buy a Wall Calendar Nov 5, 2021
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October 2021
- Oct 25, 2021 Eastern Sierra Intimate Fall Colors Oct 25, 2021
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July 2021
- Jul 19, 2021 Clouds make my Eastern Sierra Sunset Images Pop! Jul 19, 2021
- Jul 12, 2021 Sound of Silence Jul 12, 2021
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June 2021
- Jun 7, 2021 Sunrise, Sunset Jun 7, 2021
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May 2021
- May 17, 2021 Early Morning Around the Loop May 17, 2021
- May 3, 2021 The Case for Lingering May 3, 2021
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January 2020
- Jan 31, 2020 Best Images of 2019 Jan 31, 2020
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July 2019
- Jul 1, 2019 A Different Take on Bodie Jul 1, 2019
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June 2019
- Jun 10, 2019 Heaven Jun 10, 2019
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May 2019
- May 20, 2019 A Perfectly Cloudy Day May 20, 2019
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April 2019
- Apr 1, 2019 My Path to Better Wildflower Images Apr 1, 2019
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March 2019
- Mar 25, 2019 March in Like a Lion ( and leave the same way!) Mar 25, 2019
- Mar 15, 2019 The End of the Line (well maybe) - Keeler Mar 15, 2019
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February 2019
- Feb 26, 2019 Lone Pine the Little Town Below a Big Mountain Feb 26, 2019
- Feb 18, 2019 The Word of the Month for February - Snow Feb 18, 2019
- Feb 11, 2019 The Wildflowers are Coming, the Wildflowers are Coming; are You Prepared? Feb 11, 2019
- Feb 4, 2019 Nature’s Vastness is Good for Our Souls Feb 4, 2019
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January 2019
- Jan 20, 2019 Hike Big Sycamore Canyon - Tejon Ranch Jan 20, 2019
- Jan 13, 2019 Clouds and Glass Jan 13, 2019
- Jan 5, 2019 My 12 Best Images of 2018 Jan 5, 2019
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September 2017
- Sep 22, 2017 Dad Why Do the Trees Change Colors? Sep 22, 2017
- Sep 11, 2017 Eastern Sierra Early Morning Scramble (ESMS) Sep 11, 2017
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August 2017
- Aug 14, 2017 Another Hidden Gem Along Highway 395 Aug 14, 2017
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July 2017
- Jul 31, 2017 FIVE SIMPLE STEPS TO ENJOY YOSEMITE ON A CROWDED WEEKEND Jul 31, 2017
- Jul 24, 2017 Mom, why is the sky blue? Mom, Why is the sunset red? Mom, why does it always looks better in the Eastern Sierra? Answers to questions you May have always wanted to know Jul 24, 2017
- Jul 10, 2017 The Streams are Alive Jul 10, 2017
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June 2017
- Jun 27, 2017 Water Everywhere! Jun 27, 2017
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January 2017
- Jan 23, 2017 Cannot Fight It Might as Well Join It Jan 23, 2017
- Jan 16, 2017 Clouds are the Photographers Spice of Life Jan 16, 2017
- Jan 10, 2017 Sunrise to Sunset in Southern California Jan 10, 2017
- Jan 2, 2017 My Top Images of 2016 Jan 2, 2017
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December 2016
- Dec 29, 2016 Operation Santa Status - A Success Dec 29, 2016
- Dec 21, 2016 Time to Celebrate it is the Shortest, Darkest Damn Day of the Year Dec 21, 2016
- Dec 19, 2016 The Joy of Christmas Trees Dec 19, 2016
- Dec 14, 2016 Don Henley was Wrong You can go Back Dec 14, 2016
- Dec 7, 2016 Update on Operation Santa Dec 7, 2016
- Dec 5, 2016 Quests in the Owens Valley are Fun Dec 5, 2016
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November 2016
- Nov 28, 2016 Santa’s Letters a Way to Make a Difference Nov 28, 2016
- Nov 21, 2016 Awesome Austin Nov 21, 2016
- Nov 7, 2016 Veteran's Day Nov 7, 2016
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October 2016
- Oct 31, 2016 Dia de los Muertos 2016 Oct 31, 2016
- Oct 24, 2016 Of Frequency and Luck Oct 24, 2016
- Oct 17, 2016 Show ‘Em That Flat Penny Oct 17, 2016
- Oct 10, 2016 Fall Colors in the Sierra Oct 10, 2016
- Oct 3, 2016 What a Summer! Looking Back as We Move To Fall Oct 3, 2016
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September 2016
- Sep 26, 2016 Tom's Place Sep 26, 2016
- Sep 19, 2016 Unbelievable - Time again for Fall Colors Sep 19, 2016
- Sep 10, 2016 Another Bucket List Checked Off – Getting to a Sierra Pass Sep 10, 2016
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January 2016
- Jan 23, 2016 Lake Havasu Balloon Festival Jan 23, 2016
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November 2015
- Nov 5, 2015 2016 Calendars Nov 5, 2015
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July 2015
- Jul 11, 2015 See Less Enjoy More Jul 11, 2015
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May 2015
- May 22, 2015 Some Things Age With Grace May 22, 2015
- May 15, 2015 Welcome to the Website Launch May 15, 2015
Working to complete my 54 for Dave Quest I have done more hikes this summer than ever before. I came to realize though I had yet to hike to a mountain pass, ever. I had come close. Once on the McGee Creek trail but was stopped by snow. Another time on the Crystal Lake hike but was going to Crystal Lake not the pass. So I had never actually stood on top of a Sierra mountain pass. It became a bucket list item! So I started looking for a day hike that got me to a pass.
Mono Pass in Yosemite seemed to fit the bill. It was in the Yosemite high country in which I love hiking in. It had a reasonable difficulty level at eight miles in length (round trip) and 900 feet of altitude gain it figured it would be pleasant hike.
The description of the hike on the Yosemite Hikes web page seemed to good to be true to get to a pass. “There are only a few stretches where the incline is steep enough to make you notice you're climbing.” Well it was to good to be true as one of those “stretches” was as over a mile and had a pretty steep grade.
Even with the unexpected climb I really enjoyed this hike. While it did not have a big lake at the end like some hikes do; the high country meadows and the view down Bloody Canyon to Mono Lake more than made up for it.
Mono Pass is the type of hike I like because it starts of flat and saves the climb later on once your warmed up. My start time at 6:30 AM was perfect to catch the first morning light on Mammoth Peak
eing late in the summer most of the creeks were dry. That is good and bad. Bad, because I imagine the streams were knock down gorgeous. Good, because I did not encounter one mosquito on the entire hike. Dana Fork was the primary exception to this water drought and provided a beautiful log water fall right next to the trail.
There are a couple of decaying mining cabins along the trail. A bit of background on these cabins. The Homer Mining Index, one of the few papers in the area at the time, states that Fuller and Hayt (or Hoyt) discovered antimonial silver in Mono Pass and called their claim the Golden Crown. The Mammoth City Herald, another newspaper of the day predicted that within a year, thousands of miners would be working in Mono Pass at the Golden Crown. The mines never panned out and Mono Pass will be remembered as a way for miners to cross the Sierra to get to Dogtown and Monoville, mines on the eastern Sierra near Mono Lake. The cabins are a quite reminder of the mining history of the area.
There is long section that climbs up. After that ordeal you are rewarded as the trail weaves in and out of a stunningly beautiful alpine meadow. There are also beautiful views of Mt Lewis and the Kuna Crest.
Just before the pass is a lovely unnamed pond. A short distance farther up the trail, at the summit, is a small lake appropriately named Summit Lake. This is the end of the Mono Pass trail and the beginning of the Bloody Canyon trail. It is also the edge of Yosemite Park. Up to this point the Mono Pass trail was beautiful forest and meadows. In contrast, Bloody Canyon is barren rock. An incredible difference and a testimonial to the impact the Sierra has on the weather and the land around it.
I continued for a for just over a quarter of a mile down the Bloody Canyon trail toward Upper Sardine Lake to get a scenic look of Mono Lake 4,000 feet below. The view is awesome and one of the reasons I did this hike!
This was a wonderful hike with great views of the Yosemite high country, granite peaks like Mammoth and Mt. Lewis, and Mono Lake. I will definitely do it again and maybe finish at Spillway Lake.