Norcal, Socal Mammoth/June Lake Multi-day & Multi-sport trip - July 14-17, 2006
04-10-2006, 10:09 AM
#22
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Okay,
Bob turned me onto this thread and I missed it, like so much else here...
I am very familiar with the area as my wife and I have been skiing, mountain biking, hiking and off-roading there for the better part of the last 10 years or so. There is a ton of off-roading near the area, though the best stuff is just north of there around the Virginia Lakes (just above Mono) or south of there around Bishop.
The stuff around Bishop would pretty much be an all day trip. You can head up around the Buttermilk Country and Lake Sabrina in the Sierra's or go to the East into the White Mountains. My choice would be to go south all the way to Big Pine, head back behind (to the east of) the Whites and head up a dirt trail to the Ancient Bristlecone Forest. You could hike among the oldest living things, some were 2500 years old when Christ walked the earth. Then come down Silver Canyon with a good chance of seeing Desert Big Horn Sheep just outside of Bishop. That is my favorite, but there are a lot of miles there. You see some amazing stuff, the wheeling is not too hard core, have about 15 very minor stream crossings (though there might be a pretty big melt off this summer) and it is not an out and back.
Buttermilk country is pretty and a much shorter trip but still about 45 minutes south of Mammoth. Around Mammoth there are some pretty good, but short trails. Laurel Lakes is cool, has an very tight stepped hairpin turn and a nice little lake. There is also some stuff between Benton Hot Springs and the Mammoth / Crowley Lake area. Some mines up there and not too far from June.
The first off-roading I ever did was as a passenger to the friends of mine that used to be the hosts at Oh! Ridge Campground. If you are going to stay in Oh! Ridge I would recommend an easy-up or something for shade. There is a beach at that campground but no trees large enough to shade you. At that altitude you will burn in about 10 minutes unless you are slathered in sun screen. There are lots of trees in, as the name suggests, Shady Rest in Mammoth. The spots there are smaller than Oh! Ridge and it is in the town of Mammoth, that could be a plus or a minus, depending on your needs.
Virginia Lakes area is pretty nice, I don't know it as well but have been through it enough to see some beaver dams, great when you go for the fall colors because it is filled with aspens. There is an old stamp mill there and the trail is just a couple of hours and only about 30 minutes north of June.
If anyone is off after the weekend, there is an awesome trip in the Whites around Mazourka Summit and Papoose Flats. That is fun, you can wilderness camp up there and probably about 6-7 hours of pretty nice off-roading with spectacular views of the Eastern S. N. Range. That is much further south though around Independence. It would be nice to do if someone wanted to leave on Sunday or Monday. Get up into the mountains and camp, then come out near Big Pine the next day.
I am very interested in this trip. I would say we are a go, I would be willing to lead a ride or two if we need anyone to do that. My only hangup could be a work schedule that I do not know yet. But, usually the season starts at the very end of July or begining of August.
Dana and I are hopefully heading up there in the first week or two in May, and it is way too early for any high altitude wheeling. With both the Whites and Sierra Nevada having trails above 10K you cannot access them until late June. We might even have some snow in mid July with the dumping Mammoth has had this season, the largest EVER at over 600". That is 50' people!!
Bob turned me onto this thread and I missed it, like so much else here...
I am very familiar with the area as my wife and I have been skiing, mountain biking, hiking and off-roading there for the better part of the last 10 years or so. There is a ton of off-roading near the area, though the best stuff is just north of there around the Virginia Lakes (just above Mono) or south of there around Bishop.
The stuff around Bishop would pretty much be an all day trip. You can head up around the Buttermilk Country and Lake Sabrina in the Sierra's or go to the East into the White Mountains. My choice would be to go south all the way to Big Pine, head back behind (to the east of) the Whites and head up a dirt trail to the Ancient Bristlecone Forest. You could hike among the oldest living things, some were 2500 years old when Christ walked the earth. Then come down Silver Canyon with a good chance of seeing Desert Big Horn Sheep just outside of Bishop. That is my favorite, but there are a lot of miles there. You see some amazing stuff, the wheeling is not too hard core, have about 15 very minor stream crossings (though there might be a pretty big melt off this summer) and it is not an out and back.
Buttermilk country is pretty and a much shorter trip but still about 45 minutes south of Mammoth. Around Mammoth there are some pretty good, but short trails. Laurel Lakes is cool, has an very tight stepped hairpin turn and a nice little lake. There is also some stuff between Benton Hot Springs and the Mammoth / Crowley Lake area. Some mines up there and not too far from June.
The first off-roading I ever did was as a passenger to the friends of mine that used to be the hosts at Oh! Ridge Campground. If you are going to stay in Oh! Ridge I would recommend an easy-up or something for shade. There is a beach at that campground but no trees large enough to shade you. At that altitude you will burn in about 10 minutes unless you are slathered in sun screen. There are lots of trees in, as the name suggests, Shady Rest in Mammoth. The spots there are smaller than Oh! Ridge and it is in the town of Mammoth, that could be a plus or a minus, depending on your needs.
Virginia Lakes area is pretty nice, I don't know it as well but have been through it enough to see some beaver dams, great when you go for the fall colors because it is filled with aspens. There is an old stamp mill there and the trail is just a couple of hours and only about 30 minutes north of June.
If anyone is off after the weekend, there is an awesome trip in the Whites around Mazourka Summit and Papoose Flats. That is fun, you can wilderness camp up there and probably about 6-7 hours of pretty nice off-roading with spectacular views of the Eastern S. N. Range. That is much further south though around Independence. It would be nice to do if someone wanted to leave on Sunday or Monday. Get up into the mountains and camp, then come out near Big Pine the next day.
I am very interested in this trip. I would say we are a go, I would be willing to lead a ride or two if we need anyone to do that. My only hangup could be a work schedule that I do not know yet. But, usually the season starts at the very end of July or begining of August.
Dana and I are hopefully heading up there in the first week or two in May, and it is way too early for any high altitude wheeling. With both the Whites and Sierra Nevada having trails above 10K you cannot access them until late June. We might even have some snow in mid July with the dumping Mammoth has had this season, the largest EVER at over 600". That is 50' people!!
04-10-2006, 10:24 AM
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Originally Posted by Robinhood150
I'm organizing the fishing part, but depending on how many people attend this trip, I'll need many more guides. If you guys are familiar with the area and fishing, I think we should break up into groups no larger than 5 vehicles and hit different lakes every day.
04-10-2006, 11:06 AM
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Hey George, hopefully you'll be able to make it.
I'm not too familiar with stream fishing as I've mostly been doing lake fishing up there. I've fished the river that feeds Crawley and I've fished Hot Creek and maybe some other little streams at various lakes, but that's about it.
I'm not too familiar with stream fishing as I've mostly been doing lake fishing up there. I've fished the river that feeds Crawley and I've fished Hot Creek and maybe some other little streams at various lakes, but that's about it.
04-10-2006, 01:54 PM
#25
*subscribing*
I had such a good time with the group in DV that I'll have to go on this one too; just hope I can get the dates to work with my schedule.
I'll be bringing my kayak--plenty of beautiful lakes to paddle including Convict Lake just south of Mammoth, June Lakes, Lake Mary/Mamie/George, all above Twin Lakes (I surveyed these reservoirs a few years ago), etc.
Mountain bike is a must. I have ridden the Mammoth Resort, Uptown/Downtown trail starting at the new resort area on Lake Mary Rd, and the mountain biking south of Mammoth at Lower Rock Creek is fun too.
Wheeling--found a cool trail up the mountains above Mammoth. It's not technical but very scenic and there is a spectacular place to camp along the creek and back in the Aspen trees. I have also been up Glass Mtn and a trail that leads towards Obsidian Dome.
I spent a week with the geologist (Chris Ferrar) that has worked in Mammoth in 1974 and know of some interesting geological features that even residents don't know about. I *think* I could find some of them again.
I am willing to help plan the mtn biking or maybe even kayaking if anyone is interested.
Mammoth is one of my favorite areas in California.
Ken
I had such a good time with the group in DV that I'll have to go on this one too; just hope I can get the dates to work with my schedule.
I'll be bringing my kayak--plenty of beautiful lakes to paddle including Convict Lake just south of Mammoth, June Lakes, Lake Mary/Mamie/George, all above Twin Lakes (I surveyed these reservoirs a few years ago), etc.
Mountain bike is a must. I have ridden the Mammoth Resort, Uptown/Downtown trail starting at the new resort area on Lake Mary Rd, and the mountain biking south of Mammoth at Lower Rock Creek is fun too.
Wheeling--found a cool trail up the mountains above Mammoth. It's not technical but very scenic and there is a spectacular place to camp along the creek and back in the Aspen trees. I have also been up Glass Mtn and a trail that leads towards Obsidian Dome.
I spent a week with the geologist (Chris Ferrar) that has worked in Mammoth in 1974 and know of some interesting geological features that even residents don't know about. I *think* I could find some of them again.
I am willing to help plan the mtn biking or maybe even kayaking if anyone is interested.
Mammoth is one of my favorite areas in California.
Ken
04-10-2006, 03:52 PM
#26
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Originally Posted by paddlenbike
*subscribing*
I had such a good time with the group in DV that I'll have to go on this one too; just hope I can get the dates to work with my schedule.
I'll be bringing my kayak--plenty of beautiful lakes to paddle including Convict Lake just south of Mammoth, June Lakes, Lake Mary/Mamie/George, all above Twin Lakes (I surveyed these reservoirs a few years ago), etc.
Mountain bike is a must. I have ridden the Mammoth Resort, Uptown/Downtown trail starting at the new resort area on Lake Mary Rd, and the mountain biking south of Mammoth at Lower Rock Creek is fun too.
Wheeling--found a cool trail up the mountains above Mammoth. It's not technical but very scenic and there is a spectacular place to camp along the creek and back in the Aspen trees. I have also been up Glass Mtn and a trail that leads towards Obsidian Dome.
I spent a week with the geologist (Chris Ferrar) that has worked in Mammoth in 1974 and know of some interesting geological features that even residents don't know about. I *think* I could find some of them again.
I am willing to help plan the mtn biking or maybe even kayaking if anyone is interested.
Mammoth is one of my favorite areas in California.
Ken
I had such a good time with the group in DV that I'll have to go on this one too; just hope I can get the dates to work with my schedule.
I'll be bringing my kayak--plenty of beautiful lakes to paddle including Convict Lake just south of Mammoth, June Lakes, Lake Mary/Mamie/George, all above Twin Lakes (I surveyed these reservoirs a few years ago), etc.
Mountain bike is a must. I have ridden the Mammoth Resort, Uptown/Downtown trail starting at the new resort area on Lake Mary Rd, and the mountain biking south of Mammoth at Lower Rock Creek is fun too.
Wheeling--found a cool trail up the mountains above Mammoth. It's not technical but very scenic and there is a spectacular place to camp along the creek and back in the Aspen trees. I have also been up Glass Mtn and a trail that leads towards Obsidian Dome.
I spent a week with the geologist (Chris Ferrar) that has worked in Mammoth in 1974 and know of some interesting geological features that even residents don't know about. I *think* I could find some of them again.
I am willing to help plan the mtn biking or maybe even kayaking if anyone is interested.
Mammoth is one of my favorite areas in California.
Ken
ken and george,
ill get you guys into the planning forum soon. when you guys are active, you will see a planning subforum for this trip.
thanks,
bob
04-10-2006, 04:22 PM
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ok i've got a surf trip to baja coming up in june so i dont think this will be possible for me. i wanted to go up there but baja's right hand point waves keep calling me down to surf .......
04-10-2006, 07:11 PM
#28
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How the *hell* did I miss this thread?
Obviously, I'll be there. Not into fishin' much myself, but it doesn't sound like I'll be hurting for entertainment. The trail over Ancient Bristlecone sounds awesome... And my wife is kinda working at the jazz festival, so if anyone wants any info on that, I'll see what I can do.
Although I've got lodging at mammoth officially, I'll be happy to bounce around...
(Ken, no, I'm not sure I'll have a kayak by then... unless you want to buy a house through the missus...
)
Obviously, I'll be there. Not into fishin' much myself, but it doesn't sound like I'll be hurting for entertainment. The trail over Ancient Bristlecone sounds awesome... And my wife is kinda working at the jazz festival, so if anyone wants any info on that, I'll see what I can do.
Although I've got lodging at mammoth officially, I'll be happy to bounce around...
(Ken, no, I'm not sure I'll have a kayak by then... unless you want to buy a house through the missus...
)
04-10-2006, 08:05 PM
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I'm up in Mammoth now with the family. It was 70 degrees in Bishop when we passed thru yesterday, and there was no snow on the ground on the way up here until just past the Hwy. 203 turnoff. I was a little concerned, but once we got up on the 203 conditions changed dramatically, it was snowing ligthly, and there's still quite a bit of the remains of the 50' of snow they've collected this past winter 
. I wish I had the adapter to hook my sons camera up to my computer so I could post a few photos for you.
Tomorrow we may drive down to the Hot Creek road and see how far out into the valley we can go.
. I wish I had the adapter to hook my sons camera up to my computer so I could post a few photos for you.Tomorrow we may drive down to the Hot Creek road and see how far out into the valley we can go.
Last edited by DealMaker; 04-10-2006 at 08:06 PM.
04-10-2006, 08:59 PM
#30
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Originally Posted by Scottiac
How the *hell* did I miss this thread?
Obviously, I'll be there. Not into fishin' much myself, but it doesn't sound like I'll be hurting for entertainment. The trail over Ancient Bristlecone sounds awesome... And my wife is kinda working at the jazz festival, so if anyone wants any info on that, I'll see what I can do.
Although I've got lodging at mammoth officially, I'll be happy to bounce around...
(Ken, no, I'm not sure I'll have a kayak by then... unless you want to buy a house through the missus... )
Obviously, I'll be there. Not into fishin' much myself, but it doesn't sound like I'll be hurting for entertainment. The trail over Ancient Bristlecone sounds awesome... And my wife is kinda working at the jazz festival, so if anyone wants any info on that, I'll see what I can do.
Although I've got lodging at mammoth officially, I'll be happy to bounce around...
(Ken, no, I'm not sure I'll have a kayak by then... unless you want to buy a house through the missus...
)Scott,
I told you right as you guys left that we'd tentatively book the date around the jazz festival!
So yeah, please let us know about the jazz festival. in fact, could you be the trip's jazz festival event coordinator? i.e. link to festival, ticket info, etc? i'm sure they have a website for that, so a link would be great
thanks,
bob
04-10-2006, 10:32 PM
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Originally Posted by DealMaker
I'm up in Mammoth now with the family. It was 70 degrees in Bishop when we passed thru yesterday, and there was no snow on the ground on the way up here until just past the Hwy. 203 turnoff. I was a little concerned, but once we got up on the 203 conditions changed dramatically, it was snowing ligthly, and there's still quite a bit of the remains of the 50' of snow they've collected this past winter . I wish I had the adapter to hook my sons camera up to my computer so I could post a few photos for you.
Tomorrow we may drive down to the Hot Creek road and see how far out into the valley we can go.
. I wish I had the adapter to hook my sons camera up to my computer so I could post a few photos for you.Tomorrow we may drive down to the Hot Creek road and see how far out into the valley we can go.
here's a recent mammy photo.
taken last night. it snowed an inch today, but by afternoon the roads weren't bad as far as conditions. there is so much snow up there.
Last edited by calrockx; 04-10-2006 at 10:35 PM.
04-11-2006, 06:11 PM
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Went to Navy Beach at Mono Lake today. There's quite a few trails in that area that lead E/SE up into the mountains, and some look to be very enticing! Reminds me of Death Valley at 8,000 ft. Looks like there's some evidence of mining activity, killer geological formations, etc. I recall back in the day I took a combination of fire roads and trails from somewhere near Owens Valley Rd. all the way up thru the mtns. and back down to Mono Lake. Something like that could make a killer day trip, or even a fun afternoon/night run home from Bodie ghost town.
04-11-2006, 07:08 PM
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Can I just confirm the dates? There is still a question mark in the title about the dates. Is the 14th the confirmed date? I just don't want to miss out if it's not the 14th because I can't go on the 14th.
04-11-2006, 08:27 PM
#35
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Originally Posted by Expat
Can I just confirm the dates? There is still a question mark in the title about the dates. Is the 14th the confirmed date? I just don't want to miss out if it's not the 14th because I can't go on the 14th.
Mark,
I'd say "yes", the 14th is the confirmed start date of the trip. The ??? is to signify that the trip duration is open ended. Some people may just make it a weekend trip whereas others may want to extend their trip
Bob
04-11-2006, 09:26 PM
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Originally Posted by DealMaker
I recall back in the day I took a combination of fire roads and trails from somewhere near Owens Valley Rd. all the way up thru the mtns. and back down to Mono Lake. Something like that could make a killer day trip, or even a fun afternoon/night run home from Bodie ghost town.
04-14-2006, 08:29 PM
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Originally Posted by calrockx
...there is so much snow up there.
Tamarisk Lodge cabins at Twin Lakes...
Looking down from the Village Gondola...
The Chalets at the Main Lodge area were ridiculously buried in snow. Nothing but chimneys sticking out.
04-19-2006, 09:09 PM
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Hello everyone,
We have finalized the date and camp locations. Please review the first post and start making your rsvp's at the tent site. For those who wish to have indoor accomodations, we've included a link at the bottom of the post.
Thanks!
We have finalized the date and camp locations. Please review the first post and start making your rsvp's at the tent site. For those who wish to have indoor accomodations, we've included a link at the bottom of the post.
Thanks!
04-19-2006, 09:14 PM
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Headed to moab the last week of June, but this looks like fun...mabye bring the runner and have my wife do some 'mild' wheeling in it...
or just bring the p/u and go nuts.... looks like its about 530 miles...not too bad, seing as moab in 600 from home.... camping in california...just doesnt sound right
is there non-campground camping in the area?
or just bring the p/u and go nuts.... looks like its about 530 miles...not too bad, seing as moab in 600 from home.... camping in california...just doesnt sound right
is there non-campground camping in the area?
Last edited by 4x4nala; 04-19-2006 at 09:20 PM.
