|
Our son's school was closed on Columbus Day (October 12th), so we planned to go on a 3-day
weekend. With the date already set, I spent the 2 or 3 weeks beforehand trying to decide
where to go and stay. At first we thought about camping, but as it got closer I realized
that it would probably be too cold (probably bearable, but not comfortable). I also had to
decide - eastern Sierra, or Hope Valley area? I checked various sources on the web every
day, trying to see which area would be best for fall color. I even created a
Sierra Nevada Fall Color Facebook page where people can go to help each other keep track of the best places and current
conditions.
Eventually, I realized it would probably be too early for Hope Valley, and despite an early-season
storm there would still be some color in the eastern Sierra. And so we set our sights for
Mammoth Lakes this afternoon. We left the Bay Area in mid-afternoon, only to get snarled in
a big traffic jam that delayed us 90 minutes. After suffering through that, we stopped in
Oakdale for dinner, then had to decide - take Highway 120 or 108 across the Sierra? I had
always taken Highway 120 through Yosemite to reach the eastern Sierra, and wouldn't have even
considered taking 108, but my car GPS suggested it. Looking at a map, I didn't see how that
could possibly be even remotely as fast as going through Yosemite. But, it was now dark and
the thought of descending the east side of Tioga Pass at night didn't appeal to me, so I
stupidly chose to try out Highway 108.
Let me say that I had never driven the full length of Highway 108 before, only in the past stopping
as far as the trailhead for our Emigrant Wilderness backpacking trip years ago. After now having
driven it, I don't think I'll ever drive it at night again, if I can avoid it. It's a steep,
winding road, even more steep and winding than other trans-Sierra highways. In fact, there's one
spot that's a 26% grade! At least there was no traffic to deal with; I never had a car directly
in front of or behind me, although I passed cars coming in the opposite direction every few
minutes.
After driving around in the dark for quite some time, we finally reached Highway 395, turning
right and sailed along the relatively straight flat highway through Bridgeport and Lee Vining
and into Mammoth Lakes. Much to my amazement, despite the traffic and the twisting roads,
we arrived at Tamarack Lodge after 6 hours and 45 minutes of driving, meaning that without the traffic
jam it would have taken a respectable 5:15 (it had taken us 5:10 via Highway 120, four years earlier).
|
Facebook Fan Page
Twitter
RSS Feed
