South Mono Lake - September 25, 2008

View from Parking Area Kiosk of Tufas, Mono Lake

Between the cities/towns of Mammoth Lakes (in the south) and Lee Vining (in the north) on the eastern side of US-395 lies Mono Lake. It is an inland lake, very similar in composition and situation to the Great Salt Lake in Utah. The only water is receives is what melts into it from the surrounding countryside. Only very hardy plants and animal life can survive it. To the north of the Lake (and Lee Vining) is a visitor's center that overlooks the lake; it is relatively new and sits up on a hill pretty much overlooking a sizable portion of this part of the Sierra Nevadas.

Sometime in the mid- to late- 20th century, the municipality of Los Angeles began using the water from the lake, which resulted in a severe drop in the amount of water in the lake. This loss of water affected the entire eco-system in the area. I am not sure exactly when, but eventually the California court system ruled Los Angeles could not use any or not nearly as much water from the Lake. The water level is slowly rising again but has a long way to go to regain the level it used to have before L.A. began siphoning water.

When the Lake had more water, structures called "Tufas" developed underneath the surface. Because of the low water levels, many of these structures are now available for viewing on the south shore of the lake. To get to the 1-2 mile nature walk near the Tufas, you drive east on CA-120 about 3 miles and then make a left. After another mile or so on a dirt road, you arrive at the parking area and pay a small fee at the kiosk (or your National Parks/Adventure Pass works just fine as well). And off you go! The walk itself is not difficult, no hills to speak of, and it was a beautiful day - I'd already hiked up at Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite earlier in the day.

The Tufa material is very hard and rock-like; it is very easy to hurt yourself with it. The Park or Forestry Service (not sure which controls this area) does not want you sitting on the Tufas, which will leave scratches if you try anyway. The water surrounding the water contains small organisms (I think they are brine shrimp) and it feels, well, different from your normal water. If I remember correctly, this is due to the salt and other natural chemicals that are contained is this isolated Lake.

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