16 June 2023
Inyo Craters and Lake Mary
Today was supposed to be a long bike ride. In most years it would have been. But not this year!
The idea was to ride a loop on forest roads all around Deer Mountain and then finish with a short hike up to Inyo Craters.
But since this is the Sierra Summer Snowpocalypse, we soon saw insurmountable obstacles.
It was actually fun for about a mile, trying to stay on the bike as much as possible in the dry parts, but soon there was more and more snow and we were just dragging our bikes up, over, and through it.
We soon came to Crater Meadows, which were absolutely gorgeous.
We found a nice place to take turns glissading and then decided to head back the way we came.
We dropped our bikes at a trailhead and climbed a short way up to the Inyo Crater Lakes. I was amazed to learn that the volcanoes that created these lakes were formed only 650 years ago. A geological eyeblink!
When we got back to the car, everyone wanted to see Wolly Mammoth’s driving skills, so we let him go ahead of us until we got back to the highway.
After chilling back in camp, we did another bike ride in the evening, this time up to Lake Mary. The road is still not open to cars, but bikes and pedestrians are allowed.
One reason we wanted to bike up here was so Wolly Mammoth could see conditions for a scout trip he is supposed to lead in a few days to Duck Pass. It’s hard to see how that’s going to happen, though, since it’s not even possible to get to the trailhead yet!
We turned around where the plows stopped plowing and biked back downhill to the car. On our way back to camp we saw a field full of deer.
The JimmyJam Hiking Club 
Very happy to get these three posts. I was profoundly ‘bummed’ when you left the PCT. I loved your pictures, the number and the quality. I especially love flower pictures and take a lot of them myself.
As an aside, I made an attempt at the PCT myself in 2021, but suffice to say, I didn’t do very well. I am fond of saying that I didn’t leave the PCT, the PCT left me. It is also noteworthy to note that I am 82yo, and my age certainly factors into the overall equation.
However, I just cannot let this PCT thing go. In the states, I live right on top of the southern end of the CDT, and I have done 200 miles on that trail, so it doesn’t figure that I cannot do the PCT.
Like I said, I cannot give up on the PCT, and I will be flying back in a week or so from the Philippines where I am currently living, in order to try to get the section from MP160 to MP700 done before the snow flies. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Once again, I love your pictures. Please keep making posts of your adventures. Larry Robinson Glenwood, NM 88039
L_John_Robinson@reagan.com
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What a lovely note! I totally understand what it feels like to not be able to give up on the PCT. It’s amazing how powerful the idea of it is. It keeps luring me back over and over.
Good luck on your upcoming hike! Stay hydrated — it’s extremely hot out there right now….
🙂
JimmyJam
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I meant to note this when I first got this eMail, but naturally I procrastinated and it became lost in space.
But years, and I do mean years ago, I was traveling about CA, and I ended up walking up to one of the craters. Later having left the crater that I explored, I got disoriented and for a long time, I was seriously confused about where I was. Only the grace of God brought me back to my vehicle.
larry
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