Elliot Koeppel 8/6/21 Elliot Koeppel 8/6/21

Little Lakes Valley Trail

The sky looked a bit ominous Thursday morning when we set out to the Little Lakes Valley trailhead. Our goal was to see each of the five main lakes, from the trailhead to Gem Lakes, a roundtrip of eight miles with an elevation gain of approximately 1200 feet.

Elliot Koeppel 4/2/21 Elliot Koeppel 4/2/21

Mammoth Consolidated Gold Mine - California

The best laid plans are often subject to the weather. I had planned on hiking the one-mile loop trail to Heart Lake in Mammoth, and also to wander around the remaining buildings of the Mammoth Consolidated Gold Mine which are right near by.

Elliot Koeppel 2/26/21 Elliot Koeppel 2/26/21

T Cross K Ranch - Mission Creek Preserve - California

If you lived in Southern California during the 1930s and were looking for a get-a-way retreat where you could be “just plain lazy,” The T Cross K Guest Ranch would have been perfect. Especially if you enjoyed home cooking and BBQ. Rates were reasonable, $5 per day or $30 per week, per person. Throw in horseback riding, hunting, pack trips, tennis, dancing and hiking….I would have so been there.

Elliot Koeppel 9/21/20 Elliot Koeppel 9/21/20

Ballarat - California

My plan was to stop at Ballarat and then continue north, connecting with CSR 190 and thence to Lone Pine to spend the night. I made it as far as Ballarat. Most plans don’t survive contact with the elements.

Elliot Koeppel 8/22/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/22/20

Eastern Sierra Nevada Fall Colors - California

October in Northern California, along I-395. What could be better?

Elliot Koeppel 8/22/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/22/20

Wildrose Charcoal Kilns - Death Valley - California

What are these crazy dome things out in the wilderness of Death Valley?

Elliot Koeppel 8/8/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/8/20

Zabriskie Point - Death Valley - California

Spread out before me was a maze of wildly eroded and multi-colored badlands. I was home.

Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20

PC - Greetings from Death Valley

I like old postcards. Especially the “Greetings From” style.

Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20

Owens Lake - California

And the answer is: Once a 110-square-mile lake, estimated at being over 1,000,000 years old.

Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20

Swansea - California

So much to see along 395, shame on those who claim everything’s dead in the desert….

Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/4/20

Grave of the Unknown Prospector - California

I imagine there are probably hundreds of unmarked graves in the Mojave Desert, the final resting places of prospectors and others who traveled across the sands in search of their golden dreams.

Elliot Koeppel 8/2/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/2/20

Old Homestead - Lucerne Valley - California

This place literally screamed to me to take its picture. What could I do?

Elliot Koeppel 8/1/20 Elliot Koeppel 8/1/20

Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest - California

High atop the White Mountains of the Inyo National Forest is where I was heading. I was looking for the oldest trees in the world,

Elliot Koeppel 7/30/20 Elliot Koeppel 7/30/20

Route 58 Stone Ruins - California

I was driving west on Route 58, out of Barstow, heading to I-395 and points north….

Elliot Koeppel 7/30/20 Elliot Koeppel 7/30/20

Crowley Lake - California

Crowley Lake is located about 15 miles south of Mammoth Lakes. There’s a nice viewpoint right alongside Hwy 395, I stopped to stretch my legs and take a couple photos.

Elliot Koeppel 7/30/20 Elliot Koeppel 7/30/20

Convict Lake - California

I’d seen the sign for Convict Lake numerous times while driving by on Hwy 395, but this trip was the time I would turn off the highway and check it out.

Elliot Koeppel 7/29/20 Elliot Koeppel 7/29/20

Lester Dale Mine - California

I’m not sure what attracts me to places like this, but I’m certainly glad they are still around to find and explore.

Elliot Koeppel 7/29/20 Elliot Koeppel 7/29/20

The Trona Pinnacles - California

After close to five miles of bouncing and rat-a-tat-tat-tating over a hardpacked, washboard dirt road, the strange landscape seen from a distance was now up close and personal.