Having recently returned from a road trip to ski Lake Tahoe and explore Owens Valley (drive through Truckee and turn south) just down to Bridgeport, I can't wait to return on a summer motorcycle ride to explore farther south to Mammoth Lakes, perhaps crisscrossing over the pass to Mono Lake and back again. It's no big secret that Highway 395 is not only an historic but an incredibly scenic ride with the Eastern Sierras rising spectacularly to the west and a long expanse of lake-studded valley stretching out before you. Here's the website for Hwy 395 and here's the site for a bunch of hotsprings located along the route, many of them requiring a bit of off-roading. Pashnit.com has got a freebie description of the Mono Lake pass (Hwy 120), just for a taste of the scenery you'll see here.
March 17, 2009
Road Trip: Highway 395 Along the Eastern Sierras
by Carla King in Uncategorized | 1 Comments
In January, I spent three days in the area, based in Ridgecrest and exploring north up to Manzanar (north of Lone Pine), Death Valley and east to Beatty NV, and south back to Ontario. I lived at Ridgecrest/China Lake through the ’60s and ’70s and it has always been “home” no mater how long ago that was, and how many other places I’ve lived. There are literally weeks of good riding, historic sites and natural beauty to fill in the high desert, and I wish I could have stayed longer. It was down to freezing at night, but the days were warm and the rugged, snow-capped mountains are as unforgettable as they were when I was kid.