Milpitas to Mammoth Lakes

It has to be evident by now that I love our flag. I can't get enough of it in whatever way it is displayed. My heart swells with pride when I see it unfurled in the wind. What a grand old flag. ~ Pipeline across a lake.


How about these switchback curves? Seems to be the norm when traveling through the mountainous areas to Yosemite National Park. When I was a young girl, we lived in Lancaster, CA. Daddy drove these same tortuous, twisty, no guardrail, turns in pitch dark as we went on our way to a campground in Yosemite. Don't remember much about that trip but it seems that driving in the dark would have been better than having to see what our fate would be if we missed a turn.


Yippee! We made it. ~ There's a possibility of snow tomorrow at altitudes above 9000'. Hmmm, very interesting. ~ We were warned and the bears were warned and we saw nary a one. So guess the sign was effective.


The moss does grow on the side of the tree, but which side is it? ~ Devastation caused by a careless match. Smokey the Bear wasn't amused.


Serene Siesta Lake ~ 1940 Benchmark marker indicates elevation ~ I was intrigued by the bare curlycue tree.


Sneed tells the story behind the photo the best. "We met a nice bear and he took our pix. He was out placing warning signs about speeding through the park." ~ Maybe I'm the only one who didn't know that pinecones grow upward until they turn brown and hang downward. One learns all sorts of trivia.


Friendly squirrel. Sneed had some crackers from lunch he fed the little fellow. That gave an Asian woman the same idea. She didn't know to keep her fingers out of the way and much to her surprise, she was bitten. ~ Olmsted Point - a fellow had his camera set on a tripod waiting for the sun to set. ~ Directly across the street, a view of rock that was dynamited to make way for the road.


Distinctive milepost ~ The trees are very tall and when growing on both sides of the road shade it quite well. ~ The highest point on Tioga Pass.


Beautiful body of water ~ Snow is still evident on the mountain tops ~ Yellow flowers growing amongst the rocks alongside the roadway