Short weekend getaway up to the Eastern Sierras with my buddy Leo on his new Rally GS.
Base camp at Lundy Lake, then we crammed a lot of really good riding into Saturday.
This post is all about the ride Saturday, June 2nd. Friday and Sunday were travel days.
We got up early and made coffee Saturday morning, then hit the trails. From Lundy, we went to Virginia Lakes. We skipped the Copper Mountain run through Jordan Basin because the trail is overgrown, and I didn't want to make Leo scratch up his new bike. And also because the entire run is sharp rocks, and my rear tire is nearly bald. So we slabbed it to Virginia Lakes. Then over Dunderberg Pass into Bridgeport for breakfast at the new Three 95 Cafe (formerly Hays Street Cafe). Super good breakfast!
From there we took 182 to Masonic Road and stopped by Chemung Mine. Then up to the top of Masonic Mountain (a first for both of us). Amazing views. We could easily see 60 miles into Nevada and Walker Lake (and beyond).
From there into the old Masonic townsite, then a short backtrack to Bodie-Masonic Road and a great ride into Bodie. After poking around for a while, we left via Cottonwood Canyon heading for the north shore of Mono Lake, where we jumped off Cemetary Road to De Chambeau Ranch. It's an old ranch set up like a museum (similar to Bodie). They used to supply all of the meat and produce to the mining operations in the area, including Bodie.
From there we went into Lee Vining and up Tioga Pass to Saddlebag Lake, which is still frozen. We went up 120 a bit further to see the sights, then came back down and went out to Mono South Tufa and Navy Beach. Then a burger at Mono Cone before grabbing beer and ice and heading back to camp at Lundy.
It was a full day. 160 miles, about half dirt. Conditions were near perfect. Great traction, low dust, clear skies and temps in the 60's and 70's. We had the trails all to ourselves, only seeing one other vehicle all day.
The pics are a mix of mine and Leo's (shared with permission).