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Mammoth Lakes |
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June Lake – June Lake is another sparkling high mountain lake, with lovely sand beaches at the eastern end. We spent a day at Gull Lake Park, the kids swimming and playing in the water, building sand structures on the each, picnicking in the sunshine. |
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In winter, there’s skiing at June Mountain (at the western end of June Lake). The children’s ski and snowboard school has group lessons for kids 4 and up, as well as private lessons. Click here for more information. |
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Yosemite turnoff – Going north on 395, Route 120 is the eastern entrance over Tioga Pass, passing through Tuolumne Meadows. |
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Mono Lake – This pristine lake is one of the oldest lakes in North America (over 700,000 years old). Water flows in, but never flows out (it evaporates), so the lake is quite salty from minerals that accumulate. These minerals form amazing dribble castles, called tufa formations, around the edges of the lake. |
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 At Lee Vining on Hwy 395, stop into the Visitor Center for exhibits, maps, a video and nature trail along the lake. The South Tufa Area has the best tufa formations, kids can wade and swim in the lake (very buoyant), picnic tables and nature trail. At Mono Lake County Park, there’s a boardwalk trail to the lake, swings, picnic tables and shade trees. |
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Older kids will enjoy a super one hour canoe tour on Mono Lake, gliding past the tufa castles, June – September, call in advance for reservations 760.647.6595. |
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Bodie State Historic Park – Bodie was a rip-roaring gold mining town. Over fifteen million dollars in gold and silver came out of the mines between 1878 and 1881, ten thousand people lived here (including a large Chinatown), stagecoach robberies and gun fights were common. By the 1930’s Bodie was a ghost town and today it’s one of the best preserved wild west towns in California. |
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Kids will have a great time just running around Bodie, all the weathered wooden buildings, including many houses, hotels, church, stable, the jail and cemetery. Stop into the Visitor Center on Main Street to get a map town. Be sure to peer through the windows in the houses, you’ll see all the stuff people left behind when the town was deserted. This is great place to bring a picnic (there aren’t any restaurants or snack bars in Bodie) - sit out in the sagebrush and soak in the voices of days past. |
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Tip: The road to Bodie is 13 miles off Highway 395 (the last 3 miles are dirt road, so don’t try this in a rental car). Bodie is open year round, but winter there can be snow, four wheel drive vehicles are required at that time. |
