USA Trip Day 10 - The Tioga Road and the approach to Death Valley
We left Yosemite in the warmest temperatures we’d had since leaving San Francisco. This was a good thing because the Tioga Road, the only road that crosses the width of the park, closes over winter and had been closed on Friday due to the snow. The alternative route would have added 100 miles to our journey to Death Valley.
The Tioga Road goes up to around 10,000 feet and covers some even more varied terrain than we had already seen. From Olmsted Point we had a rear view of Half Dome.
Lake Tenaya was peaceful, and actually had some water in it, which was a bonus.
The Tulomne Meadow is the a sub-alpine meadow and was the most obvious sign of the landscape changing significantly as we got higher.
As we left the park and descended from the Tioga Road, the view at Lee Vining Canyon had snow-capped mountains on the horizon
which were a far cry from the deep red limestone and sandstone that appeared as we approached Death Valley
We stopped for the night in Panamint Springs, which seems to consist entirely of an RV park, a gas station and this motel. It’s basic, but it’s clean and we’re only here for the one night. After 8 hours of driving I was ready for a beer, so we sat out on the full moonlit terrace and listened to the crickets.
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