By Vivien Rehder
Lone Pine - Everything is big in California with a motorcycle tour through the national parks one of the best ways of discovering the more remote areas of the western United States state.
With gigantic mountain ranges and valleys in the western United States detours of 100 kilometres are small by comparison. Massive trees, 4 00 years old, tower 80 metres into the sky and the roads often appear to vanish into the distant horizon.
Many of the national parks on the eastern edge of California between Lake Tahoe and Lone Pine are relatively unknown to the foreign traveller and hours of travel are possible without meeting a single person.
In contrast the big national parks like Yosemite and Sequoia have millions of tourists visiting each year.
A good starting point for a motorcycle tour is the 1 900-metre high Lake Tahoe. In the sunlight the lake glitters in bright blue, fir forests line the banks and in the distance we see the shimmering white snow peaks.
On we go from the lake to the Eldorado National Forest. The road curves through fir forests, past mountain lakes and through snow-covered mountain passes.
Only along isolated filling stations we meet the odd traveller in a camper. It is better to fill the tank in the bigger towns because there are only a few and expensive filling stations in the national parks themselves.
The Eldorado National Forest was discovered in 1849 when thousands of fortune seekers went into the wilds to seek gold in the many rivers, lakes and streams. Today it is mainly a venue for anglers.
In the sunlight, the lake glitters in bright blue
The route to the Stanislaus National Forest and the goldmining region of Calaveras leads us over the 2 600-metre Carson Pass. An icy cold wind penetrates our clothing but further downhill it gets warmer.
From the town of Pioneer, Route 26 takes us to one of the most famous goldmining towns, Mokelumne Hill. Here miners 150 years ago destroyed the environment with high pressure water hoses. Today the hillsides are overgrown with wild grass. In between there are farms with vineyards on the hills, dotted with decaying houses.
The round trip Old Oak Farm at Sonora leads through a colourful landscape of red earth and pine forests with the sound of beetles in the air.
Columbia, a ghost town, is good for a break. Like many of the towns in the region it grew rapidly into a settlement with hotels, saloons and businesses. Later the falling gold price made mining in the area unprofitable and the inhabitants left. Strict rules still apply. Drinking alcohol outside the confines of the saloon on the verandah is still prohibited.
A few kilometres to the south-west we find Jamestown where the movie High Noon was filmed. In Sonora the Tuolumne County Museum offers impressions of life in the Wild West. Real original accommodation filled with antiques is offered by the Groveland Hotel built in the year 1849.
The Tioga Pass Road takes us to the Inyo National Forest right through the Yosemite National Park with its many forests, waterfalls and up to 1 600 metre cliffs. From this mountainous landscape in freezing cold we hit the road into the desert where the air can be compared to a hot fan.
On the foothills of the mountains lies the 100 square kilometre Mono Lake. From the lookout point South Tufa Reserve east of the Highway 395, towers of chalk stone are reflected on the water surface. Because the city of Los Angeles has for decades tapped water from the rivers feeding the lake, the water level has steadily dropped. The lake was created 700 000 years ago in a desert basin full of thermal wells and volcanoes. At Navy Beach a “weightless” swim in the salt water is possible.
Highway 395 runs straight through an eight-kilometre valley between the White Mountains and the steep mountain range of the Sierra Nevada in the Inyo National Forest.
The Devil’s Postpile National Monument is reached over a pass in the holiday resort Mammoth Lakes. Several towns in the valley feature cave paintings and other remnants left by the Paiute Indians who lived here until they were forced to leave in the middle of the 19th century. Their descendants live in reserves. One of the largest is situated along Highway 168 west of Bishop where the Paiute Shoshone Indian Cultural Museum has an exhibition on the life of these people.
From the Highway 395 a right turn leads us to Lone Pine. After a while the road becomes rugged with many tight corners leading us uphill. No problem with a motorcycle but an arduous journey by car. After a few hundred metres uphill we see in the valley below a salt lake shining in rose red.
The road ends in a magical forest. Twisted trees, old tree stumps and roots lie around. Not a sound can be heard. It is like being at the end of the world. Only the parking space with a toilet and a signboard warning of bears are evidence of some civilisation.
Near Lone Pine the Manzanar War Relocation Centre is a reminder of a dark side in American history. More than 10 000 Americans of Japanese ancestry were interned here during World War 2 because they were regarded as a security risk. Watch towers and other remnants of the camp can be seen. More information is available in the Eastern California Museum of Independence.
At the southern end of Owens Valley the 4 418-metre Mount Whitney - the highest peak in the Sierra Nevada - provides Lone Pine with a fantastic panorama.
The Movie Flat Road is a tour of the American West past yellow and red sandstone formations of the Alabama Hills that formed the backdrop to more than 250 movies among them such classics as “Tycoon” starring John Wayne and the popular TV series, “Bonanza”. - Sapa-dpa
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