Page 154 - 2017 Travel Guide to California

Nevada border, has seen an injection of
energy and interest in recent years, with
new restaurants, shops and galleries.
With a large inventory of hotel rooms and
a cluster of hotel-casinos just a few steps
over the border, it’s a good bet for inex-
pensive lodging. In Truckee, a handsome
old railroad and lumber town between
Donner Pass and Squaw Valley, a collec-
tion of Old West historic buildings along
Commercial Row now houses busy
restaurants and bars, some adorned with
portraits of gunslingers and desperadoes.
Farther south, sprawling Bishop sports the
Owens Valley’s most extensive collection
of lodging, dining and resupply outlets.
DRIVE
»
TOUR
Highway 120 is a magical mystery tour through the heart of Yosemite National
Park’s exquisite high country. From the handsome old mining town of GROVELAND,
follow 120 east into the park (HETCH HETCHY, the fraternal twin of Yosemite Valley
that was dammed to provide San Francisco’s water supply, is a short side trip) past
the TUOLUMNE GROVE of giant sequoias and up into the rarified alpine world. Pull
over at OLMSTED POINT to view HALF DOME from an angle you’ve never seen
before. You’ll traverse TUOLUMNE MEADOWS, the jumping-off point for some of
Yosemite’s finest hiking trails, and cross 9,943-foot TIOGA PASS before descending
three-quarters of a vertical mile to shimmering MONO LAKE.
The Great Outdoors
Just a few hours’ drive from San Fran-
cisco or Los Angeles, the Sierra Nevada
has been California’s outdoor playground
almost since the arrival of the original
49ers. In Yosemite Valley, spectators with
telescopes watch the progress of
climbers inching their way up the impos-
sibly sheer granite walls. Tempted to try
it? Sign up for an introductory class at the
Yosemite Mountaineering School—or at
least treat yourself to a “Go Climb a Rock”
T-shirt. With some of the most reliably
sunny summer weather of any major
mountain range, the High Sierra is a
hiker’s paradise, from easy day walks in
the Desolation Wilderness to chal-
lenging, multi-week journeys through
Kings Canyon and Sequoia national
parks. Skiers have their choice of world-
class venues, from beginner-friendly
Granlibakken to the double-diamond
chutes of Squaw Valley and Heavenly. In
summer, many of the resorts—particu-
larly Northstar and Mammoth—convert
their lifts and gondolas to carry moun-
tain bikes.
152 2017 T R AV E L G U I D E TO C A L I F O R N I A
BILL45/SHUTTERSTOCK. OPPOSITE: MLLEJULES/SHUTTERSTOCK; MONO COUNTY TOURISM; MARC VENEMA/SHUTTERSTOCK