05-13-2025, 05:05 AM
We escaped early and drove in the dark from Lone Pine to Bishop. Our first adventure was to find the Sky Rock and the 13 Moons. I've been wanting to see the Sky Rock since I first saw pictures of it about a decade ago. But it is a sacred place and there is an unofficial prohibition about posting the location of Sky Rock on the internet. For good reason. Just recently there was an article in the LA Times about people damaging petroglyphs in the area.
Fortunately for me, I stumble upon the page of someone who gave the directions of how to find it. On the one hand, thank you. On the other hand, he can take down his page now.
Step one is climbing a sandy trail 250 feet up a cliff. I was winded when I got to the top but it wasn't too harsh. Then I was supposed to walk a thousand feed along this ridge of boulders to the Sky Rock. I just had to look for it. Well, I looked and looked and looked. No sign or hint of where it should be. The Queen was with me, having taking a tad longer for her ascent. She mentioned that I should just use the drone to look for it. She was kind enough not to end the statement with the word Dumbass.
That's right. I brought the drone with me. I noticed from all the Sky Rock pictures I had seen that the only way to get a good picture was to shoot it from directly overhead. Which meant I had to carry my Drone suitcase with me. Yes, I climbed the Chalk cliff with the suitcase. After launching the drone, it took me about two minutes to find the rock in amongst the boulders. The pictures were tricky because the rock was half in the shade. I was going to half to come back.
To getter view, the Queen and I climbed into the rock field, navigating through narrow slots and prickly sage brush. The problem with the drone case was I carried it in my good arm which left the weak arm the job of pushing of rocks for stability. That was fun. I eventually found the spot where I could view the rock with my own eyes. It was quite spectacular. Worth the struggle. The Queen had gone a different path and was on the opposite side of the rock from me. She squeezed through some really narrow passages to get to her view. I made her go back down and come up the trail I used.
From there we navigated up through the boulder field to another plateau. We crossed that plateau to another boulder field which ran parallel to the first boulder field about 500 yards away. 13 Moons was much easier to find in this field and was a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be. The pictures don't do it justice.
Rather than climbing back down through the Sky Rock boulder field, we circled around the end of the field and made our way back to the trail down the cliff. I stopped once more at the rock to do more drone shots now that it was better illuminated. The Queen went on ahead to start her descent.
I dreaded the hike down. I'm not as assured of my feet as I used to and this looked like it was going to be a slippery mess the whole way down. And I really couldn't stop a fall with my left arm, that would just necessitate a trip back to the surgeon's table. And in my right hand I had the drone case. Let's just say my adrenalin levels were up. Yes, I did go to my butt during one slippery section. I also found myself way off trail at one point because I was focused so much on my feet, I didn't realize the trail had turned. I spent a few feet on a really steep and slippery section before I could navigate down to the real trail. I lived to tell the tale. And I've got pictures.
From there we backtracked down the corduroy road to Bishop. I thought the car was going to rattle apart from all the undulations in the road. We got to our hotel too early to check-in. We headed next door to Shatz's bakery which is one of Bishop's landmark locations. It did not disappoint. I felt my blood sugar numbers go up just looking at rack after rack of breads, pastries and cookies. Next it was off to the visitor center to see if they had any spots where we could see more petroglyphs or wildflowers. The Queen is killing it at using her iNaturalist app to identify different flora and fauna. The woman didn't have any clues for our requests but she did say the drive up to Lake Sabrina was beautiful and there was a great place up there to have a picnic.
Capital idea. We went back to Schatz's for some sandwiches. The drive up was uneventful except for the gale force winds trying to blow my car off the mountain. Lake Sabrina was in a beautiful setting surrounded by snow covered granite peaks but snow melt had yet to fill the lake. We didn't stay long because it was cold and the wind was howling. We had the same result at the picnic spot, too cold and windy to sit outside.
We had lunch back at the hotel which had chairs, tables and umbrellas by the banks of the Bishop creek which flowed next to the hotel property. While we ate, I got a call from the hotel saying our room was ready. Our room is light years better than the Dow Villa. I wish there was more in the area that would warrant a longer stay in this place, but no.
Checking the weather reports revealed the temperature in Mammoth wasn't going to get above 40ยบ. Neither the Queen nor I brought clothing for those types of temperatures. Before dinner, we went to a mountaineering shop that sold second hand gear. The Queen got a coat, hat and gloves. I had to go to a different store to get a heavy hoody. We might be set.
We rested the rest of the evening and went to bed. This is the Queen's designated sleep in day so we won't move until she arises.
Fortunately for me, I stumble upon the page of someone who gave the directions of how to find it. On the one hand, thank you. On the other hand, he can take down his page now.
Step one is climbing a sandy trail 250 feet up a cliff. I was winded when I got to the top but it wasn't too harsh. Then I was supposed to walk a thousand feed along this ridge of boulders to the Sky Rock. I just had to look for it. Well, I looked and looked and looked. No sign or hint of where it should be. The Queen was with me, having taking a tad longer for her ascent. She mentioned that I should just use the drone to look for it. She was kind enough not to end the statement with the word Dumbass.
That's right. I brought the drone with me. I noticed from all the Sky Rock pictures I had seen that the only way to get a good picture was to shoot it from directly overhead. Which meant I had to carry my Drone suitcase with me. Yes, I climbed the Chalk cliff with the suitcase. After launching the drone, it took me about two minutes to find the rock in amongst the boulders. The pictures were tricky because the rock was half in the shade. I was going to half to come back.
To getter view, the Queen and I climbed into the rock field, navigating through narrow slots and prickly sage brush. The problem with the drone case was I carried it in my good arm which left the weak arm the job of pushing of rocks for stability. That was fun. I eventually found the spot where I could view the rock with my own eyes. It was quite spectacular. Worth the struggle. The Queen had gone a different path and was on the opposite side of the rock from me. She squeezed through some really narrow passages to get to her view. I made her go back down and come up the trail I used.
From there we navigated up through the boulder field to another plateau. We crossed that plateau to another boulder field which ran parallel to the first boulder field about 500 yards away. 13 Moons was much easier to find in this field and was a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be. The pictures don't do it justice.
Rather than climbing back down through the Sky Rock boulder field, we circled around the end of the field and made our way back to the trail down the cliff. I stopped once more at the rock to do more drone shots now that it was better illuminated. The Queen went on ahead to start her descent.
I dreaded the hike down. I'm not as assured of my feet as I used to and this looked like it was going to be a slippery mess the whole way down. And I really couldn't stop a fall with my left arm, that would just necessitate a trip back to the surgeon's table. And in my right hand I had the drone case. Let's just say my adrenalin levels were up. Yes, I did go to my butt during one slippery section. I also found myself way off trail at one point because I was focused so much on my feet, I didn't realize the trail had turned. I spent a few feet on a really steep and slippery section before I could navigate down to the real trail. I lived to tell the tale. And I've got pictures.
From there we backtracked down the corduroy road to Bishop. I thought the car was going to rattle apart from all the undulations in the road. We got to our hotel too early to check-in. We headed next door to Shatz's bakery which is one of Bishop's landmark locations. It did not disappoint. I felt my blood sugar numbers go up just looking at rack after rack of breads, pastries and cookies. Next it was off to the visitor center to see if they had any spots where we could see more petroglyphs or wildflowers. The Queen is killing it at using her iNaturalist app to identify different flora and fauna. The woman didn't have any clues for our requests but she did say the drive up to Lake Sabrina was beautiful and there was a great place up there to have a picnic.
Capital idea. We went back to Schatz's for some sandwiches. The drive up was uneventful except for the gale force winds trying to blow my car off the mountain. Lake Sabrina was in a beautiful setting surrounded by snow covered granite peaks but snow melt had yet to fill the lake. We didn't stay long because it was cold and the wind was howling. We had the same result at the picnic spot, too cold and windy to sit outside.
We had lunch back at the hotel which had chairs, tables and umbrellas by the banks of the Bishop creek which flowed next to the hotel property. While we ate, I got a call from the hotel saying our room was ready. Our room is light years better than the Dow Villa. I wish there was more in the area that would warrant a longer stay in this place, but no.
Checking the weather reports revealed the temperature in Mammoth wasn't going to get above 40ยบ. Neither the Queen nor I brought clothing for those types of temperatures. Before dinner, we went to a mountaineering shop that sold second hand gear. The Queen got a coat, hat and gloves. I had to go to a different store to get a heavy hoody. We might be set.
We rested the rest of the evening and went to bed. This is the Queen's designated sleep in day so we won't move until she arises.
As a matter of fact, my anger does keep me warm