mammoth

Waking Time:5.30am


Today we leave Tahoe, heading down and into desert, and climbing back to snow, past canyons and orange and into the blue, past small clusters of buildings that seem to be closed and back into wide open space. On the way we stop a few time to look at views, and there isn't a wide enough les on my camera or a word to do them justice. The pale blue expanse of Mono Lake, full of salt deposits, closed as the inner eye of a snake.

The sign near the road says

SCENIC ROUTE

and points the other way. there is nothing for miles but lake and sky, and scenic do they want to get?


Finding Mammoth isn't a problem, but the sat nav lady doesn't recognise mountains, turn left she says, into a snow drift that used to be road.

Our hotel is high in the mountain, and my eyes are worn down stubs grown sore from being rubbed against so many stones. The hotel is quite pretty, antler chandeliers and high wooden beams, an open fire in the foyer and a rocking chair made of sticks. Val Doonican would have liked it here.

Everything looks as it should look but the staff at the hotel are a little snotty and unfriendly, and we are afraid to of the lack of prices on anything to venture into the restaurant for food. Instead we head down to town, California style, which looks like a parking lot dropped into the mountains with stores on the side- what do people actually do here? It is pizza or KFC, we settle for pizza, and eat, heading up the mountain in the dusk with out fingers crossed we don't get lost, and looking out for the coyote we saw sniffing outside.

What it looks like: A 70's Milk Tray ad, and I expect to see a man in black skiing down the mountain to leave chocolate on my window ledge anytime.

New Food tried today: Reese's granola bar

Warning: Coyote's may appear smaller than indicated by Warner's, and express no interest in ACME products.

Falling asleep to: Him videoing out of the window waiting for Coyote's