Mammoth Lakes

I have no idea why the Mammoth Lakes area isn't as world famous as Yosemite. The scenery is just as stunning and it's only an hour or so from Tioga Pass. I have been there four times now, and I feel like I've only scratched the surface of what the region has to offer!

Perhaps I should be thankful for its "girl next door" status, as it means that we can actually find campsites here without booking a year in advance!

Site 7, Lake George Campground

The crystal clear waters of Lake George

My favourite campground is at Lake George where sites 6 - 10 are so beautiful that you don't even need to leave your tent to get envious views! But if you do, you have dozens of world-class hikes within a 30km radius.

On this particular trip we took it easy and only did a few,

	TJ Lake	Ruby Lake	Mono Pass
Distance	1.2km one way from the Lake George Campground	3km one way from the Mosquito Flat trailhead	3.5km one way from the Ruby Lake/Mono Pass junction
Difficulty	Easy	Moderate	Strenuous
Scenery	Amazing, 8/10	Awesome, 9/10	Top of the pass, 5/10 Partway up, 9/10
Elevation	~2800m	~3400m	3648m
Elevation Gain	~80m	~300m	714m

Cathedral Lakes

We just got back from a week long camping trip in the Eastern Sierras that was a perfect illustration of how people who move to California "for a few years" get lured into staying forever. Yosemite National Park may be the bait, but the treasures beyond are what reel you in permanently! I'm not sure if I'm a lifer yet, but boy am I tempted!

On this particular trip we hit up Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite, Mammoth Lakes and a few places in-between; a mixture of old favourites and new (to us) trails. And we wrapped up our week by driving home through the incredibly beautiful Sonora Pass.

Yosemite's high country is actually my favourite area of the park. But somehow, I never got around to hiking one of its most popular trails: Cathedral Lakes.

Lower Cathedral Lake

	Lower Cathedral Lake	Upper Cathedral Lake
Distance	5.2km one way from the trailhead	~800m one way from Lower Cathedral Lake
Difficulty	Moderate	Easy
Scenery	Amazing, 8/10	Equally Amazing, 8/10
Elevation	~2800m	~2900m