The previous post in this series is here..
After seeing the Tufa tower sunset at Mono lake, we came back to the lodge and decided to change our Mammoth lake plan. June lakes it turns out was closer and as beautiful. There were four lakes in the loop each with its own view. The entire loop was 16 miles and we could go back through the national park, have lunch at one of the benches in Yosemite and be on our way home.
None of us had visited June lake and our 9th member had suggested it. We were all happy with the change of plan. Finished our morning chai and breakfast, checked out and started driving.
We went away for the park for 20 more minutes (Mammoth would have been 45 minutes!) and went through the June lake loop. The five lakes in sequence are June lake, Gull lake, Silver lake and Grant lake.
We spent 30-45 minutes in each lake, took pictures, walked a small trail and drove from lake to lake. Finally we said bye to our friend at Grant lake and the other 8 made it to Yosemite park entrance. Just before the entrance we stopped by the first bridge that was built to cross over and saw the commemoration plate. We also watched the waterfall at the entrance. Then we tried to find parking inside Yosemite to eat lunch. No luck after three tries. Finally parked by the side of the road, sat on a tree and ate the lunch that was already prepared. The ladies had it all microwaved in the morning before we even left. The food tased delicious, again. Then we made a dash for home.. with a few stops for breaks. We were back by dinner time!
It was a weekend well spent. I knew this was a risk but was glad to be able to relax in nature on Saturday evening and Sunday morning. Also I did not drive. Just sat in the backseat and enjoyed the view. The entire group made it special for me. San made me feel “normal” again.
Here are the photos..
A video highlights reel. June lake loop area is called the Switzerland of California! Did not know that!
Think there will be a long break before I hike again! Enjoyed editing photos, reliving memories and writing about this trip. Hopefully once the knee is better, will get back to hiking again, but it will be very slow and steady progress!