Jim Cokas’ Tuolumne Meadows Poetry Festival broadsides can now be found on the Mono Lake Committee online store! If you missed your chance to purchase one of the pieces currently hanging in our gallery while you were in the Mono Basin, shop online and we will ship the prints to your front door. These broadsides also make the perfect gift for that person who has everything. Curious about broadsides?

Jim explained the concept of a “broadside” while hanging his show in the Mono Lake Theater & Gallery this past fall. Broadsides were common in (more…)

There are only 51 days left before Christmas … time to start checking off your lists at the Mono Lake Committee’s online store! Take a look at our 2012 fall catalog selections to get some ideas flowing, and keep an eye here on the Mono-logue—we’ll be featuring our favorite products for the season all month long.

When you shop with the Mono Lake Committee, 100% of your purchases benefit the protection, restoration, and education efforts happening for Mono Lake.

Poetry in Motion

A draft from the bookstore entrance
drifts by
grabbing hanging broadsides
to breathe life into their words.

A flying flock, bristly branches, straying streams
take place of print and paper.

Twisting, rustling, back, forth, up and down:
silent unless provoked
art, poetry, movement are married.

Still lives need not apply.

Brief though it be
in the Theater & Gallery
lives true poetry in motion.

—Jessica Horn, Mono Lake Committee Information Center & Bookstore Manager

Join us for the opening of Poetry & Place: Tuolumne Meadows Broadside Project—poetry inspired art and design by Jim Cokas in the Mono Lake Committee Theater & Gallery, August 20, 2012 at 4:00pm.

28 limited letterpress broadsides printed for the Tuolumne Meadows Poetry Festival are on display at the Mono Lake Committee Information Center & Bookstore.

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I have a dog and a car on the brink of explosion. The combination of the two means more time spent rambling through sagebrush and walking interwoven dirt roads on the east side of Highway 395 … on foot.

Max-dog had never seen Rush Creek, which is a travesty for a Mono Lake Committee dog. We found ourselves yet again rambling via dirt road; exploring side roads and slowly making our way to the line of green willows that mark Rush Creek’s path. It took several hours to find the best swimming hole. We came upon several, but decided to keep going in search for the best. Along the way we saw (more…)

I am constantly amazed by the variety of enthusiastic Mono Lake supporters that frequent our store. Some bound up the steps, excited to see that the phalaropes have arrived and are swimming around at South Tufa. Others stop abruptly in the doorway, inhale deeply, and exclaim, “I’ve missed the smell of this store!” Of course, there is always the visitor who silently peruses the bookshelves for the latest Dave Carle novel. In my three summers in the store, I would say in general, our visitors make me smile.

Last Thursday was no exception.

A rather soft-spoken young boy walked up, and as I leaned over the counter to talk to him, I noticed he was carrying a violin case. (more…)

Devils Postpile. Photo courtesy of the National Park Service.

After last November’s significant wind storm, now appropriately called “The Devils Windstorm,” caused considerable damage to the Devils Postpile/Reds Meadow area, the sites are now open for the season.

The Reds Meadow shuttle service is running, and the Devils Postpile and Reds Meadow campgrounds are open. Check here for updates on other Forest Service campground openings.

The wind event occurred November 30 through December 1, 2011. Wind came from the northeast, reaching the valley at (more…)

As you travel to the Eastern Sierra for the Fourth of July holiday this year, this handy traffic tool can show you the best times to avoid the masses while driving through Yosemite National Park.

As always, drive safely during your visit—watch for other visitors and wildlife along the road. When you get through Yosemite to the town of Lee Vining, stop in at the Mono Lake Committee Information Center & Bookstore so we can help you make the most of your visit. We look forward to seeing you this week!

This year’s Andrea Lawrence Award Dinner had a slightly different feel from last year’s, despite being in the same location (Mammoth Mountain’s Parallax Restaurant dining room) and honoring the same remarkable woman. Perhaps it was the warm spring evening that made the gondola ride to the top of the mountain a little bit more pleasant. Or maybe it was the relaxed laughter of Andrea’s family and friends as they shared happy memories of her constant determination and resolution.

Andrea Lawrence's family at the award dinner.

Regardless, the setting was perfect for recognizing not only Andrea Lawrence, but also the Bodie Foundation for its dedication (more…)

The Mono Lake Committee Information Center & Bookstore remains open through the construction out front, and we appreciate everyone following signs to the back entrance. Stop by and check out the progress—it is coming along….

The Information Center & Bookstore is open from 9:00am to 5:00pm, seven days a week. However, this Wednesday, May 9, it will open at 10:00am so the entire Mono Lake Committee staff can tour the Lee Vining rockfall area. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

The Mono Lake Committee Information Center & Bookstore is open during construction.

Check The Mono-logue for construction updates and the remodel cam to see what’s happening!

Starting Tuesday, March 27, the Mono Lake Committee Information Center & Bookstore storefront will begin to look quite different. The next phase of the outdoor remodel includes removing picnic tables, planters, and signs in order to tear up asphalt and prepare the storefront for some exciting new additions!

By mid-summer, we hope to have: an expanded retail space in the form of a patio, a wheelchair lift, amphitheater (more…)