Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

Surprises revealed from below Ellery Lake

Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

If you’re in the Mono Lake area in the next few days, it’s worth your time to make a visit to Ellery Lake, up on Tioga Pass. The lake has been drawn down to a very low level because Southern California Edison is conducting maintenance on the hydropower intake structure. The result? Some lakebed surprises.The whole western end of the lake is now a mudflat, bisected by Lee Vining Creek. The panorama below is not something you usually see at the site (click the image for a larger view).

2009-09-13 - Ellery Lake low panorama_s

But even more captivating is an old section of the pre-1924 Tioga Road. Usually it’s under the lake, but for the next few days it’s enjoying the sunshine. And even more interesting than the rockwork and old roadbed? The old log bridge that goes with them–still intact, with the creek now, once again, flowing beneath it.

An old bridge over Lee Vining Creek normally below the waters of Ellery Lake
An old bridge over Lee Vining Creek normally below the waters of Ellery Lake. Photos by Geoff McQuilkin.

One comment