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It has been exactly 3 months since our return of Jack’s Journey USA and mommy and I were getting antsy for another adventure! We have been having a great summer of hanging out with our friends at Fiesta Island and SUPing but we are ready for hiking season. Since the weather in San Diego doesn’t seem to be getting the memo that summer is over, we headed to the mountains for some cool weather and camping!
We weren’t exactly sure where we wanted to go. We thought about Big Bear and Sedona but remembered that Mammoth is beautiful in October with the changing colors. So on Wednesday morning, we headed in that direction!
With no traffic to speak of, we arrived in Lone Pine, CA around 3 p.m. and wondered what the road to Mt. Whitney Portal was all about. We stopped in the Lone Pine Visitor Center to inquire since we had never ventured on it and it was mighty cloudy! The nice lady told us that it was 13 miles long and that there was camping on it. Plus, there was a free camp area called Alabama Hills. She also said that is may snow! That is all it took for mommy to want to try out a new adventure!
So we headed up Whitney Portal Road. It seemed like it took forever to end but the drive was really pretty and interesting withe the rock ledges ahead of us and the views of the valley below. It was exciting when we got to the end to see the Mt Whitney Trailhead sign. I am a little worried because mommy does some crazy stuff sometimes. She already took me up the 2nd highest peak in the lower 48 states, Mt Elbert, I just hoped that we are not going to the top of the highest one, Mt Whitney!
I did see my favorite thing in the whole wide world–WATER!! I saw a little pond, a river and a waterfall. I thought that I was in heaven! Mommy knows how much I love water so we ventured over to the waterfall and then mommy being who she is, we hiked to the top of it!
It was a short but pretty hike. Mommy didn’t allow me to go in the water at the top but she said that I could get my feet wet at the bottom. It was pretty cold but I didn’t care!
After exploring the Portal area, we checked out the campground. It was really cool!! The campsites were close to the river and the foliage age surrounding the area was yellow! We decided to stay the night and hike in the area the next morning. Mommy scouted the campground and found us a sweet spot in site #1!
It poured down rain at night but we were nice and cozy in Spirit. When the rain let up a little the next morning we ventured through the park. There was a road with cabins on it so we went and checked that out too. Mommy got cell coverage at the end of the road with a nice view so that was her “office” for the next few days. We like to post photos on our Leash Your Fitness Facebook page to show our friends what we are up to!
Mommy was kind of glad that it was raining because one of the reasons we came on this outing is that she is writing a book! It is going to be titled “Jack’s Journey USA” and be all about our cross country road trip. Mommy has a hard time sitting still in front of a computer for very long so the rain helped. Plus, I got to rest in between adventures!
At 11 a.m., we were both ready for another adventure so we ventured off up the trail to “Meyson Lake”. We were told that it was 5 miles so mommy assumed it was 5 miles round trip. We hiked UP 4 miles with no lake in sight. It was a cool hike and it was so fun to watch the fog roll in up the canyon.
We got to hike on the John Muir Trail…
We saw some cool trees…..
We could see a water fall but no lake, so at the 4 mile mark, we turned around. It was ok because it was a really fun hike and we were just happy to be out hiking and together.
The next day, it was raining again so mommy got a lot done on her book. The rain slowed down again at 11 a.m. so once again, we ventured out on another hike. This time we got to go on the Mt Whitney Trail!!
It was a 1 mile hike up the river trail from our camp to the trail head. We met all kinds of very cool people on the Mt Whitney hike. Some of the people had really big packs on their backs. Mommy said that they were hiking all of the way to the top. Those big packs didn’t look like too much fun! We kept seeing one older couple, they were grandparents out enjoying the hike. Mommy loves it when she sees kids and older people on the trails. Hiking is good for all ages!
We hiked 4.5 miles to the Lone Pine Lake.
I went in for a few minutes but between the rain and cold, so believe it or not, I wasn’t in the mood to swim.
The view from the other side of the lake was really cool! We could see where we were camping, the hikers coming up the trail and the valley below.
It started to rain and was getting cold so we didn’t stay long. We headed back down the trail and over the little log bridge.
The foliage was really pretty along the hike.
One thing that you should know about the hikes here, they are all UP and then all DOWN so we hope that your knees are ready for them if you visit this area. From the campground to Lone Pine Lake, we climbed from 8,000′ to 9,800′ so it is a workout!
It was a great few days in the Whitney Portal area but mommy wanted some new scenery. We headed back down the mountain to the Alabama Hills area. It was 9 miles down the mountain to Movie Road where we turned left, so it wasn’t raining there and it was actually sunny and nice. Mommy put her shorts back on once we found the perfect campsite.
The stars were incredible that night. Mommy felt like she could reach up and touch the Big Dipper. We wish we could share a photo with you how pretty they were! Just another reason you should go visit Alabama Hills with your dog!
The next day was a perfect day to take a walk. This time it was pretty flat. We walked up to the Arch Loop Trailhead. It was really cool. Mommy and I climbed some rocks and of course she took tons of photos.
We got to see some rock climbers and some old movie spots. There has been a lot of movies filmed in this area. Maybe that is why it is called “Movie Road”.
We went back to the RV and relaxed for a bit while mommy read her book. This has been a really good weekend for relaxing in between our hikes.
After we relaxed for a bit, we went on another walk. It was so cool to see how the dirt roads went everywhere and campers were camped in between rocks and just parked all over the place! Since it is BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land, the camping is FREE and you can just camp anywhere that you want!
Mommy climbed really high on one of the rocks so that she could get an aerial photo for you to see!
There were so many different kinds of rock formations. You and your dog would love it there!
We got up really early and headed home the next morning. It was a really fun time and we would highly recommend you go check out the area. Pack some food and enjoy an inexpensive weekend with your pup!
Let us know if you have ever been to that area and your feedback. I am sure others would like to hear about your experience as well!
Thanks so much for reading! Until next time…..
