Courchevel Condominiums Mammoth Lakes

Today was our last adventure in the RV before driving it back to Vegas and handing the keys back, which will be quite sad. We headed to Mono Lake which is a huge lake to the east of Yosemite that is filled by underwater springs. The lake is 2.5 times saltier than the sea and about 100 times as alkaline, meaning there are no fish but plenty of other wildlife (here are two clips of the lake and trillions of flying ...

... kind of bubbles around rocks, and the water around it becomes thick and slimy like vegetable oil.

Anyway... enough “education”... let me tell you what we ate!! We made a fire and grilled pork chops to go with a salad. Yummy! We also managed to buy a corn on the cob. It was delicious, grilled on the open fire... perfect charred flavour.

We then climbed into the tent and settled for the night. It was getting very chilly (we ...

... It is incredible - we only managed a quick 15 min stop and then back on our way with the aircon up to full.

Next stop is the visitors centre and Emma got her Death Vally Junior Ranger badge there which was good. She had to do some quizzes and talk to the park rangers. We also paid the $20 fee to travel through the park,. We carried on from there did a stop at a Borax mine (old one) which is what they used to mine in ...

... on everything we bargained with the cabbie, he came down twenty dollars on the fare back to Lafayette. He didn't know with whom he was dealing. In the cab I made doctors appointments for Marty and I to be seen as soon as we could get showers and get into Walnut Creek Kaiser. Even though I have read in travel guidebooks about these things I didn't really follow their suggestions as well as I could. So I may be repeating things you probably have heard but having learned ...

... seafood. Being in Santa Barbara, however, and not mentioning its stunning beaches is probably like traveling to New York and not visiting the Empire State Building. Stretching along the Pacific coast, they truly beckon you to leave your troubles behind for days of blissful relaxation. One of my favorite things to do in Santa Barbara was simply gazing out at the sun glinting off the waves and the sails of boats dotting the water. Isn't it the best life ever?

... the time of year I was visitng the area, there no was water coming over the falls so I was a little bit disappointed.

By the time I got to Mammoth Lakes it was starting to get dark so I found a hotel and went to a nearby bar for some pizza and beer. I made a slight mistake ordering my first beer as they ended up bringing me a massive jug of beer and it cost me $16! By the time I had a couple more regular sized beers I was pretty full so I just went back to my hotel room.

... to have been able to do more horseback riding with her. Bear Valley Springs is a gated community with a golf course and other amenities, and lots of horse properties and trails. We also drove down to Jeff and Linda's house in Glen Ivy (near Corona) three times. Once, Jeff, Linda, Terry and I went just to relax for a weekend. Another time just Linda and I went so we could ...

... huge, gigantic and simply beautiful. We just walked the south rim and watched the light change on the canyon all day. If you ever get the chance and it even seems like a bit of a hassle, it's worth it, believe me! Next stop Death Valley - and it's exactly that, dead, hot and barren. However, there is something beautiful about the baroness of the place, the slat flats are mesmerizing, the dunes seem to start from nowhere and go on ...

After visiting with Jimmy and Lisa we drove to Aunt Pam and Uncle Deans in Rosemond. We had a great time with them touring around town and then to the Airbase. From there we drove to Sequoia National Park, Kings Canyon, Yosemite National Park and Mammoth Lakes. We spent the next two weeks camping and hiking and enjoying ourselves in the great California air. The entire camping trip was amazing and we even saw a wild bear. We were ...

... 14 results while Sally helps Sue peel some vegetables and came across this, so will add my two cents/two bits. I'm getting more used to driving in this country - it's a lot easier on the 2 lane roads; we also have the option of staying in one lane on the freeway and have everyone move around us. There is also a lot of single lane, no overtaking roads up here in the Sierras which make NZ roads quite wide in ...