Lone Pine, California on US Route 395 is a little over 3 hours north of Los Angeles and where the big wall of the Sierras starts to take shape. The tiny old mining supply town sits between the highest and lowest points in the contiguous United States. The top of Mt. Whitney, west of Lone Pine in Sequoia National Park rises to 14.497 feet. Just 97 miles to the east of Lone Pine at Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park is the lowest point in the United States at −282 feet below sea level. Lone Pine and the surrounding areas are great places to witness the surrounding landscapes transform over the seasons from glacier packed peeks to wildflowers meadows. Hot or cold this is a region to stop and spend a few minutes, hours or a day or two.
First stop at one or both Visitor’s Centers. The Eastern Sierra Visitor’s Center is run by the Forest Service and houses interpretative displays, a bookstore and a native plant garden. The air conditioning is a welcome relief on a hot day and from the wind on a cold. This is also where permits are issued for climbing Mt. Whitney, backpacking, and fishing. The other place to gather information is the Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce. Here you can find maps for self-guided tours and learn about the region's history of movie making, neon signs and the nearby site of Manzanar. They also offer suggestions for nearby town of Independence. During the 1870’s Lone Pine was an active supply town providing goods for the local mines, including the large mine of Cerro Gordo. Take a walk around town will see many Old West details.
Owens Dry Lake just 2 miles south of Lone Pine. As you look around you will notice a white landscape. Today this is one of the worlds’ s largest deposits of sodium silicates and it is the largest single source of dust pollution in the United States. Now imagine during the mining days Owen Lake held significant water with steamships delivering supplies. In the early 1900’s much of the the water was diverted to the Los Angeles aqueduct and this landscape highlights the damage. Water is currently being reintroduced to the lake and it will be many years before it returns.
All around Lone Pine are the unique slotted bulbous Alabama Hills. The hills are beautiful to visit late in the day when the color brightens, and unique forms are pronounced by the shadows in between the rocks. If you are interested in the Western film genre or are conflicted about Hollywood's misrepresentation of native peoples this is where where many Western movies were stage. The Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce offers a self-guided tour map of movie locations. For more avid Western film fans there is the Museum of Western Film History. The original murals are being painstakingly restored although I prefer the faded distressed version that have endured the extremes of the continually transforming climate.
It is easy to forget that Mt. Whitney is in Sequoia National Park since typically people enter that park by car from the west and not from the more strenuous route by foot and a steep climb from Lone Pine in the east. However, it is possible to hike the High Sierra Trail from Mt. Whitney across the incredible back country of Sequoia NP to the Western entrance. Whitney Portal is the trail from Lone Pine to the top Whitney which is a bucket list trail for many hikers who are lucky to secure a permit from the lottery. This is also the beginning of the John Muir trail, which ends in Yosemite Valley. On one of our through hikes on the John Muir Trail we experienced just how incredible it is to be on top of Whitney which feels like the top of the world. We claim this to be one of the most interesting parts of the Pacific Coast Trail even though it has much competition with so many 14ers along the way. To experience some of Whitney without climbing drive the end of the road and experience the views, take a short hike to a waterfall and fish.
There are also many other less strenuous backpacking trips that launch out of Lone Pine. Cottonwood Lakes is our favorite. A scenic 21-mile drive to 9,700 feet to Horseshoe Meadow will have your ears pop from the pressure and bring you to campgrounds and a pack station. The trailhead to the Cottonwood Lakes is here. It a relatively easy backpacking trip that will bring you to lakes filled with golden trout, marmots peaking out of rocks and wildflowers in most of the year.
If easy car camping is what you are looking there is the Lone Pine Creek Canyon close to town. It has shade, a flowing stream with rainbow trout fishing during the season.
Although it is emotional for many people, a visit to Manzanar Relocation Site offers a glimpse at understanding a terrible mistake in our nation’s history. On hot and cold days, you can feel the pain of the harsh conditions that many Japanese Americans experienced. To think that many people including children were forced to spend years of their life in this camp is brutal. They offer free ranger led programs. The Blue Star Memorial Highway that leads there is a tribute to the Armed Forces.
If driving over to Death Valley from Lone Pine, be sure to stop the Charcoal Kilns so see the rock kilns where lumber was burned to supply charcoal to the surrounding mines. Stop at Telescope Peak in Death Valley the highest point in the Panamint Range. Telescope Peak is one of the greatest vertical rises above local terrain of any mountain in the contiguous United States starting from the floor of Death Valley it rises 11,331 feet to the crest of the mountain from the lowest point in the park. Rare wildflowers abound.
If just stopping in Lone Pine for a place to rest or picnic of for stretching and playing visit Lone Pine Park on Main Street. Sit by the stream and enjoy the simple but wonderful playground. For a bit more water visit the freshwater springs, Owens Lake ponds or Diaz Lake. They are also places for birds to stop too. Another favorite thing to do day or night walk around and view the classic signs.
