Ms. Tele, what a story about the fellow who built the house out there!
We picked up
Geology of the Mono basin (Mono Lake Committee field guide series)
for six bucks at the Committee store in Lee Vining. I was surprised to learn an alternate reason for the formation of the Black Point fissures. It is a good general overview but does an excellent job. Easy to read in one sitting when you get hooked. All the granite is cooled magma chambers from the periods of volcanic eruptions that predated the rise of the Sierra and the stretching of the Great Basin.
We are glad you enjoy our stories, thanks!
ski3pin - a book of geology? Cool! I have tried to find more information on the geology of Granite Mountain but have not been successful. The granite is difficult to climb - lacking handholds, cracks, etc in the lower reaches. And it seems an anomaly in amongst the tuff and the obsidian. I am so curious (also curious about the geology of the Sweetwater Mountains - how does that stuff hold that angle of repose?) I am fascinated by geology but got my degree in Biology.
The man who originally built on that inholding in Sagehen Meadow died before the house was finished - somewhere between his truck, stuck in the snow on Hwy 120 and the house. My friend bought it from his estate. I've stayed there a few times. The quiet and the dark is stunning. And the sunrise comes very early. It is a documented Sagehen Lek. It is fun to watch the birds come in while sipping on a hot drink in the morning.
I saw what must have been Air Force One and Air Force Two fly over my campsite near Sawmill Meadow one evening. I had no idea until I spoke of it to other people - not a typical air route.
I love reading about your trips and would love to meet up with you some time - apparently you drive right by my house rather frequently. And I also ski on 3 pins (well, sometimes a cable)
