This unbelievably eerie place is right on Rt 395 along the eastern edge of California. It's all 'normal' at the visitor center until you realize you haven't seen water this blue outside the Caribbean. After parking the car at the South Tufa Area and walking a short way on a boardwalk you start to feel like you're leaving Earth behind and standing on an alien planet.
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| Hm, did I turn off the water at the inn or not? |
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| Hurry up already, there are sticky bits on these shrubs! |
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| South tufa grove trail |
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| 'Pirate ship' formation at Mono Lake |
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| More tufa towers with Sierras in background |
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| So alien! |
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| Mono Lake tufa towers |
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| Tell me this doesn't look like a scene from Star Trek! |
OK, I took this right from the Mono Lake website to explain what tufa is: Tufa is essentially common limestone. What is uncommon about
this limestone is the way it forms. Typically, underwater
springs rich in calcium mix with lake water rich in carbonates. As the calcium comes in contact
with carbonates in the lake, a chemical reaction occurs
resulting in calcium carbonate--limestone. The calcium
carbonate precipitates (settles out of solution as a solid)
around the spring, and over the course of decades to centuries,
a tufa tower will grow. Tufa towers grow exclusively
underwater, and some grow to heights of over 30 feet. The
reason visitors see so much tufa around Mono Lake today is
because the lake level fell dramatically after water diversions began in 1941.
Next up - Virginia City, home of the Ponderosa!
White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032
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