Wandering through Time and Place

Exploring the world with Curtis and Peggy Mekemson
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    • The Alabama Hills: A 100-Year Love Affair with Hollywood… The Highway 395 Series

      Posted at 8:40 pm by Curt Mekemson
      Jul 25th
      The Alabama Hills as seen from Lone Pine with Lone Pine Peak looming above.

      I’m back! While the three months of hanging out at our home and taking care of my brother may not seem like long, it felt like an eternity.  I have one more post to write on the experience but it is going to have to wait. It’s play time. While Peggy decided that she needed a kid/grandkid fix and headed east, I decided I needed a road trip. I loaded up Quivera the Van and took off down Highway 395 along the east side of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, one of America’s most scenic and interesting drives. 

      My journey started in Reno visiting the National Automobile Museum. Even if you don’t care a rat’s behind about old cars, I can pretty much guarantee Bill Harrah’s collection will awe you. (Rat’s behind? I’ve been reading Mark Twain’s “Roughing It” and have been inspired by his colorful choice of words.) From there, I headed south, enjoying the sheer grandeur of the mountains with side trips to Virginia City where Samuel Clemens assumed the name Mark Twain, the ghost town of Bodie, Mono Lake with its strange, other worldly tuff towers, a mountain of obsidian, the World War II Japanese internment camp of Manzanar, and finally the Alabama Hills next to Lone Pine and Mt. Whitney. 

      I stayed in summer-touristy but interesting towns, visited local museums, learned about water wars, and ate some great food. I’ll take you inside the ‘world famous’ Schat’s Bakery in Bishop where simply stepping through the door guarantees that you gain five pounds, and we will stop at the Copper Top, a hole in the wall front yard family bar-b-que in Big Pine that was named America’s best restaurant in 2014 by Yelp. Yep, its ribs and tri-tip are to die for. When the restaurant is closed, you can get the tri-tip from a vending machine.

      Originally, my goal was to head farther south to where Highway 395 intersects I-15 and ends. The road had originally gone all of the way to Mexico but had been done in by bulldozers and Southern California freeways. You can still follow the highway to Canada through remote country where there are fewer people and bulldozers. My primary objective had been to visit the Roy Rogers-Dale Evans museum in Victorville near the highway’s terminus. It wasn’t that I was so interested in Roy and Dale, I wanted to see Roy’s horse, Trigger. The singing cowboy had him stuffed. Visiting the horse had been on my agenda for a long, long time. Boy, was I out of date. Googling Trigger, I discovered that the museum had closed in 2003 and the horse had been moved to Branson, Missouri. (I’ve been to Branson; there are lots of strange things there.) Trigger never achieved the stardom in Missouri that he had out West, however. It could be that most of his fans from the 40s and 50s have ridden off into the sunset. Maybe if Dale had stuffed Roy…

      Along the way, I was going to make a side trip to the Maturango Museum in Ridgecrest with its focus on the petroglyphs of the Coso Range. That trip ended up on shaky ground, however. The 6.4 and 7.1 earthquakes near the town at the beginning of the month persuaded me that the museum could wait. I just read that there have been thousands of aftershocks since. That’s a whole lot of shaking going on.

      Today I will restart my blog— get back in the saddle, so to speak— with a drive through the Alabama Hills, which I think you will find unique and beautiful. I did. Having the Sierra Nevada and Inyo Mountains as backdrops doesn’t hurt. The set locators, directors, actors, script writers and film crews of the over 400 Hollywood movies made in the area starting in the 1920s obviously found the hills attractive. But I will get into the details of the movies in my next post when I will take you into the Lone Pine Film History Museum where Hopalong Cassidy and the Lone Ranger rub elbows with the likes of John Wayne, Errol Flynn, Spencer Tracy, Ann Francis and Spock, not to mention Trigger, Silver, Rin Tin Tin and Buttermilk. Buttermilk!? Hmmm. Okay, you trivia fans, who was Buttermilk?

      I first thought that the Alabama Hills had been named by some homesick prospector from the East. That happened a lot in the 1850s, 60s and 70s. Heck, the lonely miners were even known to name mountain lakes after their favorite prostitutes. What I learned, however, was that Southern sympathizers named the hills after the CSS Alabama, a Confederate War ship that had caused the Union considerable strife by taking some 66 merchant ships valued at over six million dollars during its brief two-year career. Its success was finally ended when the Union sloop of war, the Kearsarge, caught up with the ship at Cherbourg, France and sank her. Other prospectors in the Lone Pine area who were sympathetic with the North, named their mine the Kearsarge. The name lives on in the Kearsarge Pass along the John Muir Trail.

      A painting of the CSS Alabama.
      My nephew Jay and I on Kearsarge Pass. Even at 16, he was towering over me. You may recall that Jay, now in his 30s, backpacked a hundred miles with me last year when I was hiking down the PCT.

      But enough on background. Let’s rock!

      Large, colorful rocks with a dramatic backdrop provided by mountains are what make the Alabama Hills special.
      Another favorite of mine.
      Quite the jumble here. Can you spot the crow resting on the far right rock?
      I captured a fun shot of it taking off. I had our Canon EOS Rebel along this time as well as my Canon Power Shot. I was able to take decent telephotos!
      Can’t you just see a stagecoach going full speed along this road chased by a group of desperadoes?
      And then racing across this valley. Or maybe it was the Lone Ranger with his faithful companion Tonto chasing the band of desperadoes. Hi-yo Silver! Get-em-up Scout!
      This sign is located at the beginning of Movie Flats.
      The surrounding mountains add drama to the Alabama Hills. These are the Inyo Mountains to the east.
      The Sierras are to the west. This photo features Mt. Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous United State. The dark trees in the foreground are Whitney Portal, the starting point for climbing the mountain from the east. I’ve always started from the west side of the mountain. The trail to the top runs along the ridge line. There is one place only a few feet across with a thousand foot drop on each side. Some fun on a windy day!
      A different perspective on the Sierras.
      And another on the Inyo Mountains.
      Getting back to individual rocks, this one was impressive.
      So I rendered it in black and white, just like you would see in the dozens of cowboy movies dating all the way back to the silent film era.
      Here are a few more interesting rocks.
      The white containers protect plants.
      I conclude as I started, with a photo of the Alabama Hills from Lone Pine. This time I took the photo in the evening and had Mt. Whitney as a backdrop.

      NEXT POST: A visit to the Lone Pine Film History Museum.

      Posted in On the Road US | Tagged Highway 395, Hollywood movies made in the Alabama Hills, Lone Pine California, Mt. Whitney, the Alabama Hills, the Inyo Mountains and the Alabama Hills, The Sierra Nevadas and the Alabama Hills
    • Mt. Whitney: 14,505 feet— Or Is that 14,496.811 Feet… But Who’s Counting?

      Posted at 5:00 pm by Curt Mekemson
      Jul 15th

      Highway 395 is one of America's most scenic drives. This view looking up at Mt. Whitney, center top, is one of the reasons why.

      Highway 395 is one of America’s most scenic drives. This view looking up at Mt. Whitney, center top, is one of the reasons why.

      Highway 395, with its panoramic views of the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains, is one of the most scenic highways in the United States. I will admit to a degree of prejudice, however. John Muir called the High Sierras the Range of Light. I think of them as ‘home.’ I have backpacked up and down the range numerous times. The mountains call to me in a way that no city or town does.

      Driving up California's Highway 395 provides and ever changing perspective of the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains.

      Driving up California’s Highway 395 provides an ever-changing perspective of the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains.

      Another view of the Sierra Nevada Mountains along highway 395.

      Another view of the Sierra Nevada Mountains along highway 395. This seems to fit Muir’s Range of Light description. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

      I celebrated my 60th birthday by backpacking over 300 miles down the spine of the Sierras, I started at Squaw Valley, which is north-west of Lake Tahoe, and ended by climbing up Mt. Whitney. It was my sixth trip up Whitney. I figured it would be a fitting way to kick off my sixth decade.

      View of Mt. Whitney from the west including Curtis Mekemson.

      Wrapping up five weeks of backpacking, my final climb looms in the distance. The curved mountain just to the right of my head is Whitney. I will be sitting on top the next day. The Sierras are fault block mountains, climbing gradually on their western slope and dropping off rapidly in the east. (Photo by Jay Dallen.)

      Curtis Mekemson sitting on top of Mt. Whitney.

      And here I am on top, complete with a large grin. The Owens Valley and Highway 395 lie some 10,000 feet below. (Photo by Jay Dallen.)

      Looking north form Mt. Whitney up the crest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains that I had just hiked through following the Pacific Crest and John Muir Trails.

      Looking north from Mt. Whitney up the crest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains where I had just backpacked following the Pacific Crest and John Muir Trails.

      View looking down from the top of Mt. Whitney. Photo by Curtis Mekemson.

      Another view from the top of Mt. Whitney.

      The mountain’s claim to fame is being the highest mountain in the contiguous United States. It stands at 14,505 feet (4,421 meters). My friends in Alaska are quick to point out that Mt. McKinley/Denali is 20,322 feet. Mt. Shasta, where I began this particular series, is 14, 180 feet. And finally, for comparison, Mt. Everest, the world’s highest mountain, tops out at 29,029 feet (8,848 meters).

      Mt. Shasta is one of the world's most beautiful mountains. Driving up I-5 through Northern California on a clear day presents this view.

      Mt. Shasta.

      Once the snow has melted, climbing Whitney does not require any technical climbing skills. A good trail leads to the top. According to the plaque on top, it is the highest trail in the United States. It was started in 1928 and completed in 1930. The plaque used to (and still may) claim that the mountain is 14, 496.811 feet high, which would seem pretty darn accurate, especially given the .811 feet. Apparently modern measuring techniques have added a few feet. Not that it matters, unless you happen to be the person climbing those last nine feet.

      Getting to the top requires stamina, lots of it. The eastern route up the mountain starts at Whitney Portal and climbs 6000 feet. That’s a bunch of up, and the higher you climb, the thinner the air becomes. Most people slow way down near the top as their bodies fight to get enough oxygen.

      I’ve always started from the west since I am either ending or in the middle of a backpack trip. There are two advantages. Most important, I’ve already spent several days hiking at higher elevations. My body has both toughened up and adjusted to thinner air. Second, by starting at Guitar Lake, the climb is only 4,000 feet. Still that’s 4000 feet up and 6,000 feet down on a 15-mile day carrying a 40-pound pack— hardly a walk in the park. (Grin)

      The reason for climbing the mountain, beyond being able to say you have, is the spectacular scenery. I wouldn’t recommend the trip for anyone with acrophobia (fear of heights), however, given that all of the views involve looking down several thousand feet.

      Jay Dallen standing on the edge of Mt. Whitney.

      My nephew, Jay Dallen, stands on the edge of a thousand foot precipice and looks down. He obviously does not suffer from acrophobia. Different people joined me on each of my five-week segments. Jay was 16 at the time.

      The Alabama Hills, featured in the photo below, are located just outside of Lone Pine at the base of Mt. Whitney. Over 300 movies, mainly Westerns, have been filmed in the area. Almost every major Hollywood cowboy from the 1920s up to the present have made movies there. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

      A final view of Mt. Whitney. This one features the Alabama Hills, the site of many early movies featuring the likes of Hop-a-long Cassidy and the Lone Ranger.

      A final view of Mt. Whitney. This one features the Alabama Hills, the site of many Western movies featuring everyone from Tom Mix, Hop-along Cassidy and Roy Rogers to John Wayne and Johnny Depp. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

      Posted in On the Road US, Outdoor Adventures | Tagged adventure travel, Alabama Hills, California's Highway 395, Lone Pine, Mt. Whitney, Nature, photography, travel
    • Five Reasons to Travel… Wandering Through Time and Place

      Posted at 10:00 am by Curt Mekemson
      Apr 1st

      A whole world waits for us outside our door... including this waterfall in Milford Sound, New Zealand.

      A whole world waits for us outside our door… including this waterfall in Milford Sound, New Zealand.

      “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”  Mark Twain

      “Not all those who wander are lost.”  J. R. Tolkien

      I love wandering, whether it is out my back door or across the world. And, I enjoy sharing my adventures; it is one of the reasons I write this blog. But there’s another: I believe travel enriches our lives. I hope in some small way to encourage those who read my blogs to “explore, dream and discover…”

      Maneuvering a 60 foot long Narrow Boat through the Trent and Mersey Canal in England two summers ago was a very different but equally rewarding experience.

      Wandering can take many forms. Two summers ago Peggy and I along with Peggy’s sister Jane and husband Jim spent a week maneuvering a 60 foot long Narrow Boat through the Trent and Mersey Canal in England. It was challenging at first, but we quickly adjusted to the beauty and peace of the trip, not to mention the great English pubs.

      Here are my top five reasons for travel:

      1. Life is an adventure. There is a big world out there to explore. Seeing it on TV or in the movies is one thing. Getting out and experiencing it is totally different. You can watch a TV special about a person walking down a jungle trail and seeing a python in a tree, or, you can walk down a jungle trail and see the python yourself. The first experience you will forget tomorrow; the second you will remember for a lifetime.

       “Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.”  Helen Keller

      “We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.”  Jawaharlal Nehru

      “Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.” Pat Conroy

      There are millions of beautiful photos of the Greek Island of Santorini, but none can match going there.

      Travel can be to exotic locations like Santorini…

      One doesn't have to travel far. We all have places nearby where we can escape to for a day or a week. This is on the Oregon Coast three hours away from my home.

      Or close to home. We all have places nearby where we can escape to for a day or a week. This is on the Oregon Coast three hours away from where I live.

      2. We all need to escape on occasion. Life can be hectic. We get lost in our day-to-day existence. Traveling breaks the chain. It recharges our batteries. Even planning a trip eases the tedium by giving us something to dream about.

      “One of the gladdest moments of human life is the departure upon a distant journey into unknown lands. Shaking off with one mighty effort the fetters of habit, the leaden weight of routine, the cloak of many cares and the slavery of home, man feels once more happy.”  Richard Burton

      As a 22-year old, I spent two years living in West Africa as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Living in and learning about another culture expands our view of the world.

      As a 22-year old, I spent two years in West Africa as a Peace Corps Volunteer. The experience had a significant impact on my life and taught me to appreciate what other cultures have to offer. Here I am admiring a Kpelle bridge.

      Learning about other cultures teaches us more about our own. The Peace Corps experience helped me understand that even my father had a slightly different culture than I did. He is in his 80s in this photo.

      Learning about other cultures helped me understand my own better. It even provided me with new insights about my father, Herb Mekemson. This photo was taken of him in his 80s. (I believe it was taken by my niece, Marian Heintz, who now works as a master potter in Tennessee.)

      3. Travel challenges and changes our understanding of the world. Not only do we learn about other places and other cultures, we learn more about our own. When I returned from serving for two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Africa, I realized that even my father had a slightly different culture than mine. He had been raised in a different time, had different experiences, and even had different beliefs. There was much I could learn from him, just as I did from the Kpelle people of Liberia.

      “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”  Mark Twain

      “The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”  St. Augustine

       “The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.”  G.K. Chesterton

      For my 60th Birthday, I chose to backpack 360 miles from Lake Tahoe to Mt. Whitney in California. Whitney is behind me in the photo.

      To celebrate my 60th Birthday, I chose to backpack 360 miles from Lake Tahoe to Mt. Whitney in California. Whitney is behind me in the photo. People who had been backpacking with me for over 30 years joined me along the route.

      The perspective from the top of the 14,505 foot (4,421 meters) Mt. Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous United States. Over the years I have taken many people to the top of this magnificent mountain including my son, Tony, and my nephew Jay, who was 16 at the time.

      The perspective from the top of the 14,505 foot (4,421 meters) Mt. Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous United States. I have taken many people to the top of this magnificent mountain including my wife, Peggy, son, Tony, and my nephew Jay, who was 16 at the time.

      4. Travel can also change how we view ourselves and how we perceive the world around us. For 20 years of my life, I took people on hundred mile backpack trips. Few of these people had ever backpacked 100 miles and some had never backpacked at all. The sheer physical challenge of hiking up and over mountains for nine days while dealing with weather, insects and wildlife created an adventure they would never forget. For many, it was a life-altering event. It changed their perspective of who they were and what they could accomplish. Any journey can change how you view yourself and the world… but you have to be open to learn from the experience.

      “All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.” Martin Buber

      “One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.”  Henry Miller

      “To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.”  Bill Bryson

      A towering Redwood on the north coast of California.

      A towering Redwood on the north coast of California.

      A towering cathedral in Florence Italy.

      A towering cathedral in Florence, Italy.

      5. Great beauty exists in the world. Whether it is a towering redwood on the northern coast of California or a towering cathedral in Florence, beauty is found wherever you wander. It can be as small as a raindrop on a flower, or as large as a waterfall cascading into Milford Sound, New Zealand. One doesn’t have to travel thousands of miles to find this beauty, however. It waits outside your door. Be like Bilbo Baggins: grab your pack and go charging after Gandalf. Treasures beyond your imagination await you.

      “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.”  Andre Gide

      “Without new experiences, something inside of us sleeps. The sleeper must awaken.”  Frank Herbert

      “Two roads diverged in a wood and I took the one less traveled by.” Robert Frost

      There are always delightful surprises waiting for you when you wander. I took this photo of Four Q lakes in the Desolation Wilderness near Lake Tahoe for its reflection. Only after the photo was processed did I see the mask.

      There are always delightful surprises waiting for us when we wander. I took this photo of Four Q Lakes in the Desolation Wilderness near Lake Tahoe for its reflection. Only after the photo was processed did I see the mask.

      I have spent 70 years traveling the road “less travelled by.” And I shall continue. No regrets.

      “Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life.” Jack Kerouac

      Posted in Wandering The World | Tagged five reasons to travel, Herb Mekemson, Mt. Whitney, wandering through time and place
    • Bush Devil Ate Sam

      The Bush Devil Ate Sam is an important record and a serious story, yet told easily, and with delightful humor. This is one of the most satisfying books I have ever read, because it entertained me thoroughly AND made me feel better informed. —Hilary Custance Green: British Author... Click on the image to learn more about my book, the Bush Devil Ate Sam, and find out where it can be ordered.

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