Nature of the Weird

We all know that some things in nature are weird, but the Eastern Sierras and Death Valley seem to be a study of nature’s mysteries.

Tufas of Mono Lake
After two weeks in Yosemite, we crossed Tioga Pass into Inyo National Forest. Soon we reached the ancient Mono Lake. Originally the lake was a sea. Today it's smaller, but retains its saltwater and has no outlet. Since most of the freshwater entering the lake evaporates, the water is 2 ½ times more salty than the ocean. Mono Lake is adorned with calcium-carbonate formations called tufas. These odd spires and knobs jut up as if they were formations on another planet. These tufas form when alkaline and spring water interact.


Devil’s Postpile
As we continued down Hwy 395 we came across signs for Devil’s Postpile. We decided to check out what could be so terrible as to name it after the Devil. The Postpile was aptly named. It appeared to be a lot of posts piled together vertically. These were all rock and seemed to be carved into hexagons. It was difficult to believe that these were natural. According to what we read, the formations were caused by volcanic activity. Lava cooled uniformly creating the Postpile.

Hollywood at Lone Pine
After spending some time in the ski community of Mammoth Lakes, we headed south to Lone Pine. There we found Hollywood. The small town has a Film History Museum and tours of rocks named after Gene Autry and Gary Cooper or filming locations of How the West Was Won and Rawhide. We followed Movie Road out to the Alabama Hills where wind, snow, and sand carved the red rocks into smooth shapes and formations. Our self-guided tour brochure pointed out such formations as Big Bertha, The Spooks, Batman, Rhino Feet, and Hands From Hades. We passed up these impressive spots to meet dozens of photographers at the formation I’ve named Photographer’s Orgasm Arch.

Death Valley: The Devil’s Playground
Just to remind ourselves of why we left Texas, we headed on to Death Valley. This Hell-hot desert includes lots of weird landscapes.

First we drove out past cacti that looked like Dr. Seuss’ version of trees with spiky Afros at the end of each limb. These trees are better known as Joshua Trees. Poor Joshua must have had eternal bad-hair days.

While driving down the roads, we noticed a eerie scene. Sand flowed across the roads like the ghosts of 19th century 49ers who were lost in Death Valley before they had a chance to make their fortunes in gold.


At Devil’s Golf Course we found salt crystals that wind and rain had lifted into sharp formations that most sane people avoid walking through let alone using as a golf course. Numerous holes in the ground would keep the golfer playing way past the 18 holes. Worse, the golfer would be hard pressed to advance the ball past these roughs and bunkers.

On we drove to the lowest elevation (282 feet below sea level) where we encountered a dry lake patterned with salt flats. These salt flats are again crystals, but this time they take on a honeycomb shape after continuous cycles of freezes, thaws, and evaporation.

Finally, we drove through mountains that were so colorful that it appeared as though someone had poured colored sand over them and let it flow down the sides.

We missed the most mysterious area of all. The Racetrack is where large rocks move, leaving tracks behind. No one has ever seen the rocks move, and no one has ever figured out how it happens. Weird!