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Inyo National Forest
California
A flock of phalaropes taking flight against the rising sun. An ancient Bristlecone waving a gnarled arm into the winter sky. A black storm dumping icy droplets on the Palisade Glacier. If you want wilderness amidst 14,000-foot peaks, birding at the endangered sanctuary of Mono Lake, study of the oldest life high in the White Mountains, wild trout running in mountain and desert streams, you will find it, all within an hour of the Mammoth Lakes-Bishop area at Inyo National Forest.
Inyo extends 165 miles along the California and Nevada border. In all, it's a huge 2 million acres. It covers the transition zone between the eastern, dry side of the Sierra Nevada and the western edge of the Great Basin. It is set with pristine lakes, fragile meadows, winding streams, rugged peaks, sagebrush expanses. Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the continental United States, is its crowning landmark.
This is John Muir country. In fact, one of the most spectacular wildernesses in the forest is named after him. The John Muir Wilderness is a region of snow-capped mountains and alpine lakes. It's brother wilderness, the Ansel Adams, is set in the rugged high country east of the Sierra crest. The North Fork, Middle Fork and lower South Fork San Joaquin River rampage through deep granite-walled gorges amidst spectacular alpine scenery.
Inyo is one of California's most popular national forests. Justly so: Go see for yourself, for all its fame, there's still plenty of wide open space.
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