Again with the uncertainty! The forecast kept changing every few hours for Inyo county. Cloudy? Mostly clear? Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms?
Risk it.
After about seven and a half hours of driving, I made it to Alabama Hills. It was crowded but most of the clouds seem to have dissipated. Every pullout was occupied, including the one I planned on staying at. After driving around in circles looking for a spot, I decided to just stay at a pullout next to the Arch Loop parking lot.
At 11pm, I saw the Milky Way rise but cars kept coming intermittently into the night. The high beams kept ruining my exposures, along with campfires and lanterns adding localized light pollution. I was almost about to give up and just go to sleep.
Finally, around 1:30am, tranquility ensued. The cars stopped coming. The music stopped. The partygoers went to bed. Stillness, at last. I managed to track for about another hour and a half, before a fast moving cumulus cloud came in from the north ending my session a bit early.
850 miles
No expectations.