After spending the day in the water at Lake Tahoe with some of my old time buddies from Santa Cruz, I convinced them to caravan over to Mono Lake for the night. It was my first time driving on the 395; it’s always exhilarating to be on a new road, not knowing what’s around the next hill. Passing by Topaz Lake and seeing the Alpenglow on the distant mountain range was spectacular.

Around 10:00pm and driving a short mile on a washboard dirt road, we found a secluded pull out to spend the night. It was incredible stillness and the darkest sky I have seen yet. The arc of the Milky Way was prominent, and so quiet I could hear the motor of the star tracker. I could hear the water on Mono Lake, even being a good distance away, and some birds chirping at midnight. While my friends fell fast asleep, I sat outside until 3:30am waiting for the moon rise. At one point I thought amber headlights were coming in our direction, but it turned out to be the moon rising. It illuminated the landscape. When I finally got my foreground shots, which looked much better than artificially light painted, I closed the trunk of my van and wrapped myself in two blankets. I was at the point of uncontrolled shivering as the temperature dropped to a chilly 37F. It took an hour to warm up, my breath frozen and my face was numb the entire night.

I woke up to the harsh sun at 6am, traversed through the sage brush to the shoreline, photographing the Tufas. I returned to a hearty breakfast prepared by my friends: pancakes, eggs, and bacon. We made continental breakfast in the middle of the desert. I felt reinvigorated, not a hint of sleepiness, and full of excitement. I was waiting all week to be here.

700 miles
6 batteries used
3.5 hours of sleep
2 wet wetsuits

Thanks for the weekend.