孤松

头 孤松 to see a different side of California—one that is less connected to the Pacific Coast 和 more connected culturally 和 geographically to the interior American West.

This eastern side of California is where the Great Basin Desert begins, 和 孤松 is a small town in some very big country. With a population of barely 2,000 residents, 孤松 stretches along U.S. Highway 395 at the heart of the vast Owens Valley. 向东, the Inyo Mountains tower over the valley floor, while the Sierra Nevada rises in the west behind the jumbled boulder formations of the Alabama Hills.

As you roll into town, Highway 395 narrows, slows down, 和 becomes 孤松’s Main Street. There are Western-style buildings with awnings shading the sidewalk, while sporting goods stores, with leaping trout on their neon signs, hint at the sacred role that 钓鱼 plays in these parts. Known for its early trout season, 孤松 is a jumping-off point for 钓鱼 both in the Owens Valley 和 the Eastern Sierra, including the Golden Trout Wilderness.

The easiest access to the Sierra from 孤松 is at the 8,374-foot 惠特尼门户, about 13 miles west of town. Before heading into the high country, stop in for breakfast at the Alabama Hills Café & 西街面包店. 帖子圣., a down-home local spot that serves up a variety of filling grub, including biscuits-和-gravy 和 breakfast burritos.

The restaurant is aptly named for the nearby Alabama Hills, a surreal scatter of massive boulders 和 arches that has been a popular fil最小值g location since the silent movie era (classics such as Gunga喧嚣 和 How the West Was Won were shot here). Download or pick up the 孤松 Chamber of Commerce’s self-guided 旅游宣传册, then take a detour from 惠特尼门户 Road along Movie Road. (For more about 孤松’s moviemaking tradition, be sure to visit The Museum of Western Film History 在城里.)

The road climbs nearly 5,000 feet from 孤松 as it zigzags its way up the face of the Eastern Sierra before reaching 惠特尼门户, the gateway for hikers bound for the summit of 14,505-foot 惠特尼山, the highest point in the contiguous 美国. Outfitters like SWS Mountain Guides, Sierra Mountain Center, Southern Yosemite Mountain Guides, 和 many others can help safely guide you to the top on an organized trip.

Even if you’re not planning to summit Whitney, you can hike stretches of the 惠特尼门户 National Recreation Trail through a wooded canyon along 孤松 Creek. Before returning to town, grab lunch or breakfast at the 惠特尼门户 Store 和 catch a glimpse of 孤松 Creek Falls.