CALIFORNIA

Inyo County is one of my favorite California Counties to visit. But probably not too many Americans, even Californians, know about this county. Inyo County is in the eastern part of the Sierra. This part of California is less known and less visited. Maybe, it is because when people think of desert, the picture they have in mind is simply a barren land.

Mesquite Sand Dunes, Death Valley National Park, Inyo County, CA

But for those who have experienced Inyo, they know this is a haven for those who seek peacefulness and nature’s beauty. And this is geologists’ natural disneyland. It is the land of the extremes, the land of the contrasts.

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, Inyo County, CA

“Inyo” comes from an Indian word which means “resting place of the Great Spirit.”

Father Crowley Point, Death Valley National Park, Inyo County 

Indeed, everytime we visit Inyo county, our spirits would make wonderful rest in many of Inyo’s natural wonders.

North Lake, Bishop Creek Canyon @ Late Fall

North Lake, Bishop Creek Canyon @ Early Fall

Inyo County is a land of magnificent diversity and contrasting diverse geography. Its lowest point, Badwater at Death Valley National Park, is the lowest point in North America and in the Western Hemisphere.

Amazing Salt Deposits @ Badwater, Death Valley National Park

Badwater, 282 ft below sea level, the lowest point in Northern America

Inyo’s highest peak is Mt. Whitney, which  is the highest point in contiguous US.

Mt. Whitney, the highest peak in contiguous US (does not include Alaska) at 14, 492 ft

One of nature’s delightful twists, the highest point in contiguous US and the lowest point in North America and in the Western Hemisphere are situated close to each other, in Inyo County. Aside from these two extremes, Inyo County also has the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, which grows the world’s most ancient living tree, Methuselah, at 4777 years old (no picture of Methuselah as I have not been to Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest yet). It exceeds the age of oldest Giant Sequoia by 1500 years. Another twist of nature, the oldest living tree lives in a desert mountain, with the most brutal environment. What does nature teach us here? That the oldest inhabitant of this planet is not the one who lives in the most pleasant environment, but is the one who is able to withstand all the challenges and all the harsh tests of time. 

” The County offers a full spectrum of adventure and involvement from the absolute stillness and peace of the desert,

Black Volcanic Sand near Ubehebe Crater, Death Valley 

through the meadows blanketed with wildflowers, over the rushing mountain streams of the forest,

@ Big Pine Canyon Creek, Inyo County

to the wind whipped granite peaks. 

Lake Sabrina, Bishop Creek Canyon, Inyo County

There is nowhere one can turn without seeing Natures striking beauty. 

Desert’s Color Palette @ Golden Canyon, Death Valley 

One can experience this unforgettable grandeur from the comfort of one’s car, on foot or on horseback.”  - http://www.countyofinyo.org/

More of Inyo County to come…….