One of the many things that still fascinates me about Los Angeles is the amazing view of the mountains from just about anywhere. Sometimes they’re covered with dingy red layers of filthy smog and haze. But you can still see them.
Even weirder is that around this time of year, when it’s still in the 70s down here, you can see snow caps on the mountains. On clear days, they almost glitter in the sunshine.
I finally got to see some of it up close last weekend, when we got a wild hair and decided to take a road trip to Giant Sequoia National Monument.
It was a grand plan. We would drive up the mountain, about 2.5 hours from home, hop out and hike for a bit. We would stroll along the Trail of a Hundred Giants, the grove where the trees grow up to 220 feet high, 20 feet wide and are 1500 years old.
We didn’t quite make it. Did I mention the snow? The first warning signs were giant… warning signs. That chains were required and there would be icy “patches.” We ignored those and powered on. How bad could it be? It was still sunny and the snow we did see was melting.
The second warning signs were the trucks. The size of which I hadn’t seen since living in West Texas. Man trucks. Our Honda Civic felt mini. Then, as we wound our way up the mountain, we stopped seeing any other cars at all.
Finally, when there was more ice than road (and no guardrails), we gave up and turned around. I think we were no more than two miles from the famous trail, but the thought of careening off the side of the mountain to an icy death sucked the adventure out of me.
Plus, it really was cold.
This is how long I was out of the car. Long enough to pose for this picture. The air was so clear and frozen, it hurt my lungs. The smog I had stored up in there was confused and pissed at all the clean air that was suddenly rushing in.
My body missed its comfy, warm blanket of haze.
We’ll have to try this again in the spring. After the thaw. I’ll be ready for more clean air by then.
Until then, I'll enjoy the snow caps from down below.
[Photos by Anthony. More on his Flick page.]
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