One Day in CA: Surf → Water Ski → Cliff Jump → Ski → Ice Cream → Hot Springs

Miles Clark | | Post Tag for Conditions ReportConditions Report
Tenaya lake area, Yosemite.  Today.
Tenaya lake area, Yosemite. Today.

California.  It’s simply an amazing place.  Today, it showed off what it can really do:  Surfing, Waterskiing, Cliff Jumping, Skiing, Ice Creaming, Hot Spring… all in one day.

Ocean Beach, San Francisco today.
Ocean Beach, San Francisco today.

I was up early and got into the water at Ocean Beach, San Francisco by 7am.  The waves were terrible, it was windy and cold.  I got a few “fun” rides and called it good after about an hour.  Size was in the 2-4 foot range.

Ocean Beach, San Francisco today.  Sub par conditions?
Ocean Beach, San Francisco today. Sub par conditions?

From the beach to the Stockton Delta.  Met up with my dad and grabbed two runs of water skiing on perfect glass.  Today was hot, sunny, and windless – perfect delta weather.  The crazy thing right now, is that the water in the delta is clear.  It’s always super muddy, but in the spring, the snowmelt makes it clear for a bit in May.  Today, the water was pristine…  for the delta.

Perfect conditions for water skiing in the delta today
Perfect conditions for water skiing in the delta today
California Delta glass...
California Delta glass…
Can you spot the turtle?  Delta.
Can you spot the turtle? Delta.

From the delta to Rainbow Pools.  I was shocked that it wasn’t packed but it was filling up as I left.  I jumped with some cool kids from Mammoth for about 30 minutes.  The waterfall is quite low right now and swimming behind it is a breeze.  The weird thing right now at Rainbow Pools is that the water is muddy.  I’ve never seen the water muddy there in all my time there.  I wonder what’s going on?  Very strange.

Rainbow Pools today.
Rainbow Pools today.  Muddy, but fun.

From Rainbow Pools to Tioga Pass and a hike up “Chute Out” in Ellery Bowl.  I started hiking at 5pm and reached the top at 6:30pm, just as the sun was completely leaving the bowl.  The skiing was great because the snow was firming up after having been cooked to deep slush.  There was one patch of sun in the chute that was too slushy, but the rest was excellent.  The bowl was perfect, 2″ deep corn, but it was tough to see as everything was in shadow.  Great ski, though.  I was fired up.  The high peaks in the Eastern Sierra got a big amount of snow this week.  Bloody Mountain, Mt. Dana, and the White Mountains have snow caked all over them where they were bare 5 days ago.

Chute Out at Tioga Pass today was fun at 6:30pm.
Chute Out at Tioga Pass today was fun at 6:30pm.
Chute Out.
Chute Out.
Ellery Bowl is still hangin' in there.  I'd say it has another week or more...
Ellery Bowl is still hangin’ in there. I’d say it has another week or more…

From Tioga Pass to Mono Cone in Lee Vining, CA for a soft serve ice cream cone.  Great reward after a big day.  I was lucky that they stayed open 15 minutes late.

Mono Cone!
Mono Cone!

From Mono Cone to the 102F Lazy River in Mammoth.  I met up with two cute friends and we got stuck in the Lazy River from 8pm until 10:30pm along with beer and chips.

102F Lazy River this evening.
102F Lazy River this evening.

Mammoth in May is spectacular.  We’ll be skiing, biking, and golfing here this weekend as that’s one of the ticket options Mammoth is offering and we’re buying.

The White Mountains are white again after this week's storm
The White Mountains are white again after this week’s storm

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7 thoughts on “One Day in CA: Surf → Water Ski → Cliff Jump → Ski → Ice Cream → Hot Springs

  1. Rainbow pools are muddy most likely due to the “Rim Fire’ last summer. Nice work, California living. : )

    1. Ha! I’ve been racking my brain on this one. You’re right. You’re absolutely right. Great thinking. I’ll pass that knowledge along. Thanks!

  2. Let’s adventure. I write about rad shit I do with my husky on the eastside and call mammoth home.

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