Eye of Alabama Arch, Alabama Hills

After doing the Arch Loop Trail in the Alabama Hills, we drove over to hike up to find the The Eye of Alabama Arch. We did not find that arch, but still enjoyed our short hike.
Looking out over part of the Alabama Hills to the Eastern Sierras from the trail.

Lots of lovely rock formations here

red barrel cacti

lovey combination of smooth rocks of the Alabama Hills and the sharp Sierras

lots of lovely rock formations

so much more to explore and enjoy here

Interesting rock formation, we thought the small arch up there on the right might be the Eye of Alabama Arch, but looking it up on the BLM site, it isn't the same shape.

No worries, I enjoyed looking at the varied rock formations and all the views we had

Arch Loop Trail, Alabama Hills

We stopped at the Alabama Hills just outside of Lone Pine California for a couple of short trails. We arrived as the sun was rising and loved how the morning light lit up the High Sierras.

Our first trail was the Arch Loop Trail, 0.6 miles with so many interesting rock formations and arches. I found this area fascinating and hope to come back to explore more.

one of many arches to be found in the area

Morning sun gave the rocks a glorious rich color

moon setting above Mobius Arch

Sierras framed by Mobius Arch

One of the rock formations here reminds me of a large elephant pushing a boulder

The combination of the smooth Alabama Hills in front of the jagged high Sierras is stunning.

another arch

was fun to watch the colors change as the sun rose

One of the most beautiful very short hikes I've been on

Heart shaped opening in an arch

Loved the variety of shapes of the rock formations

Moon over the Alabama Hills

another arch

arch within an arch

fabulous landscape

Not a quick hike, so much to take in and enjoy, and this is a small part of the Alabama Hills

Here there is another rock formation that looks like an elephant pushing a boulder.












view of part of the Arch Loop Trail

Little Lake Valley, John Muir Wilderness

Another stop for a short hike on a long road trip. I was amazed that we could drive up to 10,200 ft in the High Sierras on a paved road! The Little Lakes Valley Trailhead leads to many miles of trails, but we only had time to hike out to Long Lake and back. Because we had to park at the lower trailhead, our hike was 5 miles round trip with 400 ft of overall gain.

With views like this, I didn't mind the 1/2 mile road walk up to the trailhead from the lower parking area.

Overlooking a wide spot on Rock Creek near the beginning of the trail

There was some lovely fall color on the sides of some of the mountains.

First view of Marsh Lake:

We took the side trail to view the other side of Marsh Lake

Trail to Heart Lake

view along Heart Lake

The trail around Heart Lake was lovely!

View from the other end of Heart Lake

we enjoyed every step of this hike!!!

south end of Box Lake











Pano of Box Lake

a little creek along the trail

Long Lake, the trail continues, but we stopped here for lunch and the views (at 10,500 ft).

Heading back down the trail between Long Lake and Box Lake











another view of the High Sierras from Heart Lake