Trona pinnacles
Visiting Trona one absolutely must stop by mysterious Trona Pinnacles National Landmark. It's in a middle of nowhere but its one of those places that have to be seen. "Known as one of the most unusual geologic wonders in the California Desert, the Trona Pinnacles are more than 500 tufa - they were formed with calcium carbonate - spires of rock that rise from the bed of the Searles Dry Lake basin". Some of those rocks rich more than 140 feet
This unusual landscape consists of 500 tufa spires. Pinnacles differ in size and shape from short and squat to tall and thin. They primarily composed of calcium carbonate (Tufa).
"During the Pleistocene, massive runoff spilled from the Sierra Nevada into a chain of inland seas. The system of interconnected lakes stretched from Mono Lake to Death Valley and included Searles Lake.
Deep beneath Searles Lake, calcium-rich groundwater and alkaline lake water combined to grow tufa formations. Similar (modern) formations can be found today at Mono Lake to the north".
Those tufa pinnacles formed under water for 10, 000 to 100,000 years ago. They did not all formed at the same time . The pinnacles divided by age and elevation into three groups. The groups named northern, middle and southern groups because they formed during three ice ages.
The youngest group is northern group only 11, 000 to 25, 000 years old. The small middle group claims only 100 spires, but boasts the tallest "tower", rising 140 feet (43 m). The southern group includes 200 tufa formations aged 32,000 to 100,000 years old. Those ancient spires were once called "Cathedral City".
"The Pinnacles are recognizable in more than a dozen hit movies. Over thirty film projects a year are shot among the tufa pinnacles, including backdrops for car commercials and sci-fi movies and television series such as Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Disney's Dinosaur, The Gate II, Lost in Space, and Planet of the Apes".
While making plans we knew that we will make a stop here, so i took my dog, Rex on this trip. I thought it would be nice from him to run free in a desert and after sitting in a car for several hours. When i finally let him out from the car , Rex was ready for his free run. It was ultimate and absolute doggie freedom. Off Leash run in a desert by surrounded by a mysterious landscape.
It's a dirt road that leads to trona pinnacles. If you go there see if your car would make it. You can drive the dirt road right to the pinnacles but you have to have a right vehicle for it. If you don't drive 4x4 track or something similar don't even try going down that road. Park your fancy "city" car and do the hike to the pinnacles. You will hike a distance but it will be totally worth it.
References:
David Kelly, Stark Beauty, Solitude, Squalor and Sulfur -- Trona Has It All, The Los Angeles Times, October 4, 2006, Accessed December 28, 2006.
my dog, rex running at Trona Pinnacles
Planet of Apes : photo courtesy by Paull Bunnell http://themoviemaker.net/gallery/pota.php
Rihanna's music video for official song for the new star trek movie: photo courtesy http://geekologie.com/2016/06/outerspace-rihannas-music-video-for-the.php
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