After slogging it out through the sand the previous day I decided to take the easy way back to Independence and just cycled up 395. There’s a wide shoulder and when I left at 6am there were very few vehicles on the road. The other advantage of leaving so early is the temperatures were cool and the sun hadn’t crested the mountains yet.

What took me over the entire day the previous day I knocked out in an hour and a half cycling on asphalt. I loaded up my car, made breakfast and coffee, which I enjoyed in the morning sun, and took off for the long drive back to the bay area. This time I crossed Sonora Pass in the daylight. 395 is such fun to drive, partly because the setting is stunning, a deep desert valley walled in by snow peaked mountains, and partly because driving it usually means the start or end of an adventure in those mountains.

Overall the end of May is pushing towards the heat of the desert, and to fully enjoy the Owens Valley trails I’d probably need different tires—slightly wider with lower pressures—and not picking a holiday weekend would give more camping options. I’d like to come back and properly explore Alabama Hills some more, I’m sure I’ll be back in the area in the future, I did Sawmill Pass last year and have my eye on some of the other trailheads in the area.