Mono Lake Viewpoint
MVP:
Little Buddy Heater—It may have been below 10 degrees in the camper, but the heater quickly heated up the camper to around 40 degrees, which although is still cold, is almost comfortable with my winter clothes on.
Camp Review:
I found this viewpoint to be clean and away from the highway, which meant that the car noises were not too loud.
The parking spaces were totally free of ice, and were level.
There are no amenities, like bathroom or water.
Given that most of the free camping you can do in the Eastern Sierras is closed during winter, I was grateful that this spot was open and available for me to use.
What I Learned:
I was worried that my 20 degree sleeping bag would not be warm enough, but with under and fleece layers, it was more than warm enough to sleep. I did resort to putting a down blanket on top of my head to keep my lips and nose warm.
Fears Overcome:
Sleeping in my camper at below 10 degrees (F)—It wasn’t the most comfortable sleep with the cold air, but I slept much better than I had expected. I did wake up a few times in the middle of the night, but I quickly fell back asleep.
What Happened?
I arrived at 10:15pm at this viewpoint and found one other car in the parking lot. I quickly pitched the camper and got inside. I ended up spending an hour writing about my thoughts on The Book of Joy, but as soon as I was done with that, I fell asleep with no time to spare.
When I woke up at 6:30am, I turned on the heater, which made the air much more bearable. I cooked myself breakfast, packed lunch, and heated up tea. I was worried about the car starting when it was so cold out, but my diesel engine started up lazily and I felt a rush of relief. I then headed to June Lake.
On the second night, it was much of a repeat of the first, but colder. It was supposed to be a few degrees warmer, but the car engine took 4 full seconds to start (which made me a bit nervous), and the inside of the camper felt colder.