Saturday and Sunday, March 19 and 20, 2016 (Tuttle Creek BLM Campground, Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, CA)

We had a pretty laid back day Saturday, deciding to stay home. Late morning, we went out for another walk around the campground. This time, we found a spot to cross the creek, making it a loop walk rather than having to retrace our steps.

We certainly didn't expect to see these daffodils growing near the creek. Reminded me of Victoria in the Spring....

After lunch, I brought out my crocheting project and ended up spending a couple of hours untangling a huge mess of yarn. Steve chilled outside taking in some sun rays in his lounger.

Not a spectacular sunset, but some pretty pink clouds this evening...

A Sunday morning picture taken from inside our rig as the sun hits the beautiful Sierra Nevada Mountains...

This morning we thought we'd hike up to the Whitney Portal  Arch. This is the arch we tried to get to in the dark ( unsuccessfully ) with Ray the other day. So we headed off at about 9:30 and parked the truck along the side of the road since there was already a vehicle parked in the small parking area near the trailhead. This time I took my GPS with the coordinates entered so we could find the rock marker on the trail. From that point, we walked cross-country towards the arch. See the arch way up there? There was no apparent path from here...

...until we came to the wash...

Now we have a path...

 Almost there!

Scarlet Milk-Vetch

Made it! Front view...

Side view...

Rear views...

There used to be a ladder here allowing you to frame Mt. Whitney in the arch but it's gone so we couldn't get that shot. (This is the best we could do Ray :-)

Blue Phacelia we think...

Water break...

Time to head back down...

 Fabulous view from up here!

 It's so much easier going this way...

One final picture of flowers as we get back to the truck. Wow, what a great hike! We really enjoyed that!

Then we had a bit of an anxious moment as Steve tried to pull back out onto the pavement...the shoulder was rather soft sand and the tires started to spin. Oh, oh....but after rocking back and forth giving it another try, we made it out in a cloud of dust...whew!

Next, we thought we'd drive to the Manzanar National Historic Site about 7 miles north of Lone Pine on highway 395.

Two Sentry Posts in the distance built by an internee...
In 1942, the United States government ordered more than 110,000 men, women, and children to leave their homes and detained them in remote military style camps. Manzanar War Relocation Center was one of ten camps where Japanese American citizens and resident Japanese aliens were interned during World War II.

It appears Sunday is a very popular day to visit this Historic Site...it was pretty busy, even a school bus load of students. We started off by watching a documentary in the theater...a very good introduction before beginning our tour of the displays.

Manzanar National Historic Site was established to preserve the stories of the internment of nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II and to serve as a reminder to this and future generations of the fragility of American civil liberties.

During World War II, Manzanar War Relocation Center encompassed 5,415 acres...this is a scale model of approximately 540 acres of the camp...nearly one square mile... 

 

Seven days after the US announced it's decision, Canada announced it was going to do the same thing with 20,881 of it's  Japanese Canadians. We actually visited an internment camp outside of New Denver, BC back on July 11, 2011.

100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team

Military Intelligence Service (MIS)

The displays are done very well, with quotes and stories by those that actually lived through it.
Reconstruction display of a barrack and furnishings...

Furniture made from scrap lumber...

After finishing our tour inside the Visitors Center, we headed outside to walk through some of the re-constructed buildings.
Manzanar was arranged into 36 blocks. In most blocks, up to 300 people crowed into 14 barracks. Initially, each barracks had four rooms with eight people per room. Everyone ate in a mess hall, washed clothes in a public laundry room, and shared latrines and showers with little privacy. The ironing room and recreation hall offered spaces for classes, shops, and churches. Over time, people personalized their barracks and the blocks evolved into distinct communities.

There are only two barracks remaining. Most were sold for scrap or moved after the war...

Mess Hall in the distance. Each sign marks a barrack and it's number...

How would you like to wear these shoes?

Very cool doll house made from scrap wood...

The Mess Hall...

This stove is heated with an oil burner...

Secret storage for stills and stuff...

Only remaining Mess Hall...

After walking through the buildings, we took the driving tour of the camp. Nature is taking over where rows and rows of barracks and other buildings once stood.
After the war, the government removed most of the structures, and buried gardens and basements. As time passed, Manzanar was further buried, both in sand and in memory. Today, when visitors see Manzanar, they may think there's nothing out there. Yet for those who learn to read the landscape, the place comes to life.

Orchard...

People built gardens to beautify the dusty ground outside their barracks. Others built larger gardens near mess halls where people waited in line for meals three times a day.

Wow, look at the size of that tree!

The most elaborate garden was Merritt Park...first called the Rose Park, then Pleasure Park, and finally Merritt Park in honor of the Project Director, Ralph Merritt.



Beautiful foot bridges...

San-shi-en or 3-4 Garden...

Mess Hall Root Cellar...

Hospital Gardens...

Our final stop was at the Cemetery.
The Manzanar camp closed on November 21, 1945, three months after the war ended. Despite having regained their freedom, some people found life equally difficult after the war. Most spent decades rebuilding their lives, but few spoke openly about their wartime experiences. Buddist and Christian ministers returned to the cemetery each year to remember the dead. In 1969, a group of activists came on their own pilgrimage of healing and remembrance. With the formation of the Manzanar Committee, this pilgrimage grew into an annual event attended by over one thousand. Efforts to remember and preserve the camp led to the creation of Manzanar National Historic Site in 1992.

Baby Jerry Ogata...

Again...nature has taken over...

Camouflage Nets were made here...

Administration and staff housing areas at the entrance way...

Guard Tower (reconstructed)

The historic site was excellent...and would definitely recommend it if you are ever driving through this area.

After a quick stop at the market, we were home.We had a quick snack and then had a Skype call with Chris and Angela. They are doing great and are very excited about their new home.

There is another wind warning for our area starting tomorrow morning. It was actually pretty blustery out this afternoon! So I helped Steve rig up a couple of tarps pole to go on the topper of the big slide. Once they were up there, he tied each end down under the slide...that will keep the topper from flapping like crazy in the wind.

After dinner, we settled in for our usual evening in front of the TV...the end to another great day!