Limestone towers at Mono Lake, California

Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve is located near

Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is an American national park in California, surrounded on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The park is managed by the National Park Service and covers an ...

within

Mono County Mono County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,195, making it the fourth-least populous county in California. The county seat is Bridgeport. The coun ...

, in eastern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. It was established in 1981 by the California State Legislature to preserve the natural

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

" tufa tower" formations at

Mono Lake Mono Lake ( ) is a saline soda lake in Mono County, California, formed at least 760,000 years ago as a terminal lake in an endorheic basin. The lack of an outlet causes high levels of salts to accumulate in the lake which make its water a ...

Access

California State Park Rangers were charged with conducting interpretive talks and tours along the shores of

, as well as protecting the resources. In 1984 the Federal Government designated surrounding lands as the

Mono Basin National Scenic Area The Mono Basin National Forest Scenic Area is a protected area in Eastern California that surrounds Mono Lake and the northern half of the Mono Craters volcanic field. It is administered by the Inyo National Forest as a unit of the National Fore ...

. Since that time visitor services have been offered as a cooperative effort between these two agencies, as well as the

Mono Lake Committee The Mono Lake Committee (MLC) is an environmental organization based in Lee Vining, California in the United States. Its mission is to preserve Mono Lake, by reducing diversions of water from the Eastern Sierra watersheds by the Los Angeles Depart ...

References

External links

Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve websiteMono Basin National Forest Scenic Area websiteMono Lake Scenic Area Visitor CenterCA.Parks: Mono Lake tufa tower images
{{Authority control California State Reserves Tufa

Tufa Tufa is a variety of limestone formed when carbonate minerals precipitate out of water in unheated rivers or lakes. Geothermally heated hot springs sometimes produce similar (but less porous) carbonate deposits, which are known as travertin ...

Inyo National Forest Landforms of Mono County, California Protected areas of Mono County, California Protected areas of the Sierra Nevada (United States) 1981 establishments in California Protected areas established in 1981

Access

See also

References

External links