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SPECIAL
EVENTS 2013
"LIGHTS ON THE LAKE," held each Fourth of July at South Lake Tahoe, is the
largest synchronized fireworks show west of the Mississippi. July 4 tahoesouth.com
With participants such as Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley and John Elway, South Lake
Tahoe's AMERICAN CENTURY GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP has been called the
"Super Bowl of Celebrity Sports." July 16-21 tahoecelebritygolf.com
Yosemite's BRACEBRIDGE DINNER, held in the landmark Ahwahnee Hotel, is a
3 ½-hour feast of "food and riches without measure, joining voices raised in festive
sound." Dec. 13, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 and 25 bracebridgedinners.com
MUST
SEE ,
DO
»
On the Lake Take a tour across Lake
Tahoe into mesmerizing Emerald Bay aboard an
authentic Mississippi River paddlewheeler. They
depart several times a day from Zephyr Cove and
South Lake Tahoe.
› zephyrcove.com/cruises.aspx
California's Everest You don't have to
be Sir Edmund Hillary to plant your flag on the
14,495-foot summit of Mount Whitney, the tallest
mountain in the Lower 48. The pathway to the
top begins west of the town of Lone Pine and
gains an ear-popping 6,100 feet in 11 miles.
› mount-whitney.com
› fs.fed.us/r5/inyo/recreation/wild/mtwhitney.shtm
»
»
Long Live Mono Set in a brooding,
volcanic, Tolkienesque landscape, Mono Lake is
one of the most otherworldly sights in California,
with spiky tufa towers rising out of an alkaline
lake. Explore it by kayak or canoe, or take
a guided naturalist walk along the shoreline.
› monolake.org
› calderakayak.com
»
The Big Picture It's nearly impossible
to take a boring picture in Yosemite Valley, but
to elevate your camera work to the next level,
sign up for a guided photography walk. They
range from free beginners classes to inexpensive
four-hour courses offered through the Ansel
Adams Gallery.
› nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/art.htm
› yosemitepark.com/ansel-adams-photographyclasses.aspx
»
The Wild, Wild West Bodie, possibly the
Old West's most notorious mining town, now
exists in a state of "arrested decay" on a high,
windswept plain northeast of Yosemite. It's one
of America's most extensive ghost towns.
› parks.ca.gov/?page_id=509
THE MERCED RIVER winds its
way through Yosemite Valley, opposite
page; fireworks over Lake Tahoe,
top; the ghost town of Bodie near
Mono Lake, left.
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