Mule Days Parade

When we arrived in Bishop we saw signs of Mule Days to be celebrated over the Memorial Weekend.  I had to smile as I remembered arriving in Mountain View and seeing ads for Bean Fest and Outhouse Racing.  We sometimes find ourselves in place for interesting events.  Mule Days is described as a world class equestrian event promoting the legacy, heritage and talents of the mule. The five day event features classes, competitions, exhibitions and finally a parade.  Thousands of people come into town and mules rule the day.  I was surprised to find several competitions that I would not associate with mules, such as dressage and rodeo.  Turns out that mules are not just pack animals, although they rule that role.  Enjoy the parade.

The parade takes place along a one mile stretch of Main Street.  This street is part of Highway 395, usually a busy thoroughfare for truckers and travelers.  Lots of warning signs are up early alerting that this part of the highway will be closed for about 3 hours.

The parade sometimes moved slowly. As a result, the participants had to 'weave' back and forth along the route. We often got a direct 'look' at the mules.  I ended up loving them. 

Horses of all kinds and donkeys are also represented.  This group represents the Forest Service, a big part of life around here.

This was a favorite group for me.  These kids smiled, tried to play together, and looked like their uniform was any plaid shirt and jeans.  Loved them!

I believe this represented the 20 Mule Team made famous by Borax.  Such a team would have transported very heavy loads over over mountainous roads.

This mule is a Hall of Fame awardee.  To gain such status they have to accumulate a high number of points across various categories.  I don't remember the list but I was impressed as it was rattled off by a bystander next to me.  As I recall, being stubborn was not on the list.

This was a common item in the parade as different packing companies advertised their services and gave us an idea of how the might look on the trail.

Bishop City Council members.

Cute 'princess' waving.

I was glad to see helmets instead of hats on these kids.

Another mule with Hall of Fame status.

More Forest Service.

A classic mule mug!

Ahh!

I don't know what kind of horse this is but they are huge!!  They were much liked by the crowd.

Mules deserve fine saddles just like horses.

There was a small group of Clydesdales.

This kid played his banjo the whole parade.  Notice his hat!

That was all.  A street sweeper followed behind and people dispersed or hung around for the craft show that was in a park just behind where were were seated.  Fun morning!

Veterans' Day Ceremony

The Arizona Department of Veterans' Services established this cemetery on approximately 145 acres of land, which was previously part of Fort Huachuca Military Base. The cemetery was made possible by a $7.7 million grant from the VA State Cemetery Grant Service, for construction and equipment. The Groundbreaking Ceremony was held October 1, 2001, construction started the next day and it was dedicated later that same month. United States military veterans who have received an honorable discharge from any branch of the service are eligible to be buried there or have their ashes placed in its columbarium.  There are 7,443 honorably discharged veterans resting here.  Steve shares these photographs of the Memorial Day Ceremony held there this morning.

This honors the Confederate veterans.

There are Unknown Soldiers buried in the cemetary.

Unknown Soldier Section.

This is the main part of the cemetary.

Colors leaving the ceremonial platform.

Major General Walters and lots of people meeting up with old friends and making new ones.

Past Post commander DVA his wife a former Chaplin.

Re-enactment of Buffalo Soldiers interview for TV

Wall tombs.

May we not forget.

Onion Valley

One starts up the canyon which for some reason is called Onion Valley.  But, it does not smell like onions and they are not grown in the area!  I am sure there is a story but I could not find it.  It is a popular recreational area that usually opens up about mid-May.  Trails from Onion Valley provide acces to the John Muir Wilderness and Kings Canyon National Park.  There is a campsite at the end of the trail that has 29 campsites for tent camping or RV type units less than 25 feet in length.  The road up the canyon is so narrow, winding, and steep that no one in their right mind would take anything longer up anyway!  We had a great drive up and down as the weather went from nice pretty white clouds to stormy dark clouds.  

On the way home we stopped at the Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery.  Founded in 1917, Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery provided fresh trout to the Sierra Nevada region for nearly a century. After a series of natural disasters in 2008, the hatchery closed and the focus shifted to preservation and education. The hatchery portion is no longer operational but the building houses an interesting museum and is photographically interesting with its early 20th century archetcture.

In times past, fingerling trout were transported by mule to small and big lakes all along the Sierra Nevada.