Eastern Sierra Adventure - Mono Lake, Bishop, and Alabama Hills - A Vanagon Road Trip

In this episode, we drive south to explore the eastern Sierra along the stunning Highway 395 in California. We visit hot springs, explore the area around Bishop, and find an epic camp in Alabama Hills after rock crawling up the trail.
#vanagon #t3 #vanlife
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[@planetmarrs5239]

Wow, another great adventure.... Every time I seen one of your videos, it makes me want to get in the Westy and head out..... but, there's snow on the ground and my wife is like yours...... doesn't like scary things/roads or conditions.... BUT...... I get to watch these great videos, thank you.....

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Yeah it was quite amazing! Nancy doesn't love all the roads but loves getting where we end up. She's quite the trooper and a great driver when I'm filming nate

[@lynnebacchus6689]

A beautiful video! We are often exploring the area. Your drone shots with the calming music are fantastic. Nancy I also get those "uncomfortable" feelings.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks Lynne, it is such an amazing area and we can't wait to go back and explore some more. Nancy is getting better at the uncomfortable roads but I still find ones to push her a bit! :) nate

[@nancybaldwin5051]

It's true I'm getting better with them. He likes to keep me on my toes!

[@denisehelton9403]

One of my favorite things about The East side is the smell of clean air snd sage. Always come home with sage in the car to bring the smell home.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Right? Amazing smells. Totally get that. Thanks for watching!! Nate

[@lancasterritzyescargotdine2602]

I'd prefer to call it aroma, rather than smell! But the point is well taken. There's nothing like the clean aroma of fresh air and pine needles!

[@Camp_Runamuck]

Hats off for taking the time to make the video

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks for watching! nate

[@weekendsinavan5503]

Thanks for sharing! Awesome video as always. Great job on the drone footage!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Appreciate it! nate

[@bindumiller]

Thanks, Baldwins, for another great adventure video! Always makes us want to jump in the Westy and get out there. Keep them coming. We enjoyed meeting you at Descend. Best wishes. 82 Westy diesel/SVX/5 spd

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks! Glad the videos inspire you to get out, that is one of our goals is for people to take their old VW's and get out and explore. You going to Descend on Lost Sierra in May? nate

[@hooh125]

I like your videos, love the quality and the drone footage, thanks for sharing!!, greetings from Spain!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thank you! Appreciate the kind words and thank you for following our adventures! Love you’re watching from Spain! Nate

[@vanspeeder]

Love this drive, Bishop is a good place for our Westy.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Such a beautiful place! Nate

[@chrishomel9558]

I'm planning to go to the Alabama hills soon. I have an 83 westy, and I really want to drive her on those roads and camp up there. Nice videos kids.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

You’re gonna love it there. Amazing area Nate

[@caseyhansen4567]

The eastern sierra is magic love the afternoon storms nice job with the vw van

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Yes we absolutely love it there! nate

[@peterschofield6363]

Nice! So happy you enjoyed the epic camp spot! My apologies to Nancy for sending you up that road, glad you stayed right at the big boulder 😂😮

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thank you so much for the spot! Really made the time in Alabama Hills special. Away from the crowds with those views! nate

[@freedomlover3789]

Hello, Peter, can you please let me know that spot, going to AH in couple of weeks first time, car camper. Honda CRV will make that road? Thank you! Elena

[@hannimite2382]

YOU GUYS SLAYED

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

We always slay

[@hannimite2382]

I LOVE THIS

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thank you! nate

[@robbwolf8489]

Love the video! My backyard and love the Sierras

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Lucky guy to have all that in your backyard! We really enjoyed it there and will definitely be going back. nate

[@robbwolf3309]

@@ThatBaldwinLife Let me know when you come back over. The Wolf Family

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Will do!! nate

[@dazedd2531]

Love the new video dad!!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks honey!

[@TIMWHY2]

Simply WoW! I can't imagine such views. Thank you for taking us all with you, can't wait for the next trip.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

The entire area down there is amazing. We will be going back down for sure! nate

[@Candidlife-clips]

Wow! Beautiful video! Thanks for sharing!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thank you very much! nate

[@robertross4108]

Nice video love to get a drone someday. We discovered the Eastern Sierras probably about 20 years ago. We’ve gone in all seasons so beautiful. Winter has the beauty of the snow on the peaks facing east. Just be prepared. Summer get warm but great fall is my personal favorite less people great color. There’s so many canyons to explore so many hidden treasures I’d love to share myself someday. There’s places we haven’t seen like the Buttermilks. I’m a photographer that’s what attracts during different times. Thanks for you well thought out video journey. The Ross family

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks! Drones give such a unique perspective on the area you are exploring. We use it at times to look down the road for camping spots! We barely touched on exploring the Alabama Hills area and can't wait to return. Same with the Buttermilks. Thanks so much for taking the time to watch! nate

[@dazedd2531]

This deserves awards!!!!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Awww... to nice

[@vikingtype]

I have a '90 Westy, very similar to yours. Are you running 16" wheels? Which spare tire carrier do you have? Lifted or not?

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Yeah we have 16” VanCafe wheels with 215/65/16 Nokian tires. The spare tire carrier is from Rocky Mountain Westy and we have a 1.5” lift (or so) Thanks for watching!! Nate

[@Elleeevergreen]

syncro?!

[@Elleeevergreen]

never mind i just watched it all! awesome!! gives me more confidence to take mine off road more!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Nope, we have a 2wd Westy. In fact that trip is before we had our Peloquin installed so we were effectively 1wd! 😁 Nate

[@themammothchannel]

Leave Out the Hot Springs Please Thanks

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Travertine? Is it a secret? It is on Google maps without really searching for it. People in town told us about it as well. Sorry, didn't know it was supposed to be kept on the down low. nate

[@JimWVa-2023]

Sierra.

[@joeya8721]

Eastern Sierras??? 🤨

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Or you could say the east side of the Sierras but most people just refer to them as eastern Sierras. But it does sound like there is a western Sierras too 😁. Nate

[@joeya8721]

@ThatBaldwinLife It's Eastern Sierra. Sierra meaning mountains or mountain range. It's one mountain range, not mountain ranges, and mountains is already plural.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks!

[@lancasterritzyescargotdine2602]

@@ThatBaldwinLife There is an East and a West. It's just 'Sierra', not "Sierras", as the Appalachian hillbilly insists on calling it.

[@themammothchannel]

then you say you want to be alone but post post post where you are . . . . . . . .

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Yes we definitely like to camp alone and love to show people how to get out and find these amazing places. We rarely post the exact location unless it is a known area as we don’t like to give out our favorite camps. But a lot of times we are on a road trip passing through and most likely will not return to the same place. So by the time you see the video, there no chance someone will know where we are. You can have both, a solitary camp and sharing adventures. Nate

[@themammothchannel]

I understand .... don't mean to be mean ... it is nice video ... most beautiful areas are not secrets ...

[@VanDoghies]

What a great video and we love the Eastern Sierras so much as well. What drone are you using? Great shots! (We use the DJI Mini Pro 3)

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks! We use a Mavic Air 2S for our shots. Been a great drone so far. We had a mini a few years ago and it was great as well. nate

[@Waltygo87]

Amazing shots! How many different cameras do you use? also what kind of drone? thanks for the free high-quality entertainment! I hope you have half as much fun making these as I do watching them

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks Andrew! Our main camera is a Sony A7C with a Sony 24-105 F4 lens. We also use a Sony 20mm f1.8 as well. Nancy shoots with an iPhone 12 Pro and we also have a GoPro Hero 8. The drone is a DJI Mavic Air 2S. We really enjoy making the videos and appreciate you taking the time to watch. nate

[@rinodattilo2383]

Great job you two! Nate did you air down your tires on the gravel roads? Blessings!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks Rino. We do air down if we will be on gravel/rock for longer distances but most of the gravel roads were only a few miles long. Not worth airing back up. Would have helped for the road out to the Buttermilks though! It was rough in places. nate

[@paulbaldwin9906]

Good thing you bought the all terrain Westy! Independently adjustable air shocks for levelling?

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

That’s too fancy for us! Westy does go lots of places! Nate

[@mrsmithgarage8115]

Great shots and entertaining humor. Do you have a video of how you mounted your lights in front of your grille?

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks! We covered the inner lights in our GoWesty Round Headlight video. Nate

[@gallowayjohnson4208]

I’ve been waiting for this video to drop after seeing Mono lake on you’re Instagram page. This past summer I bought a 84 westy and drove it from Washington State to New Hampshire with my dad. After taking 395 from Washington down to Cali we stopped at Mono lake so he could check out the tufas that he’s wanted to see since he first saw them on the inside sleeve of his “Wish You Were Here” album back in 75. Fun video and great scenery as always, thanks for posting your adventures!!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

What an amazing story! That must have been a memorable trip with your dad. Congrats on the Westy and hope you have lots of great adventures. Thanks so much for watching! Nate

[@jeannepeffley4881]

This area captured my heart a long time ago. Looks like it grabbed you two too. Great times with a backpack in those mountains. Now I think of my ‘Westy’ Skyler as a big backpack. Always ready to take me on another adventure. Thanks for another amazing video. What springs and shocks do you have?

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

We absolutely fell in love with the Eastern Sierras and will be back down there for sure. I can't imagine how beautiful the backcountry would be hiking through it! In front we have Moog 5660 springs with Rancho 9000 adjustable shocks. In back we run GoWesty 1.5" lift springs with Bilstein 5100 remote reservoir shocks. Works well but if I were to do it again, I would just go with the Radflo shocks from Burley. Thanks so much for watching!! nate

[@Kojak-zh7qo]

Brilliant video again you park in some awesome places thanks for sharing 👍

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks! We did find some great places to pop that top! Thanks for watching Nate

[@garygoldsmith9844]

Gorgeous country! Thanks for sharing!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Isn’t it? Amazing down there. Thanks for watching!! Nate

[@johndoe-lr9if]

Beautiful 4k scenery, looked like an amazing trip!

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

It sure was! Thanks for watching Nate

[@rextilian]

I’m here for Nancy’s “freakout”. 😂 It’s a beautiful world and you guys do a great job of capturing it. Thank you.

[@jasonfriedl6896]

At around 9:30. I feel for you brother. Sometimes you gotta you just gotta have your " me " not that i dont love doing things with the wife and its fun. But i love exploring and hiking the Buttermilk's with just me and my dog. I love the Buttermilk's. I live in Bishop. You gotta see South Lake too and Lake Sabrina. Thats our backyard

[@GEORGEEEJ]

I’m enjoying your video blogs. While we live in Central California I’m learning some fun excursions to add to our list of places to explore. I want to correct the use of “Sierras”. Sierra is already plural so when you say Sierras it’s like saying mices or geeses. When referring to the Sierra Nevada Mountains it’s just Sierra. Don’t feel bad as many make the same error when referring to the Sierra. Just thought you’d like to know.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Thanks for the feedback! Nate

[@lancasterritzyescargotdine2602]

@@ThatBaldwinLife In other words, "Go to hell. I'll say it my way!"

[@rangertommy]

I grew up backpacking and climbing in those mountains, and all along the eastside in general. I still do. I've always called the range "the Sierras." Yes, it is technically incorrect, in the same way people pronounce "Los Angeles," or "San Diego." But there it is.

[@corymullins3737]

Great video, do you have cords for that rooftop camspot lol

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Sorry we can’t give that stuff out! All part of the adventure Nate

[@corymullins3737]

@@ThatBaldwinLife wow that's disappointing to see this reply. For someone like me who works 60+ hrs. a week I don't have time to map places out. You just lost a follower, man I'm really disappointed

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Sorry to hear that Cory. We to work a ton and do not work remote or at home so I understand how much it takes to research trips and camping options. This place was given to us by a friend and we would not feel right about giving coordinates. Even if we found it, we feel that the exploration is the best part of the adventure. I spend hours at night looking over maps to find new places to go, roads to explore, and potential epic camps. It is a lot of work but when we find that next awesome place, it is all worth it. Keep on exploring nate

[@lancasterritzyescargotdine2602]

Please pay attention to those who have tried to correct your embarrassing misuse of the word 'Sierra'!

[@michaelbandeko3519]

Kinda cool to see VW vans still trucking up and down the Eastern Sierra. Part of my youth after HS was spent living in my VW van partying all the time in the desert.

[@ThatBaldwinLife]

Sounds like you had a great time out there! Beautiful part of Cali nate

[@lancasterritzyescargotdine2602]

Beautiful part of the world, best without any VWs and foreign cars.