2006-07-09 Mono Lake 04

Mono (Mo-no) Lake - Mono Lake is unique because it has no outlet, it is fed thru snowmelt thru several streams and rivers. Salt and minerals leached from the surrounding rocks drain into Mono Lake and are concentrated when the water evaporates. The lake has bizarre formations of rock called "tufa" (too-fa) that show during the fluctuations in the water level. Six of the waterways that fed Mono Lake were diverted in the 1940's for water for Los Angeles. The next few decades resulted in a gradual decrease in the water levels of Mono Lake. In the 1980's (I think) LA was forced to give up some of the water feeding Mono Lake and the lake level began to rise again.  The water levels still fluctuate with snowmelt and evaporation.