The Mother Lode Highway in California - Hwy 49 - is a beautiful road trip!

[mr_lebowski]

11. I look forward to hearing how much you loved the trip :)

Yeah, I've been both ways, and I'm here to tell ya ... the 108 entrance is a WHOLE different ballgame. Coming up from Merced you basically slowly rise up into the Valley, but on the 108 it takes you way above it, elevation-wise, so you end up slowly descending down into it.

Now, I've not been in few years and I'm sure the big fire a few years back has dampened at least some stretches of the beauty of the drive a bit OUTSIDE the Park, but I know it didn't spread inside the park. And it's really the next 30 miles or so after you enter the gate where it's uber-amazing.

If you do head to Yosemite up that way, a quick stop in the quaint little town of Groveland, which is up the road towards Yosemite about 30 miles further than Murphy's (you kinda have to deviate from the main path up to Yosemite to get to Murphy's, but it's not too far off) ... is also recommended. In particular, the historic Iron Door Bar which has been in continuous operation since I believe the early 1900's.

A number of my close relatives own homes in Groveland there, in a wonderful development called Pine Mountain Lake (in fact, my grandparents moved there in the 90's) and I've been up there MANY TIMES, in fact even lived their briefly circa 2007 ...

It's beautiful in that region. You won't be disappointed.