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Mono Lake, California

24 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1909 and the latest in 1994. It stands in the Mammoth Lakes census division. It lies in ZIP code area 93541. It stands on Dechambeau Creek. The Survey maps it on the Lundy quadrangle.

Mono Lake within Mono County

Then and now

1909 to 1994

The same ground, surveyed 85 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Mono Lake, surveyed 1994
Topographic sheet of Mono Lake, surveyed 1909

Compare 1909 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 24 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

64 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 64 fires within 5 miles of Mono Lake between 1992 and 2020, burning about 842 acres in total. 35 started naturally. 1 was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Natural35
Missing data/not specified/undetermined10
Power generation/transmission/distribution7
Recreation and ceremony4
Debris and open burning3
Equipment and vehicle use2
Smoking1
Misuse of fire by a minor1
Arson/incendiarism1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
24 September 1994Naturalunder an acreCentral California DistrictGARLIC II
19 September 1992Debris and open burningunder an acreInyo National Forestnot named
12 September 2014Equipment and vehicle use47 acresCentral California DistrictCONWAY
6 August 1997Natural5.0 acresInyo National ForestPOINT
4 August 2000Naturalunder an acreInyo National ForestLUNDY
31 August 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCentral California DistrictBYWAY
30 August 1992Naturalunder an acreInyo National Forestnot named
3 August 2016Arson/incendiarism16 acresInyo National ForestWILSON

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Mono County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 30 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 30 workings within 5 miles of Mono Lake: 11 prospects, 10 past producers, 8 occurrences, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Gold, Copper, Zinc, Silver. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Black Point Cinder MinePumicePast Producer
Cinder PitStoneOccurrence
Goleta ConsolidatedGold, Silver, Copper, ZincPast ProducerGold, Malachite, Pyrite
Goleta MineGold, Silver, Copper, LeadProspect
Lake View CopperCopper, Silver, Gold, Lead, ZincProspect
Log Cabin and Sunrise GroupGold, Silver, LeadPast ProducerGalena, Gold, Hematite
Montecito MineGold, Silver, LeadOccurrence
Old Glory ProspectLead, ZincProspect
UnknownGemstoneOccurrenceWollastonite
Unnamed Hot Spring Near Black Pt.GeothermalProducer

Every working recorded in Mono County

Storms near this place

12 since 2014

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Mono Lake in 12 storm reports between 2014 and 2024: 7 debris flow, 5 heavy rain. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 2024Debris FlowMono Lake-Law enforcement reported minor flooding/debris flow 1.0 mi S of Conway Summit, CA, with rocks and a large boulder in the northbound lane of US-395.
July 2024Heavy RainMono Lake-A mesonet stations UNDC1(LUNDY) located 4.0 mi S of Conway Summit, CA, and CBVA (DRI) located 3.1 mi SW of Bridgeport, CA, reported a total rainfall amount of 1.72 inches and 0.75 inches respectively.
October 2021Debris FlowMono Lake-California Highway Patrol reported the left lane on us 395 at Conway Ranch Road is closed due to a large rock in the roadway.
October 2021Heavy RainMono Lake-COOP and CoCoRahs observers, as well as Mesonet/ASOS sites, reported rainfall amounts ranging from 1.0-3.0 around Walker, CA, to the Lee Vining/Mono Lake area with 4.0-6.0 around the Crestview to Mammouth Lakes, CA region.
December 2021Heavy RainMono Lake-CO-OP Observer, COCORAHS station (CA-MN-6), and mesonet sites reported heavy rain ranging from 0.55-0.65 in Lee Vining and up to 2.00 at mesonet site (CRVC 1) 1.0 mi SSW of Crestview, CA.
December 2019Heavy RainMono Lake-HADS station ERYC1 at Ellery Lake reported 1.70 inches of rainfall in a 48-hour period from 1 December 0000PST to 2 December 2359PST. Station elevation of 9504 ft MSL.
July 2018Debris FlowMono Lake-California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) reported a debris flow just east of Tioga Pass on State Route 120 in Mono County, closing a three mile stretch of the road from US Highway 395 to the debris flow site. According to The Mercury News, a car was hit by a rock at 1600PST. Within 20 minutes, an active debris flow was declared. The road remained closed until 21 July 1930PST. No nearby gauges were available to estimate the rainfall amounts near the debris flow path. No damage/cleanup estimates were available.
July 2018Debris FlowMono Lake-California Highway Patrol indicated a two-lane road closure of Lundy Lake Road, about 5 miles northwest of Mono Lake, due to a rock slide/debris flow across the roadway. The Lundy Raws sensor recorded 0.75 inches of rain in a 3 hour time period before the slide occurred. No damage estimates were available.
May 2018Heavy RainMono Lake-Mesonet station VGAC1, 3 miles west-southwest of Conway Summit reported 0.60 inches of rainfall from 20 May 2200PST to 21 May 1400PST.
October 2016Debris FlowMono Lake-A combination of steep terrain (cliff face) and significant rain caused a large rockfall onto Tioga Pass Road (CA 120), causing the shutdown of the road. The time of the rockfall is estimated and based around the time of the heavy rainfall.
July 2015Debris FlowMono Lake-A rock and mud slide was reported on highway 120 by the California Highway Patrol.
July 2014Debris FlowMono Lake-The California Highway Patrol (CHP) reported water covering Lundy Lake Road, with the Mono County Sheriff noting a large and deep mudslide over the road. CHP indicated that emergency crews were unable to reach an emergency call due to the road blockage.

Every storm recorded in Mono County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Mono City2.2 miles24
Lee Vining3.9 miles31
Lundy4.8 miles24
Virginia Lakes6.0 miles25
Bennettville (historical)7.5 miles32
Dunderberg Mill8.3 miles25
Dog Town (historical)11.4 miles24
Willow Springs12.7 miles24

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 2790799. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.