Walker, CA

Walker is one of northern Mono County's small Highway 395 communities, sitting along the West Walker River just south of Coleville. The river is the local thread: it runs nearly 100 miles from the Sierra high country toward Topaz Lake, and the 1997 flood tore up more than six miles of Highway 395 before repair work reshaped the channel. Walker is also a ranch-country stop, with alpine lakes, fishing water, and back roads spreading out from the valley. It shares a mailing address with Coleville, but its own name still fits the river-and-highway landscape. This is Eastern Sierra country where the road follows the water and the mountains set the pace.