Craig, Your the " Wild " one armed tan man, tatoos and all! Hey, we both got the same haircut :-) I tell my wife I love to feel the wind blowing through my hair or I'll act like I'm running my fingers through a thick head of hair. This really gets her laughin. Thanks for sharing your pictures with us. I've been to that one pool the tub a number of times. The first time my wife and I pulled in after coming through Saline Valley earlier in the day. Saline Hotsprings were very busy so we went out the northern route across snow at the pass and into the Mammoth area to " The Tub ". My wifes brother has lived in Mammoth for many years and has a condo there and he had told me about this pool and how to find it. When we arrived at this pool I was just after a cold winter storm had broke and there was about 10 inches of fresh snow on the ground and no car tracks to the pool. We got there around sunset and I set up a tent then we got in the pool. Nobody else came and after a couple hours we decide to hit the sack. I knew it was very cold out because when I would go under water in the pool my hair ( I had some at that time ) on top of my head would freeze in about a minute. I told my wife I'd make us some hot chocolate to warm us up before bed. Unfortunaly my white gas one burner stove kept lighting on fire and was not working properly because of the cold. I threw it into the snow several times in my attempt to light it and found my hands were getting " very!!!! " cold. I told my wife to go ahead and get in here zero rated down bag in the back of the truck and I was going to warm my hands up with the car heater. The cold had built up frost in my starter ( as I found out later ) and my car wouldn't start. Now I was really getting cold. I canned the idea of sleeping in the tent and got into the shell of my truck into my army extreme weather down bag. After about 30 minutes we both found that we were still not warming up so my wife crawled into my bag :-) and we put her bag over the top of us. To people in a mummy bag all night doesn't make for the most restful time but at least we finally got warm enough to stay comfortable. We awoke to an amazing vista of the surrounding high mountains freshly covered with snow in the light of sunrise and had the morning soak to ourselves. No one else came that night or morning! We found out later in the day that the area where we were got down to minus 10 degrees that night! We were tired puppy dogs since we had very little sleep that night but it is an experience that is a fond memory, now that I'm warm :-) I also spent the morning of new years eve 2000 in this same pool and had it again ( incredibly ) all to my self. We were staying with my wifes brother for the new years celebrations at mamoth. The fire works show new years eve 2000 was the most fantastic setting and show I've ever seen. Fireworks shot off above the forest and the ski runs, it was amazing! Anyway at about 2 AM on new years eve morning I couldn't sleep so I got up and drove by myself down to the tub. I arrived about 3 in the morning and I forgot, there were 6 people in the pool when I got there. They had been there for a while and left after about 10 minutes. The rest of the time until about 7:30 in the morning I had the tub to myself. Sippin on my favorite " Box Car " wine and layin back in the pool checkin out the wonderful stars you see in such crystal clear mountain air. In the morning I saw an eagle fly overhead and deer came down by the springs area to feed. I was supprised that I was the only one in the world that new years eve morning to have that special pool for those 4 precious hours! Such special time, I soak it all up as much as I can while my good fortune in this life still smiles on me :-)
