Homes And Land Available in California's Eastern Sierra

The Big Picture

While just three hours (200 miles) north of Los Angeles, Sierra East is a world unto itself, with vast swaths of public land and a fascinating variety of geography and ecology due to its location at a convergence of several great American physiographic provinces. There is a rich trove of online content about this area; start here.

A tiny fraction of Eastern Sierra literature

It turns out that Inyo County, which is larger than the state of New Jersey, is only 1.7% privately owned. Of that, very little is undeveloped or zoned residential, so options began to narrow. The most rarefied properties are priced accordingly but there is one very affordable and relatively undeveloped area of the conveniently accessible Owens Valley corridor: the small community of Olancha-Cartago.

View toward Olancha Peak from Cartago Springs wetland

The water for domestic use here is for all intents and purposes what Crystal Geyser pumps out of the ground and bottles just down the road. Uniquely, the water is pure, abundant, easily accessed, and may be freely used as desired.

Crystal Geyser ‘Spring’ water comes from wells right down the road!

Besides being incredibly affordable by Southern California standards, there are plenty other reasons why you might want to own a piece of Sierra East…start with “Why Own Here?”

Overview of Olancha, Cartago, Owens Lake and the Inyo Range from the Sierra Nevada.