High Country Meadow and Trail. John Muir Wilderness, California. August 28, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A use trail cuts across a subalpine meadow high in the John Muir Wilderness

Earlier this afternoon we left our camp down at a lower lake and headed off into higher country. I followed a use trail up to a moraine ridge, then passed over a section of beautiful meadow with stunning views of surrounding peaks and closer views of late-season wildflowers. From here I simply followed the watershed up the valley a ways until a decent stream crossing presented itself, and from there I wandered across glaciated slabs to the top of a low ridge separating our valley from another containing several lakes.

It was late in the day, so the time available for lingering on the ridge was limited. I soon spotted Patty traversing a lower section of the slabs and I headed down to join her. We continued down to the creek where we had a moment of good light on a small lake before the sun dropped behind a high ridge and left us in shadow. As we continued down the drainage toward that meadow where we started the views to the south opened up and the evening light was still on the ridges. We stopped before descending to the meadow, and from here a narrow trail was visible as it traversed one side of the meadow just below a rocky section filled with old glacial erratics, with a dramatic backdrop of high peaks on the far side of the valley.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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