Tag Archives: autumn

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Beaver Pond, Early Snow

October 28, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The first snow of autumn falls on an eastern Sierra Nevada beaver pond

We began our October visit to the eastern Sierra aspens with a very long drive from the north, necessitated by an early season snow storm that swept across the range on the day of our drive, closing all of the passes that are not normally plowed – Tioga, Ebbetts, and Sonora. So we drove over Carson and Monitor Passes to reach highway 395. The snow started before we reached the summit of Carson pass and continued intermittently throughout the rest of the day – never enough to interfere with our driving (aside from the closed passes) but enough to make the photography interesting and to create an appearance that seemed more winter- than autumn-like.

As we headed south on highway 395, we stopped quite a bit to make photographs or even take a side road detour or two. Just before reaching Lee Vining we headed up this canyon, which is known as a good spot of aspens – and for a very narrow section of roadway that passes along the side of a so-called beaver pond. I’ve been past this spot many times, but this was the first time in falling snow. The gray skies and the falling snow created a very peaceful effect around the pond, and we paused to photograph it before making a brief visit to the trailhead at the end of the road.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Trees, Early Season Snow

October 27, 2013 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Eastern Sierra Nevada trees and the aftermath of an early season dusting of snow

Since it had snowed during our drive to the eastern Sierra the previous day, we knew that we would have some opportunities to photograph snow on this morning up in Bishop Creek. We began the day along the eastern escarpment of the range in the high desert, where we photographed the first dawn light on the snow-coated peaks of the crest. Once this light show ended, we packed up and headed up into the canyon to look for aspen color. For this particular date in October it seemed like the color had reached lower elevations than would usually be the case, and before long we encountered large stands of trees in full autumn color.

We stopped to photograph one of the first groups of aspens, and after making a few photographs of the colorful trees I began to look at the snow covering the steep banks of the nearby Bishop Creek. I can photograph aspens every fall, but I don’t always see new snow when I visit in early October! The first morning sun was just about to strike these trees as the sun topped the high ridge above us, and the scene seemed distinctly winter-like to me.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspen Leaves on Snow

October 17, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Frost covered autumn aspen leaves lying on new-fallen snow, Sierra Nevada

Early October is the time of the annual aspen color transition in the eastern Sierra Nevada. For me, the combination of the dramatic color change and the seasonal weather changes clearly denote the fact that summer is over and that we are heading toward the cold part of the year. (I like this – I find that the fall through spring seasons are more photographically compelling, and I’m no longer a “hot weather person.”) While October in the Sierra can bring some beautiful and even warm days, there is not question that nights are both longer and colder, and the occasional passing weather front will drop enough snow to make it feel distinctly winter-like.

Although we knew that much of the iconic color at North Lake had already passed, we decided to go there anyway on this morning and look for more subtle things that remain. The road past the lake is on a north slope and we drove through plenty of recent snow as we passed along this shoreline in 22 degree temperatures. As expected, most of the trees had lost their leaves already, though we also found some trees that still held enough colorful leaves to make the visit well worth our time. And, when those leaves fall, they don’t simply disappear! On a snowy morning like this one they collect in piles on top of the snow, providing beautiful little compositions and highlighting the intensity of their colors.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspens and Pines

October 15, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A few pine trees stand among the autumn aspens near Conway Summit in the eastern Sierra Nevada

I made this photograph in the vicinity of a well-known and easily accessible aspen color “hot spot” in the eastern Sierra, at Conway Summit along highway 395 north of Lee Vining. Here is one of the largest and most easily accessible areas of aspen color in the eastern Sierra, since it is in a large open area with grand vistas up aspen covered slopes and because these slopes rise from an open section of the highway. At the right point in time (almost) every season, trees in every stage of color may be seen, ranging from green through yellow, orange, and red to bare trees that have lost all of their leaves.

This season I was in the eastern Sierra for five days, ranging between Carson Pass in the north and as far south as the Bishop Creek drainage. Several times during this period I managed to end up at or near Conway Summit. The first visit was on the trip over to Bishop, when we drove 395 down from Carson and Monitor Passes in the middle of an early season snow storm. Arriving at the summit that day, I photographed this area in falling snow that almost obscured the trees. Only two days later I was there again in the afternoon, when the backlight coming across the Sierra crest can cause the autumn aspen leaves to glow with great intensity. For this photograph I found a spot where the nearer trees were largely bare except for a few trees still holding a few golden leaves.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: autumn

Beaver Pond, Early Snow

Trees, Early Season Snow

Aspen Leaves on Snow

Aspens and Pines

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.