Tag Archives: eastern

Locations

Tioga Pass and Alternatives as Winter Approaches

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Lots of us northern and central California photographers make trips to the eastern Sierra in the summer and fall – I know that many of you have been there in the past month to photograph aspens and other fall color. For many of us the standard route to the “east side” is through Yosemite National Park and over Tioga Pass on State Highway 120 to Lee Vining and the area near Mono Lake. From here it is a short drive south to Mammoth (about a half hour) and Bishop (an hour) and points south, including Big Pine, Independence, and Lone Pine.

As the fall season arrives and winter weather approaches, Tioga Pass becomes a less reliable route and eventually closes for the season. The seasonal closure typically occurs sometime in late October or in November, though the historical records show that it has happened as late as January 1!

Continue reading Tioga Pass and Alternatives as Winter Approaches →
Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Early Autumn Snow, Conway Summit

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Early Autumn Snow, Conway Summit

Early Autumn Snow, Conway Summit. Sierra Nevada, California. October 4, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Aspen trees begin to change color after an early autumn snow storm at Conway Summit, Sierra Nevada, California.

Back in September I began making plans to visit the eastern Sierra near the end of the month and during early October, and based on previous experience with fall Sierra aspen color I made some assumptions about when and where the color might be at its peak. This year has not evolved according to expectations. I would have expected the huge aspen groves below highway 395 at Conway Summit to be nearing or at peak color during the first weekend of October… but instead the trees here were largely still green with only a few spots of real color. It seems like the low and middle elevation aspens are behind schedule this year.

However, as if to temper the slight disappointment about the lack of brilliant colors, I did get to visit during an early fall cold snap and storm passage that dropped anywhere from a trace to a few inches of snow over a good portion of the Sierra – including the peaks above Conway Summit.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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keywords: aspen, color, green, yellow, green, gold, tree, grove, forest, brush, grass, meadow, hill, eastern, sierra, nevada, mountain, range, snow, snowfall, dusting, flurry, peak, sky, cloud, storm, bare, virginia, lake, road, highway, 395, lee vining, california, usa, season, fall, autumn, stock

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

Aspen Trunks, Autumn

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Aspen Trunks, Autumn

Aspen Trunks, Autumn. Sierra Nevada, California. October 3, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A row of bare, white aspen tree trunks in front of a grove of trees in full autumn color, Sierra Nevada, California.

Since I like both the wild colors of autumn aspens and the stark bare white trunks of the trees after the leaves fall, it is should be no surprise that this scene attracted me – in the front is a row of trees that had lost their leaves and behind is a small grove with wild yellow, gold, and red leaves.

I photographed this group of trees in soft afternoon light in the upper reaches of the drainage below South Lake where the sun drops behind higher ridges early at this time of year. The aspen conditions were a bit unusual here when I visited: some trees that had changed colors earlier had lost all or most of their leaves due to a cold snap and some very strong winds, but other trees seemed to be late in changing colors and were still green.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
Twitter: http://twitter.com/gdanmitchell
Friendfeed: http://friendfeed.com/gdanmitchell
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gdanmitchell

keywords: aspen, tree, trunk, bare, leaf, leaves, gold, red, yellow, branch, grove, stand, thicket, bright, brilliant, fall, autumn, season, color, grass, south, lake, bishop, creek, sierra, nevada, mountain, range, landscape, nature, flora, plant, foliage, change, eastern, scenic, travel, stock

News

Plans Change

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I had originally intended to hit the road this afternoon for points east of the Sierra crest for another round of aspen color (and other subjects) photography… but I changed my mind within the past 48 hours or so. Why? Several reasons, actually:

  • Folks who are currently in the eastern Sierra and whose reports I follow are saying that the aspen color situation is still a bit difficult this season. As I expected, the highest groves are mostly devoid of leaves at this point and, oddly, many of the lower level groves have not shown signs of great color yet either. I’m not at all certain that another drive up there today would gain me better opportunities than I had during the past few weeks.
  • With that in mind, the idea of another 600-800+ miles of driving is a bit less attractive (to put it mildly!) than it might otherwise be.
  • I want to find some time to more thoroughly go over the aspen and other photographs that I’ve made during the past few weeks – so far I’ve only had a chance to “pick off” the most obvious keepers, and I know there are others there that require a closer look.
  • I want to make some prints this weekend!
  • I want to attend a concert this weekend at which the orchestra (of which my wife is a member) performs a few favorite pieces.

So, with all of this to consider, I’m going to put far less mileage on my car this weekend – though I may just make up for it the following week!

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.