Tag Archives: forest

Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Cascade in Lee Vining Canyon, Autumn Snow

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Cascade in Lee Vining Canyon, Autumn Snow

Cascade in Lee Vining Canyon, Autumn Snow. Sierra Nevada, California. October 12, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Cascade on Lee Vining Creek on an autumn afternoon following an early snowfall.

On my second trip to the eastern Sierra this fall – a much less successful trip than the first one a week earlier – I visited Lee Vining Canyon in the late afternoon, after the sun had retreated behind the very high peaks around Tioga Pass, leaving the bottom of the canyon in shadow. My last stop in the canyon was at this well-known cascade near the Bend campground. I did several long exposures of the cascade so that the water would diffuse. As you can see, the fall foliage here was less spectacular than in some other years, but the recent snow on the branches and the creek bank along with the frozen water under the overhang at the upper right created a wintery quality in the scene.

keywords: lee vining, creek, canyon, cascade, water, fall, waterfall, blur, motion, forest, ice, snow, fall, autumn, fall, october, cold, tree, bush, rock, boulder, log, scenic, travel, landscape, stock, california, usa, sierra, nevada, tioga, pass, yosemite, national park

Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Clouds Rest and Fog, Alpenglow

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Clouds Rest and Fog, Alpenglow

Clouds Rest and Fog, Alpenglow. Yosemite National Park, California. October 5, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Alpenglow illuminates fog in the valleys below Clouds Rest at twilight. Yosemite National Park.

Luck was with me on my drive back from Aspen hunting in the eastern Sierra during the first weekend of October 2008. Although I originally planned to return to the Bay Area via Monitor Pass, I made a somewhat spontaneous decision to instead return over Tioga Pass. After passing through Tuolumne Meadows a half hour before sunset, I continued on and near Tenaya Lake I noticed that fog was forming in the aftermath of the weather front that had come through a day before.

When I arrived at Olmsted Point and its famous view of Tenaya Lake and Half Dome, the fog had completely blocked the view. I wasn’t really planning on shooting here so I continued on. A few seconds later after rounding a bend in the road I saw that the fog was barely blocking the light of the setting sun, and that rocks and trees were being gently illuminated through the fog. I’ll post that photo later along with a bit more information about the scene.

In any case, I finally got back to my car and began what I thought would be a direct drive home, since the light was now fading quickly. I drove on for a few more minutes, came around a bend at the top of a rise, and saw this stunning scene of Clouds Rest rising above the valley fog and illuminated by alpenglow. Not willing to pass this up I stopped again and set up the tripod/camera and made a few exposures of this incredible and rare view.

keywords: clouds, rest, mountain, ridge, fog, mist, evening, twilight, alpenglow, forest, tree, cliff, snow, fall, autumn, tioga, road, yosemite, national park, california, usa, travel, scenic, landscape, night, sierra, nevada, stock

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspen Grove, South Bishop Creek

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Aspen Grove, South Bishop Creek

Aspen Grove, South Bishop Creek. Sierra Nevada, California. October 4, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Aspen grove near South Bishop Creek in full autumn color.

Another aspen grove photograph from last weekend’s Epic Aspen Hunt in the eastern Sierra, this example from the south fork of Bishop Creek below South Lake. This specific spot was not one that would necessarily attract anyone – it was down a short and very inconspicuous dirt road paralleling the main paved roadway, and there was only one other photographer shooting in the area when I visited. I just drove into the grove on this little one-lane road, found a pull-out, and got out and shot right where I found myself; I spent at least a half hour exploring this one very small are of dense trees. The shaded grove provided an opportunity to see and photograph the brilliant colors and bright white trunks of these trees without having do deal with the harsh direct sunlight that can create a dynamic range that is almost impossible to capture.

For those hoping to photograph these aspen during the upcoming weekend, some advice. I think that these the trees in these higher areas up the roads to North Lake, South Lake, and Sabrina Lake are likely to have pretty much run their course by now. Reports I saw today seemed to say as much, but they did mention that the colors further down that canyons are looking pretty good. I’ll probably head back up on Saturday and Sunday, but I’m likely to shoot in lower-elevation areas including Lundy and Lee Vining Canyons – the latter often has good color a bit later in the season.

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.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspen Leaves, North Lake

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Aspen Leaves, North Lake

Aspen Leaves at North Lake. Sierra Nevada, California. October 5, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Colorful autumn aspen leaves at North Lake, California.

After being snowed on at North Lake the previous morning, I returned again on this day and concentrated on photographing aspen leaves, branches, and trunks in a grove along the side of the lake and near the famous “tree tunnel” that so many have photographed here.

To add one point… while I love the color and light of the large aspen groves and love to photograph their astonishing colors as well, I think I have come to prefer photographing the smaller details of these groves: a few leaves, some branches, perhaps against a background containing some rocks or trees that have lost their leaves.

keywords: colorful, fall, autumn, foliage, leaves, aspen, grove, forest, red, orange, yellow, gold, trunk, branch, north, lake, califoria, usa, bishop, creek, nature, stock, sierra, nevada, range, mountains