Tag Archives: granite

Boulders, Upper Young Lake

Boulders, Upper Young Lake

Boulders, Upper Young Lake. Yosemite National Park, California. July 29, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Small islands catch the evening light at Upper Young Lake, Yosemite National Park.

On this late-July evening I climbed from Lower Young Lake to the upper lake an hour or so before sunset, hoping to photograph the lake and the surrounding open terrain as the day ended. The lake provides a real alpine scene, as it is set in an open meadow interspersed with glacial remains and scattered groups of trees with tall, rocky ridges and peaks to the south, east, and north – but open to the sunset in the west.

On a side note, I’ve been to this lake a number of times. Although the walk up from the lower lake isn’t all that far (perhaps a mile or so) I’ve always wondered about one section of the use trail that more or less ascends right up a steep section of the creek flowing from the lake. This time I took a closer look at the map instead of just walking where the trail seemed to go, and I found a much easier approach that leaves the main trail at the middle lake.

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.

keywords: boulder, island, evening, sunset, light, warm, ripples, reflection, grass, tree, plant, flora, lichen, rock, hill, tree, alpine, face, meadow, shoreline, upper, young, lake, granite, snow, forest, grove, water, sierra, nevada, mountain, range, yosemite, national park, california, usa, hike, backpack, travel, scenic, tuolumne meadows, nature, landscape, stock

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning. Yosemite Valley, California. May 10, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light illuminates a small portion of the vertical face of El Capitan, Yosemite Valley. (black and white)

This is a black and white version of a photograph I posted earlier. Back in May I was photographing spring trees and meadow plants in El Capitan Meadow in Yosemite Valley. Since I happened to have the 400mm lens on the camera at one point I decided to do a few close shots of some sections of the face of the monolith. In the full size versions of this photograph I can make out a number of individual climbers and even see the ropes stretched between them.

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.

keywords: national park, travel, yosemite, valley, national park, morning, spring, el capitan, cliff, face, mountain, rock, granite, climber, flake, crack, monolith, shadow, landscape, scenic, geology, big, wall, route, rope, haul sack, belay, lead, stock

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning. Yosemite Valley, California. May 10, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light illuminates a small portion of the vertical face of El Capitan, Yosemite Valley.

While photographing the oaks in El Capitan Meadow in early May I decide to point my lens up towards the vertical face of El Capitan. In the full size version of this print you can pick out a number of climbers in various places across the cliff.

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.

keywords: national park, travel, yosemite, valley, national park, morning, spring, el capitan, cliff, face, mountain, rock, granite, climber, flake, crack, monolith, shadow, landscape, scenic, geology, big, wall, route, rope, haul sack, belay, lead, stock

Meadow and Morning Fog, Half Dome and Glacier Point

Meadow and Morning Fog, Half Dome and Glacier Point

Meadow and Morning Fog, Half Dome and Glacier Point. Yosemite National Park, California. April 21, 2007. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early morning fog above an oak-studded meadow in Yosemite Valley, with the cliffs of Half Dome and Glacier Point above. Yosemite National Park, California.

This is a photograph I recently revisited. It was made on a very cold April spring morning in the Valley as the sunlight began to stream over Half Dome and illuminate the Glacier Point apron and as ground fog began to lift from meadows on the floor of the Valley.

keywords: early, morning, dawn, light, fog, mist, meadow, grass, oak, tree, forest, half dome, glacier point, cloud, sky, silhouette, yosemite, valley, national park, california, usa, scenic, travel, landscape, nature, stock, cliff, granite