Tag Archives: national park

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Dunes, Evening

April 28, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Evening light comes to desert sand dunes, Death Valley National Park

I made this photograph on the evening of our arrival in Death Valley this past March, when we spent the better part of a week photographing in this desert park. We took a slow drive into the park from Ridgecrest, stopping at Trona and then in the Panamint Valley before crossing Towne Pass and dropping into Death Valley itself. It was early enough that we decided to take a “little” side trip to some slightly remote canyons in the afternoon and go for a short hike. We returned to the Stovepipe Wells area and then headed out along the dunes in the evening.

The evening light, especially when softened a bit by clouds or else just after the sun sets, paints the dunes and the surrounding terrain in marvelous and subtle colors. Mountains that are blue-gray in daylight and dunes that are almost colorless take on the colors of the haze, the sky, and the evening light, with shades of pink and yellow and blue and purple and more. This little vignette adds the green of the lush plants growing atop this sand dune, though the dead plants at the right betray the harsh conditions that are found her much of the time.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sequoia-Kings Canyon, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

First Light, Trees, Lake, and Ridge

March 30, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Trees along a rock strewn lake as first morning light strikes a southern Sierra Nevada backcountry ridge

This was the scene on the morning of this fifth day or a trip of over a week across the High Sierra Trail, a trip that would eventually summit Mount Whitney before descending the east side of the Sierra. To me, this route feels like it is composed of several distinct sections. The first couple of days are the approach, reaching the first high country from a west side trailhead. The next few of days are the crossing of the Kaweahs and the descent to the ridges above Big Arroyo, a portion of the trip that has the distinct feeling of remoteness and of dropping down to much lower country. Then there is the march up the Kern and the ascent to meet the JMT, followed by the lateral over to a base camp below Whitney, with the finale being the ascent of this ridge and then the long descent to Whitney Portal.

This morning was in that post-Kaweah phase, at our second camp after crossing the Gap. This lake, a bit off the “official” route, is a quiet and forested place with a gentle feeling that contrasts the rough edges of the higher country. We awoke this morning and I was out before dawn, photographing the first light on this high ridge beyond the trees and across the lake.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sequoia-Kings Canyon, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Alpine Lake, Wind, Dusk

March 29, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Evening wind on the surface of an alpine lake at dusk

When we reached this lake we were approaching the end of a long trans-Sierra hike on the High Sierra Trail. We had crossed the Kaweahs, descending into the Kern River canyon, ascending to the John Muir Trail and headed south, with the eventual goal being the summit of Mount Whitney and the end of our trip at Whitney Portal at the eastern base of the Sierra.

This little alpine lake is the traditional base camp for hikers heading to the summit of Mount Whitney from the west, a group that includes a number of people nearing the end of the southbound John Muir Trail hikes. It can be a crowded place, with many backpackers (sometimes too many) setting up marginal camps in tiny flat spots among the boulders. In the evening I left my group to wander and do a bit of photography, and as the light faded I lengthened my exposures and allowed the wind to blur the surface of the lake a bit.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Granite Slabs, Forest, Evening Light

December 13, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Evening light breaks through clouds to light trees growing on granite slabs along the Tuolumne River

This photograph takes me back to mid-summer days in the high county when I spent a big chunk of time in the Tuolumne Meadows area making photographs in July. It was an odd year — July seemed almost normal, despite the historic drought, except that it looks more like a normal August, with virtually all snow gone, low water in the creeks, and fairly settled weather.

One evening a group of us joined forces to wander along the Tuolumne River in evening light. Here we stopped at a curve where the river curves around a section lined with large granite slabs. It was cloudy, but a bit of late-day light slanted in from the left.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: national park

Dunes, Evening

First Light, Trees, Lake, and Ridge

Alpine Lake, Wind, Dusk

Granite Slabs, Forest, Evening Light

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