Tag Archives: wildflowers

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Late Season Wildflowers

Image Leave a comment
Late Season Wildflowers
A patch of late-August lupine flowers in the John Muir Wilderness

Late Season Wildflowers. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A patch of late-August lupine flowers in the John Muir Wilderness.

Over the years I’ve seen some outlier seasons in the Sierra Nevada. A few years ago we experienced a serious five-year drought that left the range dry very early in the season, producing summers that were mostly brown up high and autumns that featured stressed aspens. I’ve also experienced summers that followed extremely wet precipitation seasons, including several during which the high country really did not open until July. In those years there was snow around all summer, and even at the end of the season there were still flowing water, green meadows, and even wildflowers.

This summer fell into the latter category. Although last winter’s season started out looking dry, a series of strong storms arrived a bit later and produced a much larger than average snowpack. Once again, the opening of the high country was delayed, and when it did open up there was water everywhere. My recent visit was during the final few days of August and the first couple of days of September. Despite the late date, many areas were still green — especially in the well-watered valley we visited — and wildflowers were still blooming. Not far from our camp I found extensive patches of lupine in full bloom.

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” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Trees, Rocky Meadow

Image Leave a comment
Trees, Rocky Meadow
Trees march up the slopes of a rocky subalpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness

Trees, Rocky Meadow. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Trees march up the slopes of a rocky subalpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness.

Yes, I am still mining the files from this 2017 trip into the John Muir Wilderness. We were lucky to stay in an absolutely lovely area, and to find that this area was also within day-hiking distance of other wonderful locations, some of which were literally minutes away from our base camp. On top of that, we hit the weather jackpot. After a very wet and extended winter season, the lingering snows had kept the Sierra wet later than usual, and despite arriving here in the last week of August and sticking around until the very beginning of September, we had green meadows and wildflowers.

Perhaps a fifteen minute walk above our camp, beautiful subalpine meadows began. This is the land of small trees separated by expenses of seasonal green, dotted with boulders, swampy in places, and often open to expansive views of distant peaks. In short, it is pretty much my favorite place to be in the Sierra Nevada.

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” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Meadow, Snag, And Boulder

Image Leave a comment
Meadow, Snag, And Boulder
An old snag lies across a boulder at the edge of an alpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness

Meadow, Snag, And Boulder. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

An old snag lies across a boulder at the edge of an alpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness.

This view looks across a high meadow, past an old snag resting on a boulder, across a low ridge covered with wildflowers, and towards a more distant ridge on the other side of the main canyon. It is, in many ways, a classic Sierra Nevada view. It is also a view of my favorite Sierra Nevada terrain — that land just below timberline where the forest of small trees opens more and more to the light, with meadows and granite areas providing open views of the surrounding peaks.

We (a group of photographers and fiends) were camped above a nearby lake for a week, spending out days in a combination of intense photography and the backcountry camaraderie that develops among such people in such places. This spot was perhaps a 15-20 minute walk from our camp, and we visited it often. On this day several of us were up before dawn and headed this way, intending to photograph the first light on mountains, meadows, and trees.

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” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Morning Meadow

Image Leave a comment
Morning Meadow
Wild onion plants in bloom at the edge of a subalpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness

Morning Meadow. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Wild onion plants in bloom at the edge of a subalpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness.

One a weeklong visit to this area a couple of years ago, I eventually started to locate particular nearby locations that I returned to almost daily, visiting at all times of the day and getting to know them well. We camped above a quiet lake, and below its lower end there were long meadows extending toward the deep valley beyond. Despite the lateness of the season (it had been a very wet year!) the meadows were still green and even wet in places, and there were wildflowers everywhere. In this little spot the view opened through gaps in the surrounding forest to reveal views of distant peaks.

It might seem odd to make a photograph of… onion plants. But if you have spent much time in the Sierra backcountry you may have developed an affinity for this plant. The wild onion generally grows in wet places, and when the conditions are right the plants are almost lush. The beautiful purple flowers are striking. And the fragrance of these plants, often combined with damp and cooler air where they grow, produces a pleasant sensory memory that I associate with these places and with backpacking.

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” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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