Yosemite~Weekend Reflections~070911

I took all of these photos during our day at Yosemite National Park, which was on July 1st. In the top one, Tioga Lake was still partially frozen on July 1st. Isn't that amazing? I'm sure it is free of ice now, but I could be mistaken. At over 9,000 feet, those high lakes still have freezing temps at night and parts of the park still had a lot of snow on them. We were there mid-June and the east entrance to the park wasn't even open yet because of late snow removal. But, it opened on June 18 (the day we left) and we returned June 29 through July 4th to the Sierra. I read somewhere that they had 178% of their normal snow fall this year and that's why the Tioga Pass was so late opening and why the higher elevations still had so much snow left on them, including the Mammoth Lakes area where we stayed for 4 nights. We always enjoy our trips to the Sierra and are already planning our next one. Weekend Reflections for July 9, 2011. All photos were taken in Yosemite National Park using my Nikon D40x on manual settings. There was water everywhere in the park. Waterfalls, lakes full, rivers running high...it was really a different view of the park from last summer, when we were there in August. To see other participants, please go to: http://newtowndailyphoto.blogspot.com/?

Tioga Lake, early morning~SkyWatch Friday~070811

Hubby and I woke up at 4 a.m. one morning on our recent trip to the Sierra and headed up the Tioga Pass to Yosemite. Along the way, we stopped at Tioga Lake, which was still partially frozen on July 2nd. The eastern entrance to Yosemite just opened up a couple of weeks earlier and at that time, this lake was completely frozen! What a beautiful, stark scene it was. When we returned on this morning, there was still ice along the edges of the lake. Skywatch Friday for July 8, 2011. I'll post more photos about our trip over the next week. We didn't have any Internet in our cabin the entire time we were there. To see other participants, please go to: http://skyley.blogspot.com/

California poppy

Just some California sunshine to brighten up your day! I planted some wildflower seeds last fall in my front yard and I now have desert lupine, California poppies, and some kind of red salvia. I'll need to reseed soon, however, as summer here in the desert will soon be upon us.

Above Big Pine~SkyWatch Friday~April 29, 2011

Hubby and I found a road which wound up into the Sierras above Big Pine, so we followed it to the end, where it was closed off for the winter. We and several other cars stopped and got out to explore this beautiful area. Unfortunately, at some point, a fire roared down the canyon, destroying several homes and forcing the evacuation of the entire town. It's always saddening to see such destruction. But, up in the canyon, all was peaceful and quiet. SkyWatch Friday for April 29, 2011.

Early morning sun and petroglyphs~SOOC Sunday~042411

Early one morning, hubby and I headed out to find the 3rd petroglyph site outside of Bishop, CA. We had a general idea where it was and found the dirt road down to it. We were the only car there all morning. The area was still in the shadow of the White Mountains, but as the sun came up over the mountains, we were out climbing among the rocks and I looked up to see these rocks and one of them had petroglyphs on it! There were literally many, many petroglyphs here and we just barely began to explore this area, but we'd been there for two hours, so we headed back to town and breakfast! I would like to go back some morning and explore it further. Maybe our next trip? SOOC Sunday for April 24, 2011. If you do go exploring in these areas, please be careful! As I was walking through the sagebrush, I heard a "sssssssssssssss" a couple of times. I didn't see anything, but the third time, I went into instinct mode...heart pounding, adreneline rushing, and I literally ran back to the road! I didn't want to stick around to see what it was! I definitely could feel the spirits of the "old ones" here! To view other participants, please go to: http://www.murrieta365.com/

"Sky", Photo Time, Day One, April 24, 2011

This was the sky above the mountains above Big Pine, CA on Thursday afternoon. It was snowing in the higher elevations of the Sierras and the road was closed beyond this point. Photo Time, Day One for April 24, 2011..."sky".

Alabama Hills wildflowers~Sunday Stills Challenge~042411

Hubby and I just returned from 6 days in the eastern Sierras! Ahhhh....what beauty! And, there were plenty of wildflowers there to admire, including these! I believe that the yellow ones along the highway (Highway 395) are desert dandylions. I found the other ones up in the Alabama Hills and I'm not sure what they are! The Alabama Hills are just outside of Lone Pine, CA, up the Whitney Portal road. Sunday Stills Challenge for April 24, 2011 "wildflowers".