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In Search of Liquid Turquoise 2018
“Hiking to 10,000ft in search of pristine Alpine Lakes!” Saturday, September 1st, 2018 Today was the day that Jenn and I had been talking about for some time. The relentless heat of summer in the Mojave Desert had pushed our venturing ideas into the cooler regions of the Eastern Sierra Nevada. We had known about the lakes at the foot of Temple Crag for some time and had only ever seen photos of them. We wanted to experience one lake in particular, Big Pine Lake or as it is often called “Second Lake”. The hike is nearly 5 miles (8 km) to Big Pine Lake and over 3,000 ft (915…
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Hunting the Rare Snow Plant 2018
“In search of a rare, red, plant hiding in the woods!” Saturday, May 26th, 2018 During a hike along the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) a few days ago with my mom, I spotted an extremely vivid plant growing out or the pine needles littered all over the forest floor. The elevation where I discovered this strange plant was 7,452 feet (2,271 m). There were no others like it in the vicinity, so I snapped a few reference photos with my iPhone 6s camera and decided to make an effort to return within a few days. I learned that the strange plant is referred to as a “Snow Plant” or “Snow…
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Snowblast in the Mojave Desert 2018
An Evermore Rare Event in the Mojave Desert – “Snow!” Tuesday, February 27th, 2018 The year of 2018 started with a rather large period of hot spells and dryness. The approaching storms that encroached on the Mojave Desert always managed to dissolve before getting the opportunity to quench the Mojave’s insatiable thirst. The transverse range that separates the desert from the coastal valleys is mostly to blame for this as it creates what is referred to as a “rain shadow”. Now, I am not a meteorologist by any means, but I do have a very fundamental knowledge of how it works in this area seeing as how I have experienced…
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Hiking the Rush Creek Trail 2017
Rush Creek Trail – “Living up to its name!” Monday, June 5th, 2017 Most days, the idea of a Monday morning spawns images of another dreadful work week. For me however, It would be a very different Monday. I was fortunate enough to wake up on in the Eastern Sierra Nevada with a beautiful destination to venture to. I have been visiting the June Lake Loop for well over a decade, but never actually hiked the trails that are in and around this lovely region. I was going to change that by taking on the Rush Creek Trail to Agnew Lake. “The Starship hits up the June Lake Loop for another glorious Eastern…
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Exploring the Alabama Hills 2017
Visiting the Arch Trail Loop – “Venturing out for a good round of shots.” Thursday, March 23rd, 2017 On this new spring day, my travel companion and I traveled to the wonderful land of Alabama Hills for some exploration and photography. The weather was very clear and the sun was shining as bright as it could on us, but no more than a typical sunny day in Winter. Julia and I wanted to revisit the Mobius Arch trial loop and being a weekday, we had the place all to ourselves for a little while at least. “Lone Pine Peak rises high over the Alabama Hills.” Arch Trail Loop GPS Coordinates:…
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Whitney Portal Road 2017
Hiking the Whitney Portal Road – “Taking the slow lane!” Wednesday, March 22nd, 2017 My travel companion Julia and I wanted to visit the Whitney Portal today because it had been years since our last trip to this place. The weather was perfect and we started our ascent early that morning. As we drove up Whitney Portal Road, we were suddenly stopped by a ‘suggested’ road closure sign. Now typically I will cruise around signs like this, but I knew of the serious damage that occurred up the road by a massive rock slide in late January 2017. I also knew that the debris was recently cleared with dynamite and heavy equipment, but what I didn’t know…
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Wintery Spring in the Eastern Sierra 2017
Cruising the 395 from Lone Pine to Mammoth – “Allergies be gone!” Tuesday, March 21st, 2017 With the winds blowing strong and the pollen abound, my allergies were wreaking havoc on my well being, but we still pushed on with the day. It was Julia’s first time visiting this grand region again since our last Eastern Sierra romp in 2014. I felt bad because I was dealing with headache’s shortness of breath, and wanting to blackout which did not make me the sort of company you’d want to have around on a trip like this. Despite all my symptoms, I was determined to help show her a good time today. We had started…
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Spring Equinox at Death Valley 2017
The First Day of Spring in Death Valley – “97ºF and getting hotter!” Monday, March 20th, 2017 Every year, my best friend and I would get together and go on an epic photo venture, but due to extremely difficult times, 15 months had managed to pass since we last traveled together and so we both decided to put a stop to this no matter what. One day before the Spring Equinox of 2017, I picked up the lovely Miss Julia Starr at McCarran International Airport in Vegas. We were both extremely excited to see each other again and made the preparations for the days to follow. We set off on…
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Lone Pine Winter Storm 2017 – Chapter 03
DAY 04 – “That morning light on high sierra granite.” Tuesday, January 24th, 2017 I woke up at 6 AM again on the nose and took a quick look outside to see what the weather was like. It was mostly clear and the Eastern Sierra peaks where definitely in view. I geared up fast and loaded everything into the Starship. I knew that I had to get out to a decent point along Whitney Portal Road if I was going to capture some Mt. Whitney alpenglow. Once it begins, good alpenglow will only last from five to eight minutes tops and the rose-pink color then becomes typical daylight. The sun had…
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Lone Pine Winter Storm 2017 – Chapter 02
DAY 03 – “A break in the storm brings some blue skies.” Monday, January 23rd, 2017 The past couple of nights were rough due to the sound of howling winds blasting ice pellets at my door and window. The wall heater also joined in the midnight orchestra by occasionally popping loud enough to startle me awake when it cooled and then roared when it fired back up. None of that mattered however because I was having a wonderful time and looking forward to what the weather would bring for the following day. I got up at 6 AM again without the need for an alarm. My body and mind were in “Venture Mode”…
