Autumn in the Eastern Sierra
Driving the 125 miles that separates the terminus of highway 14 at the 395 and Bishop, it’s easy to convince oneself that the desert landscape stretching between the Sierra and the White Mountains will not see much change with the seasons, save perhaps for the snow covering the steep faces of the mountains. Climbing toward Mammoth Lakes, the stark hills reinforce this belief, and even the pine forest that slowly engulfs us, aside from the occasional blanket of snow, remains unchanging.
Where are the fall colors, then, that the Eastern Sierra famously touts? Where are the quivering aspens clad in gold and crimson? They are, of course, tucked away in every canyon, every cleft in the skirts of the Sierra, every gorge carved by runoff and snowmelt. And so, a search for fall colors here, from Bishop Creek in the south to Lundy Lake, Virginia Lakes, and beyond is one of canyon hopping, of gaining altitude and watching the rainbow of foliage transform itself from vivid greens to yellows and ambers to deep vermillion. When one canyon is ablaze though, most others will still proudly wear their mantles of green, refusing to succumb to the winds of autumn. A single ill-timed storm can wipe the slate clean, mixing the colors into the white of winter. To the canyons of September and October then, in search of elusive gold!
Read MoreWhere are the fall colors, then, that the Eastern Sierra famously touts? Where are the quivering aspens clad in gold and crimson? They are, of course, tucked away in every canyon, every cleft in the skirts of the Sierra, every gorge carved by runoff and snowmelt. And so, a search for fall colors here, from Bishop Creek in the south to Lundy Lake, Virginia Lakes, and beyond is one of canyon hopping, of gaining altitude and watching the rainbow of foliage transform itself from vivid greens to yellows and ambers to deep vermillion. When one canyon is ablaze though, most others will still proudly wear their mantles of green, refusing to succumb to the winds of autumn. A single ill-timed storm can wipe the slate clean, mixing the colors into the white of winter. To the canyons of September and October then, in search of elusive gold!
