Archive for category: Eastern Sierra

A golden rain has been falling in the Eastern Sierra and color spotter Steve Shinn was there to capture it.

He writes that, “North Lake (Bishop Creek Canyon) is about peaked out and after the wild winds, ‘who knows?’  Still, there are lots of green leaves that are hangin in there, waiting for the gold. Sabrina is similar and getting blasted.”

On Tuesday (Oct. 8), there were very few leaves on the ground, but by 3 p.m. the winds had come up and “golden rain was starting up.”

As we have reported repeatedly, many groves are still Just Starting or Patchy. That means they have green, lime or yellow-lime leaves that will not drop because of wind.

That means peak color will continue to appear in coming weeks.

Over the years, Southern California color spotter Kathy Jonokuchi has submitted photographs of wild birds, none more appropriate than the above shot of an American Dipper, Cinclus mexicanus, North America’s only aquatic songbird beside fall color reflected upon Parker Lake.

As, both Kathy and the dipper were singing the praises of fall color in the Eastern Sierra. Between outbursts of joy over the beautiful fall weather, the Dipper was dipping and diving, having a feast on aquatic larvae.

Kathy enjoyed clear skies, light breezes, cool weather and no mosquitoes during her weekend visit, noting that the color at Sagehen Summit is nearly Past Peak, though there was plenty of orange to be seen elsewhere.

Kathy continued to Bishop Creek Canyon on Oct. 6, finding the South Fork of Bishop Creek really popping near Surveyor’s Meadow. This was a weekend to sing its praises.

Bishop Creek color spotter Jared Smith has created a new description of individual aspen that are all at once green, lime, yellow, orange and red. He calls them “mangos, because they’re like a ripening mango. Get it?”

Mango aspen are all over Bishop Creek Canyon, right now. And, we share his opinion that the mangos make for “some awesome shots.”

He reports that cold last Sunday through Wednesday dulled some of the color that had peaked last week, though few leaves turned black and did little damage to most of the foliage that had yet to turn.

So, there’s plenty of color up Bishop Creek Canyon, though leaves are now falling everywhere. Nonetheless, “In the right light, especially in the afternoon hours, it’s stunning out there.” Here’s Jared’s latest report:

Bishop Creek Canyon Summaries

• Above 8,500′ – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! – Expect Instagram and Facebook feeds to be blowing up with pictures from Bishop Creek this week, as it’s really looking great up here and what’s online is pretty impressive. There is still quite a bit of green yet to turn, but peak color can be found all over the canyon. A lot of the green is now turning yellow. Should the good weather hold, so will this epic scenery. GO NOW! Do not delay. It may be gone by next weekend at high elevations, especially along the South Fork of Bishop Creek. Other areas will remain spectacular for longer, conditions permitting.
• Below 8,500′ – Patchy (10-50%) – Plenty of yellow is going off in patches all over the canyon, especially above 8,000′. None of the lower locations have been overtaken by yellow, but it’s showing among a sea of green. Having seen the rapid onset of color over the past week, I estimate Near Peak color in several locations by the end of the week. Some of these lower elevation locations can be spectacular, which bodes well for canyon visitors who can’t make it up until mid October or even later.

South Fork Bishop Creek

• Weir Pond (9,650′) – Near Peak (50% – 75%) GO NOW! The aspen above the pond were hardest hit by the cold and wind, but there’s plenty of color here. The aspen along the road are really bright yellowish green and the back of the pond has some orange.
• Parchers Resort (9,260′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! – The hillsides all around the resort have come on beautifully. Best viewed from within the resort or from below near Willow Camp.
• Willow Campground (9,000′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! – Big time splash of color found its way to this area and the views up towards Parchers Resort are awesome.
• Surveyors Meadow (8,975′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! Impossible to miss – just tons of color all around this spot. Lots of photographers and even a painting club made this their destination of choice this past weekend.
• Table Mountain Camp (8,900′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! Watch out for photographers here because it seems they’re lining the road from morning to dusk. Great views and a splash of rosy orange still hanging tough and more color comes on every day.
• Mist Falls and the groves above Bishop Creek Lodge (8,350′) – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW! – Lots of yellow has developed here, especially looking up canyon. Healthy happy aspen ready to make a big splash within the next week.
• Four Jeffries (8,000′) – Patchy (10% – 50%) – Frequent splashes of color amidst the green … likely to be near peak soon. 
• Big Trees Campground and Forks Campground (7,800′) – Just Starting – (0 – 10%)

Middle Fork Bishop Creek

• Lake Sabrina (9,150′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! – There is too much green to compare Sabrina now with what has shown in years past, but there is a whole lot of color, especially on the east shore where red patches give the appearance that the lake is on fire in places. We’re still on the low end of Peak and expect it to get even more spectacular, weather permitting.
• Sabrina Campground to Sabrina Dam (9,000′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! – The aspen by Sabrina campground are looking surprisingly good considering they were peaking last week. The stretch from the campground to the dam is spectacular, but on the low range of peak.
• Groves above Cardinal Village (8,550′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! This view is stealing the show on the middle fork of Bishop Creek. Lots of yellow and even a little bit of rose has consumed the shrubs from Cardinal Peak all the way down to the creekside groves adjacent to the old Cardinal Mine. With the Sierra crest as the backdrop, it’s hard to beat the view. There are some big turnouts here making for easy access for shutterbugs.
• Aspendell (8,400′) – Patchy (10% – 50%) – Lots of color below and above this small neighborhood, but it’s worth a look for sure. Just below is Bishop Park Group Camp, and it’s stunning.

North Fork Bishop Creek

• North Lake (9,255′) – Peak (75%-100%) GO NOW! – North Lake developed quickly this past week, following a long period of green aspen. Jared noted pleasant surprise at how much color remained after the cold snap early in the week. Beautiful views and plenty of color still around and the road should just get better as the week goes on.

This is a weird year for fall color. It’s been late in the Eastern Sierra, early in the Northern Sierra and too early to tell, elsewhere.

The trees are generally lush and full, and yet a few stands (Sorensen’s, Martis Creek) have been damaged by aspen blight or cold. We receive both beautiful photos of healthy stands and others showing distressed groves.

This is one of those years that no matter what we report, we’re gonna be both spot on and ridiculed.

Today, Lee Foster – a travel writer with whom I’ve traveled to see fall color – reported that he’d visited Bishop Creek and found disappointing color.

He spoke with Jared Smith at Parchers who agreed that some stands were affected by recent snow and cold, but Jared was optimistic that it would turn around once green leaves (of which there are many) begin changing. He predicted a much better show in coming days.

Case in point. Last week we posted a beautiful shot of Lundy Canyon. Today, we get the above two from Kim Suzanne Kovacs who reports “not tons of color” at Lundy Mine, but nice colors in the canyon “all the way to the trailhead.”

Yet, Mick Schaper’s shots from Bishop Creek show vibrant color beside lots of green yet to turn. He writes, “Trees are lush with all phases of color change. No wind, so very few fallen leaves and no bare trees.”

He urges going now and estimates that next week, “some small areas will be past peak, but in general, the color should be more widespread and peak conditions will be even better than now.”

I guess this autumn’s beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some see color, others see brown leaves.

Though I do worry that – because change in the Eastern Sierra is so late – once the green trees give up making chlorophyl, it will happen rapidly and if you’re not there exactly when it shifts, you’ll miss peak color at that location. So, no matter what, GO NOW!