Natural History Wanderings

Photographer Michael Frye was recently in the Eastern Sierra. See his full report and photos at North Lake Sunrise, and an Early Fall Color Report « In the Moment: Michael Frye’s Landscape Photography Blog In the Moment: Michael Frye’s Landscape Photography Blog. Here are some excerpts:

• some nice color at North Lake, especially near the outlet creek. Overall I’d say the color was similar to last year, which was also a little early. But there were still lots of green trees, and the peak color in the upper reaches of Bishop Creek Canyon hasn’t arrived yet. Give it another week or so. North Lake is at about 9,000 feet. At Aspendell, just a little lower at 8,500 feet, the aspens were dark green, so they have a way to go.
• the very highest aspens in Rock Creek Canyon were at about peak color, with some bare branches, and some green, but most trees quite colorfu
• some color on the highest reaches of Parker Bench (south of Parker Lake), and near Warren Canyon in Lee Vining Canyon.
• Overall I’d say that the color is a little early for the higher-elevation aspens on the east side. Some of these areas, like North Lake and Lake Sabrina, may peak around the end of September, rather than the first week of October. But this doesn’t really mean anything for the mid- and lower-elevation trees.
• Mid-elevation aspens include the ones in lower Bishop Creek Canyon, upper Lundy Canyon, Conway Summit, and Dunderberg. Lower-elevation aspens include the ones around Convict Lake, lower McGee Creek, June Lake Loop, Lee Vining Canyon, and lower Lundy Canyon (in other words, most of my favorite aspen-photography locations). The mid-elevation trees typically turn around the first or second week of October, while the lower elevation ones are usually best around the third week of October.