Last year I was on a mission to find the beautiful yellow larch tree. They pop out around this time of the year and are notoriously high in the alpine wilderness. Most of the time people hike up to the Enchantments to really get the alpine larch experience but I didn't have the time nor the stamina to hike the 'chants so I asked the tall one to accompany me on what is becoming my annual trip to Blue Lake. Always up for adventure, he agreed to come along.
Unfortunately for him this trip marked the day where we discovered his threshold for car trips in my tiny little Acura. It's about 150 miles out to the trail head and since I was doubting my directional abilities, plus we got stuck behind an unyielding semi truck, the drive seemed like it took forever.
Soon the surrounding peaks became familiar and I saw Liberty Bell through the trees. Moments later we were at the trail. I added the above picture to show how clear and perfect the day was. The sky was such an amazing blue that every time I took a picture of it I would show the LCD screen to the tall one and exclaim "it's just so blue!".
The trail is nice and easy at about 4.4 miles round trip, which is welcome after a two hour drive. About 1/4 mile away from the lake we hit snow, but luckily it was just a light dusting and the trail was more muddy than slippery. It was chilly, that's for sure, and as we sat down to eat pinwheel sandwiches we both put on our hoods to keep the body heat in.
Finally, a shot the tall one will pose for! After eating we wandered a bit around the rim of the lake and then hiked over to the ridgeline east of the lake to look down towards the direction of the freeway. There was a small pond there with larches surrounding it in varying shades of fall. I was aching for a wide angle lens to really capture the scene. At least I'm starting to justify the need for additional lenses.
We noticed the lake settling and eventually becoming still enough to reflect. I was very excited to get the above shot. I think it may be my favorite landscape shot to date....to my untrained eye. There is a lot of good detail in this photo. I can't wait to print it out large.
Vertical shots were abundant so I figured I'd try my hand at a horizontal. I loved the green of the trees, the yellow larches, the white snow, the blue sky. It was such a perfect hike. I love taking the tall one up to the mountains. He goes on and on about traveling the world, camping, hiking, photography, how we'll make money off the home he just bought so we'll be able to live without working. It's awesome, but it fades once we get back to town. However if he gets to feel for even a moment what I feel every single day it's totally worth it. Work is getting harder every day. I wish that I was doing something I loved. I wish I didn't have to worry about money. I wish I didn't have to answer to anyone who isn't my friend or family.
I guess that's the nice thing about hiking. When I'm huffing it up a mountain the only things that are on my mind are how beautiful it is, how lucky I am and my next photo. Other than appreciating the adorable boy by my side, my mind is typically blissfully blank.
When we got back to the trail head I realized that I had left my lights on and my car battery had died. We tried to push it to pop the clutch in the parking lot, but we didn't have enough hill. After flagging down a truck who attempted to jump the car but failed we all pushed my car down the road. Luckily we were on a very large mountain! Finally after coasting for a bit I popped it down into second and YIPEE!! I was worried there for a second. Unfortunately the battery is done and the tall one was kind enough to get one for me on his trip to Costco with his friend Dodi, who will be getting married in just a couple days! Yet another photo opportunity that I'm not going to waste! I can't wait.
My apologies for the sporadic posts. I'm in the midst of a bit of a funk. I can't put my finger on one particular event, but I think an accumulation of stuff has surrounded me and I'm in a bit of a cave. Claustrophobic and anxious, I've tried to keep my mouth shut. My emotions are coming out in tears which I can usually laugh off but sometimes need to close myself away for 10 minutes to compose myself. It sucks. I'm ready for it to be done now, but in the meantime please be patient :)
Unfortunately for him this trip marked the day where we discovered his threshold for car trips in my tiny little Acura. It's about 150 miles out to the trail head and since I was doubting my directional abilities, plus we got stuck behind an unyielding semi truck, the drive seemed like it took forever.
Soon the surrounding peaks became familiar and I saw Liberty Bell through the trees. Moments later we were at the trail. I added the above picture to show how clear and perfect the day was. The sky was such an amazing blue that every time I took a picture of it I would show the LCD screen to the tall one and exclaim "it's just so blue!".
The trail is nice and easy at about 4.4 miles round trip, which is welcome after a two hour drive. About 1/4 mile away from the lake we hit snow, but luckily it was just a light dusting and the trail was more muddy than slippery. It was chilly, that's for sure, and as we sat down to eat pinwheel sandwiches we both put on our hoods to keep the body heat in.
Finally, a shot the tall one will pose for! After eating we wandered a bit around the rim of the lake and then hiked over to the ridgeline east of the lake to look down towards the direction of the freeway. There was a small pond there with larches surrounding it in varying shades of fall. I was aching for a wide angle lens to really capture the scene. At least I'm starting to justify the need for additional lenses.
We noticed the lake settling and eventually becoming still enough to reflect. I was very excited to get the above shot. I think it may be my favorite landscape shot to date....to my untrained eye. There is a lot of good detail in this photo. I can't wait to print it out large.
Vertical shots were abundant so I figured I'd try my hand at a horizontal. I loved the green of the trees, the yellow larches, the white snow, the blue sky. It was such a perfect hike. I love taking the tall one up to the mountains. He goes on and on about traveling the world, camping, hiking, photography, how we'll make money off the home he just bought so we'll be able to live without working. It's awesome, but it fades once we get back to town. However if he gets to feel for even a moment what I feel every single day it's totally worth it. Work is getting harder every day. I wish that I was doing something I loved. I wish I didn't have to worry about money. I wish I didn't have to answer to anyone who isn't my friend or family.
I guess that's the nice thing about hiking. When I'm huffing it up a mountain the only things that are on my mind are how beautiful it is, how lucky I am and my next photo. Other than appreciating the adorable boy by my side, my mind is typically blissfully blank.
When we got back to the trail head I realized that I had left my lights on and my car battery had died. We tried to push it to pop the clutch in the parking lot, but we didn't have enough hill. After flagging down a truck who attempted to jump the car but failed we all pushed my car down the road. Luckily we were on a very large mountain! Finally after coasting for a bit I popped it down into second and YIPEE!! I was worried there for a second. Unfortunately the battery is done and the tall one was kind enough to get one for me on his trip to Costco with his friend Dodi, who will be getting married in just a couple days! Yet another photo opportunity that I'm not going to waste! I can't wait.
My apologies for the sporadic posts. I'm in the midst of a bit of a funk. I can't put my finger on one particular event, but I think an accumulation of stuff has surrounded me and I'm in a bit of a cave. Claustrophobic and anxious, I've tried to keep my mouth shut. My emotions are coming out in tears which I can usually laugh off but sometimes need to close myself away for 10 minutes to compose myself. It sucks. I'm ready for it to be done now, but in the meantime please be patient :)
Comments