The 14th annual camping trip to the Eastern Sierras with buddies, Al and Paul, was in late September, the 17th to the 22nd. I left Port Ludlow for the two day drive on the 16th. Following an overnight rest stop in Klamath Falls, Oregon, I arrived at the Big Bend Campground early afternoon the 17th. Al and Paul had gotten there couple hours before me and had most of the camp set up. After some catching up and a beer, we finished setting up camp and headed off to the creek. Paul and Al fish, I take photographs. From this first day: the waterfall near the entrance to Big Bend Campground and Al fishing somewhere along the creek.

We spent the next day along the creek, as well. I started above the waterfall, getting photos of the waterfall and the creek just below, then stopped at various places along the road with access to the creek. Found an odd mushroom and flowering thistle along the way.

On Tuesday, at Al’s urging, we went to May Lake in Yosemite. May Lake is near the center of the park. You take a narrow gravel road, off the main route through the park, for several miles, ending in a parking area. From the parking area it’s a mile and a quarter hike up the mountain to the lake. There’s a great view of Half Dome along the way.

It started raining as we were driving back to the campsite. Since the rain was not conducive for cooking dinner over a campfire, we decided it was time to go to Mono Cone for a dinner of burgers, fries and ice cream. By the time we got back to the campsite the storm was raging, loud thunder echoing through the ravine, lightning and heavy rain. With no chance of a campfire, we called it an early night.

Wednesday found us going to Tioga Lake and Ellery Lake. Both lakes are between our campsite and Yosemite. We’ve visited Tioga Lake pretty much every year, this was our first stop at Ellery Lake. That’s Paul fishing at Tioga Lake. The other photo is Ellery Lake.

Our final day was spent along the creek. The first photo is Paul demonstrating how to cross the creek, followed by the same shot without Paul. The rest of the photos are scenes along the creek.

Friday, the 22nd, we broke down the camp, said “Goodbye until next year” and I started the two day drive home. Another trip to the Sierras with good friends was over.

For more information on places mentioned in this post:

Yosemite: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yosemite_National_Park , https://www.nps.gov/yose/index.htm

May Lake: https://www.nps.gov/places/000/may-lake-trailhead.htm

Tioga Lake: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tioga_Lake

Ellery Lake: https://www.yosemitehikes.com/tioga-road/highlights-ellery-lake.h

Big Bend Campground: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/inyo/recarea/?recid=20608 , https://www.monocounty.org/listing/big-bend-campground/1327/

Lee Vining: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Vining,_California , https://www.facebook.com/p/Mono-Cone-100063668375027/

Previous blogs from Sierras trips: https://jmacdphoto.com/eastern-sierras-2021/ , https://jmacdphoto.com/bodie-california-a-ghost-town/ , https://jmacdphoto.com/wildlife-photography-the-bear/

To see more of my photos visit https://jmacdphoto.com/

#Photography #LandscapePhotography #Sierras #EasternSierras #Yosemite #MayLake #TiogaLake #ElleryLake #LeeViningCreek