tahoe
Erratic on basalt
A few weeks ago I went to go find these basalt columns off of highway 88 near Silver Lake. There was lots of bushwacking since there is no established trail and the cairns that lead you out there are random at best. I found them and they were pretty cool but there was these boulders of granite on top of the columns. I thought the contrasting colors played well against each other.
Sunrise over Echo Peak
Smoke from the Detwiler Fire over 200+ miles south of the Tahoe Basin created a hazy moody sunrise over Echo Peak in this early morning shot.
Beach with a view
One of my favorite places in the Tahoe area is Kiva Beach. It’s a long strip of sandy beach front that you can bring your dog to. It has amazing views of Lake Tahoe and Mt Tallac. On this morning, I walked as far as I could go and got down low to catch the flow of the river as it moved into the lake. Mt Tallac can be seen in the distance.
A hike in the woods
“Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.” ~ John Muir
Morning contrasts
I missed a week of posts because I was out backpacking with friends. It’s was great to get outside and unplug from the world around us. On this particular morning I was up early and wandering around our campsite and was able to capture these plays on light and color. 
Monochrome Mountains
I’m discovering that taking photos in black and white brings out amazing textures and shadowing. I went for a short snowshoe hike along the Angora Ridge in South Lake Tahoe. It was midday and the lighting was pretty harsh. I switched my camera to Monochrome and took a few shots of the Crystal Range mountains in the distance.
Curvature of the earth – Bonsai Rock
Taken last weekend using my fisheye lens, Bonsai Rock in Lake Tahoe. I’ve seen many photos of Bonsai Rock, usually the best time is late afternoon and around sunset. For this photo I went out early and scrambled down the hillside to the shore and waited for the sun to crest the mountain side. I had the whole shoreline and beach to myself. Recent rains has raised the lake water levels again. I love the clarity of this lake, the blue tones and the rocks under water.
Letharia vulpina – Wolf Lichen
Letharia vulpina, commonly known as the wolf lichen is a fruticose lichenized species of fungus in the family Parmeliaceae. It is bright yellow-green, shrubby and highly branched, and grows on the bark of living and dead conifers in parts of western and continental Europe, the Pacific Northwest and northern Rocky Mountains of Western North America. This species is somewhat toxic to mammals due to the yellow pigment vulpinic acid, and has been used historically as a poison for wolves and foxes. It has also been used traditionally by many native North American ethnic groups as a pigment source for dyes and paints.
Tracks in the snow
I was out wandering around in Hope Valley, CA recently but it appears that I wasn’t the only one leaving tracks in the snow.
Snapshots by Kats 