Snowy mountain above salt flats, Dying Valley NP, California
I really like winter, and I really like snow. However when Claudia and I realized that our home would possibly get two or extra ft of snow over the past weekend of February we knew issues would possibly get troublesome.
We’ve lived in our home in Mariposa since 2005, and several other instances have acquired eight inches of snow, and as soon as even acquired ten inches. Our highway and driveway don’t get plowed, and have a few steep hills, however with excessive clearance and four-wheel-drive we are able to get out and in with eight or ten inches of snow. However no more than that. With two ft of snow we’d be caught for awhile.
And with that a lot snow numerous timber and limbs had been sure to fall, taking out energy traces, so we’d most likely even be with out electrical energy. We’ve got a generator, but when we couldn’t exit and get extra gas for it we’d have to make use of the generator sparingly.
Being caught at residence with out energy for maybe every week or extra didn’t sound like a lot enjoyable, so we determined to flee and make an impromptu highway journey. We ended up going to Dying Valley, Zion, Valley of Hearth, and Lone Pine.
It became an ideal journey. Our first cease was Dying Valley, the place we acquired to expertise an unusual occasion for the driest place in North America: rain. We noticed clouds, mist, salt flats crammed with water, and plenty of snow within the surrounding mountains, giving them an alpine look that you simply don’t typically see. It was enjoyable to expertise and {photograph}, and I’ve included a number of pictures right here from throughout and after the storm in Dying Valley. I’ll put up pictures from the remainder of our journey later.
We’re again residence now. Whereas we had been gone our neighborhood acquired shut to 3 ft of snow, and there was nonetheless 15 inches of very moist snow on the bottom in locations once we returned. A number of limbs got here down, and the ability went out thrice, for a complete of about 4 days. Most of our neighbors had been caught in place for the higher a part of every week. However everyone seems to be secure and sound, with no main injury to buildings.
Once we first returned residence we needed to park on the backside of our lengthy driveway, however heavy rain over the past couple of days has melted many of the snow, and with our neighbor’s assist we had been in a position to clear a big downed department from the driveway, so we are able to now get out and in usually. Nearly all of the reside oaks on our property have both toppled or misplaced branches, so issues are a multitude. (Dwell oaks are evergreen, and never designed to deal with that a lot snow.) However our home escaped injury, so we had been fortunate. Many individuals across the state have suffered a lot worse. It’s been fairly a winter!
— Michael Frye
Snowy peak within the Panamint Vary, Dying Valley NP, California
Peak and clouds above salt flats, Dying Valley NP, California
Dappled gentle, Dying Valley NP, California
Badlands, clouds, and distant salt flats, Dying Valley NP, California. Be aware the water within the salt flats within the center distance.
Dappled gentle and reflections in flooded salt flats, Dying Valley NP, California
Our neighbor took this picture of our Subaru lined in snow. That is by far probably the most snow we’ve seen at our Mariposa home.
Fallen limbs overlaying our deck
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Associated Posts: Desert Designs; Wind, Mud, and Mild in Dying Valley
Michael Frye is an expert photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He’s the writer or principal photographer of The Photographer’s Information to Yosemite, Yosemite Meditations, Yosemite Meditations for Girls, Yosemite Meditations for Adventurers, and Digital Panorama Pictures: Within the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Nice Masters. He has additionally written three eBooks: Mild & Land: Landscapes within the Digital Darkroom, Publicity for Outside Pictures, and Landscapes in Lightroom: The Important Step-by-Step Information. Michael has written quite a few journal articles on the artwork and strategy of images, and his photos have been printed in over thirty international locations all over the world. Michael has lived both in or close to Yosemite Nationwide Park since 1983, presently residing simply exterior the park in Mariposa, California.
