Red, pink, white, orange, purple, tall and short flowers are all putting on a tremendous show right now in the meadows off of Glacier Point Road in Yosemite National Park. If you want to see an explosion of wildflower colors, get there now! Where: Yosemite National Park Distance: 13.46 Miles Difficulty: Easy to Moderate Elevation Range: 6,959′ – 7,622′ Date: ...

SIERRA NATIONAL FOREST — Everyone is invited to join in a tour of the best kept secret vistas of the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway. Participants will meet on Saturday, July 29, at 9 a.m. at The Pines parking lot at Bass Lake and carpool up to the Jackass Lake trail head. Retired USFS back country ranger Michael Olwyler will lead ...

We headed cross country up to beautiful little lake, still partially covered with snow and ice, named Burro Lake. Along the way, our route took us by a creek with wildflowers of every color and incredible reflections in high lakes bordered by granite mountains. Where: Sierra National Forest, Ansel Adams Wilderness Distance: 9.57 Miles Difficulty: Moderate to Strenuous Elevation Range: ...

Dramatic high peaks, streaked with colors of red, white and brown and still capped with snow frame Lundy Canyon. Mill Creek was high and really moving, lined with aspens that lulled me to sleep as the wind moved through them. It was a perfect place for Sally and I to kick back and relax . . and maybe catch a ...

Snowshoeing in the Tioga Pass area in July? Yes indeed! How else could we travel across the solid snowfields full of suncups to some beautiful lakes and the old mining town of Dana City? Where: Yosemite National Park, Inyo National Forest Distance: 5.3 Miles Difficulty: Moderate Elevation Range: 9,945′ – 11,025′ Date: July 5, 2017 Map: Falls Ridge Quad Dog Hike? ...

The trail was tricky. Much of it was covered with snow up to 5 foot drifts and we sloshed through stretches that were covered in water. The creeks were high but our persistence rewarded us with a lake that was still partially iced over and bordered by snowy mountains. Where: Sierra National Forest, Ansel Adams Wilderness, Yosemite National Park Distance: ...

When Yosemite National Park announced that Tioga Road (continuation of Highway 120 through the park) was to open on Thursday, June 29, at 8 am, you know I had to be there. We were at the spot on Tioga Road where the gate had been closed for the winter by 0741 and it was already opened! There were several signs ...

Picture escaping the heat to icy Ostrander Lake, bordered by a snowy, rocky ledge. That is exactly what we did in the middle of June, watching the last of the winter ice melt away, creating beautiful reflections. Where: Yosemite National Park Distance: 12.56 Miles Difficulty: Moderate to Strenuous Elevation Range: 6,998′ – 8,613′ Date: June 20, 2017 Maps: El Capitan, ...

We hiked off trail through brush, snow, crossing small creeks and swamps to get our reward of seeing a very rare flower and wonderful views of snowcapped high peaks. And, who knew that a small toad was a peak bagger? Where: Sierra National Forest Distance: 5.32 Miles Difficulty: Moderate Elevation Range: 7,188′ – 8,353′ Date: June 14, 2017 Maps: Little ...

Tioga Pass hadn’t opened up from its winter’s sleep yet, but I really wanted to get over to the east side of the Sierra. Sally was up for the adventure and we drove along those brightly colored, snowcapped mountains to Convict Lake for a few days. Where: Inyo National Forest, John Muir Wilderness Distance: 2.77 Miles Difficulty: Easy Elevation Range: ...