Rock Creek Lake

I visited Rock Creek Lake in the Sierras early in November. Since the Owens Valley was warm and Indian Summer-like, I was fooled into wearing sneakers, and light clothing. As Tracker climbed the road (I eventually got up to 10,000’), it became clearer and clearer I was underdressed for the afternoon.

As I started traveling upwards, I passed a fire-damaged region and on the way out along the road, you could see the damage behind some trees that weren’t blackened.

I love this stump – look at how it’s adapted itself to grow around the rocks embedded in its roots. I believe it tumbled down the mountain behind me.

Rock climbers belaying up the granite face of the mountain, something you’ll never find me doing!

I was looking for the last of the aspens and found a few, but the cold had hit here and most of them had already dropped their leaves.

The road (with no guard rails of course) was high above most of the lakes.

The snow was getting deeper, so I put the car in 4 wheel-drive although I would have been fine without it. I believe the pines are Ponderosa pines, but not sure. Note the snow poles sticking up by the bridge.

We have John Muir to thank for most of the wilderness areas that have been preserved for us in California like Yosemite, Sequoia National Park, Muir Woods above San Francisco and Rock Creek Lake, to name just a few. He also founded the Sierra Club.

I had packed a meatloaf sandwich and was happily munching it going up the road. Then I started seeing ‘Beware of Bear’ signs and thought to myself that I probably had meatloaf breath. Then when I came on what was probably the tenth beware sign at the trailhead to Rock Creek Lake, I decided to turn around and go back down.