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Sierra Nevada Ramblings
At the east end of Lake Isabella, the South Fork of the Kern River flows and provides the water which nourishes a most beautiful woodland, filled with Willow and Cottonwood trees, and all sorts of wildlife. This riparian forest straddles the river, and much of it is in a protected status, with various agencies owning and managing parts of it. During winter, the forest is a study in gold, brown and gray hues, with trees a twisted mass of overgrown branches and a few clinging, dried up leaves.
This cottonwood forest is the largest of its kind left in California, and its presence in the Kern Valley provides habitat for hundreds of animals, especially birds. To entice birds to the area, many nesting boxes have been installed throughout the woodland, with boxes in differing sizes to appeal to various species. A very large chunk of woodland and adjacent lands are in protected status and managed by the Kern River Preserve. The US Forest Service owns another large chunk, and these photos were taken in the area which the USFS manages.
One of the few roads which takes you over the southern parts of the Sierra Nevada crests the mountains at Walker Pass, on Highway 178. The pass is just a bit above 5,000' in elevation, and it is often quite breezy. This part of the Sierra Nevada is home to desert species such as Joshua Trees, and the view east looks out upon the northwestern edge of the Mohave Desert. The above photo is the view looking east, into the desert, with the mountains above Death Valley National Park in the far distance. 
This part of the Sierra Nevada is quite dry, and snow only lingers a day or two before melting away. When snow dusts the peaks and bushes, the landscape changes dramatically for a few brief hours. These photos were taken in the morning, and when I drove back the same way in the afternoon, half the snow had already melted! But the afternoon also brought dozens of people who were playing in the snow, probably locals who live in the nearby desert communities.
Early morning over Lake Isabella. With chill air, amazing clouds and lighting, and a camera along for the ride, a drive just after dawn started the day off with a beautiful sunrise. This image was taken a few minutes after one of the prettiest sunrises but I had to keep driving and wait for the road to open up with a view of the lake, thus missing the peak of the sunrise.
If you want to take lots of photos of gorgeous clouds and lighting, you must place yourself in a "picture perfect" location, at the crack of dawn, or at sunset, on a cloudy day, with your camera ready to shoot. I have seen some amazing sunrises and sunsets over the years, and here in the Sierra Nevada, the landscape is at times awe inspiring when the lighting and clouds take on surreal beauty.
Lake Isabella, is set in a very scenic valley, tucked in the foothills in the southern Sierra, with all sorts of low mountain peaks surrounding the lake. The dozens of hills and peaks that surround the Kern Valley bring a different view as you move around the valley. Looking across the lake in the first photo, the view is to the east. In the second photo, the view is to the west.
Looking to the east, the terrain is very dry, there are few trees, some cactus, and as you go further east, Joshua Trees begin to appear. Westward, the peaks have pine trees and much more precipitation falls, with snow clinging to the ridges most of the winter.
There is something fascinating about the way ice clings to trees and branches, changing their appearance and making the ice almost seem to be alive with the shapes it takes and how it moves, crackles and shifts right before the eyes! Snow finally came to the southern Sierra Nevada, and there is currently a foot or two of snow at the 6,000 foot level. These images were taken up on the Greenhorn Summit above Lake Isabella.
It's just a short drive from where I live in the Kern River Valley, up to where there is snow almost all winter long, so frequent ski trips are part of every winter. There is a small downhill ski resort at the top of Evans Road (Hwy 155)that attracts quite a few snow boarders and downhill skiers, but it is the unplowed roads that attract cross country skiers such as myself. US Forest Service lands abound in dirt roads that go into the forests all over these mountains, and if you can drive along a main road and then park, an unplowed, snow covered road makes a perfect ski path, with a grade that is typically quite ski-able and the road itself gives one a trail of sorts.
One can rent skis, boots and poles for cross country skiing at one of the outdoor shops in the little town of Kernville, and at the downhill resort they have rentals for downhill skiing and snowboarding.
The swooshing sound of skis on snow is always appealing and this past weekend saw me on skis again, happily sucking icicles and sliding rapidly across the surface on "perfect" snow. When it comes to skiing, snow is not all the same. Some times skiing is a struggle as the snow is deep and a trail must be broken. Other times, the powder is very deep and the snow clings to the skis so much, that you really can't slide on the snow at all, but you break through and trudge with a foot or two of snow on top of the skis, getting nowhere. But this time round, the snow was perfect, with a soft upper two inches and firm underneath, and one could easily slide through untraveled snow and move fast. A beautiful day in the forest.
