On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
UncleEbeneezer
On the third day of our trip we decided we wanted to do a good hike. After considering several options we eventually decided on McGee Creek. Partly because it was not too far away and was supposedly in peak fall color. But also, to exorcise some demons.
We had camped at McGee Creek several years ago and had a horrific experience when our dog Juniper got horribly sick and we ended up having to pack up camp and race back to LA to get her to an Emergency vet. She ended up being okay after a night in the hospital, but that sort of marked the beginning of a several year decline that was just terrible in every way.
Ever since we’ve been hesitant to go back to McGee Creek because the mental wounds are still so fresh. This year, we decided it was time to go back. Especially since we have always heard that the hike is really one of the best in the Eastern Sierra when the aspens are turning.
Just South of Mammoth Lakes CA, McGee Creek is a popular spot for hiking, especially during fall. The trail is 3.6 miles out-and-back to Horsetail Creek. It is very exposed for the first mile or so until you eventually start passing through some small groves of aspens. You can also take some small detour trails that gun the creek (on the left).
Any time you see this sign, you are in for a treat!
Love the way the light made these aspens show a more orangey color :)
Once again we didn’t have quite as much time as we’d hoped so we had to stop and have lunch and turn around before getting all the way to the spectacular meadow and falls, but even where we did get to was lovely.
If you look closely you can see a small waterfall in the center of this photo.
Hiking back towards the trailhead and parking lot, the scenery was even prettier than when we started.
Gorgeous!!
The creek by the trailhead is really pretty. After our hike we went to grab a late lunch at the bowling alley in Bishop. It wasn’t anywhere near as great as people had told us. Jack’s Diner is a much better choice if you are ever in Bishop.
eclare
Beautiful photos.
Winter Wren
Very nice colors – looks like a beautiful hike.
J.
Wow. Absolutely gorgeous!
Chris T.
You caught a bunch of “Jesus rays” on camera, good shots :)
WaterGirl
So many amazing shots on this trip, UncleEb!
WaterGirl
FYI: someone suggested recently that it would be nice to have some beauty in the sidebar as we head into this political year of all the foxes guarding all the henhouses.
So I’m trying something out, with a new photo from our OTR collection every day. Yesterday was the first day, with a photo of fireworks from our Paris After Dark OTR series two or three years ago. It didn’t occur to me to look for the name and credit yesterday’s photo, but it did occur to me this morning.
stinger
Thanks for sharing all these wonderful photos!
mvr
Thanks for the photos. It is hard to beat Aspens in the Fall along with water.
KatKapCC
Something very peaceful about these <3
UncleEbeneezer
@WaterGirl: Thanks. Funny, because as I mentioned in earlier posts, this trip we kinda missed the real peak color but yeah, even slightly-off-peak, the Sierra usually don’t disappoint.
Torrey
@WaterGirl: Brilliant idea! That photo really does make the place welcoming (not that it isn’t, but it’s a nice thing to see right off the bat when one checks in). I love the choice for today, as well.
And today’s OTR is wonderful, as are all Uncle Ebenezer’s photos.
WaterGirl
@Torrey: You guys all probably know this, but if you click on the photo that’s in the sidebar, you get a full-size version.
It really is a beautiful photo!
P.S. If you’re on mobile, it all be the first thing you see below all the comments and the comment box.
Ally
Wow, these are glorious! I’m a native Californian but live on the East Coast now. A nice place but the “mountains” here are tiny. Your pictures and descriptions bring back precious memories. Thank you!
MCat
So incredibly peaceful. Thank you.
BigJimSlade
Y’all are making me feel bad for never visiting the eastern sierra in the fall before – another beautiful round!
BigJimSlade
@WaterGirl: great idea!
Jim Appleton
I lived part time at the Mono Inn and all these gorgeous photos make me homesick.
UncleEbeneezer
@BigJimSlade: Thanks. Don’t feel bad. I’ve lived in CA for 20+ years and there are still a ton of places I haven’t visited yet. If you do ever want to try the E. Sierra in the Fall, you’re pretty much guaranteed some good color, somewhere within an hours drive from wherever you stay, the first couple weeks of October.
opiejeanne
@Jim Appleton: The Mono Inn! We are friends with a woman whose grandmother owned that place from the 1920s well into the 1960s. Wally McPherson is my friend’s father and is mentioned on the wall in the Mono Lake Interpretive Center.
opiejeanne
@UncleEbeneezer: Thanks for posting these photos. We used to head up to June Lake almost every summer and the beauty of the area is staggering. We usually went in the fall, just after tourist season ended. Stayed at Big Rock Landing in a cabin, caught fresh trout for breakfast, hiked all over, and put a little inflatable boat into Rush Creek beside the loop road 158. Rush creek meanders through the reeds and comes out eventually on Silver Lake but if we waited too late in the day to put the boat in, by the time we came out at Silver Lake the wind would come up and we had to paddle like mad to get to shore near the road.
Jim Appleton
@opiejeanne: I was with the Adams family, Ansel being an early friend and his son and family taking it on late 90s as a base of operations.
Dan B
The differences between the eastern Sierra and the dry eastern Cascades is quite obvious. They’re both beautiful but very different. The rock is different. The forest is different with the east side of the Cascades having thick conifer forests. The Cascades have many more streams especially the North Cascades due to permanent ice fields. Wonderful photographs!