Meadow, Eastern Sierra, CA

Sign in to add this photo to your favorites and desktop wallpaper rotation.

The Eastern Sierra is the steep eastern flank of California's Sierra Nevada, where the range drops abruptly toward the Owens Valley and the Great Basin beyond. Along this escarpment, high mountain meadows form wherever snowmelt collects in glacially carved basins and along creeks, creating pockets of green grass, sedges, and wildflowers set against granite peaks that rise well above 12,000 feet. Areas such as those near Mammoth Lakes, June Lake, Bishop Creek, and the Tioga Pass approach to Yosemite are known for these open, subalpine landscapes. Summer in these meadows is brief but vivid. After the snow recedes, typically in June or July depending on elevation, the ground blooms with lupine, paintbrush, shooting stars, and corn lilies, while streams wind slowly through the turf. The air is thin, dry, and cool, afternoon thunderstorms are common, and mule deer, marmots, and Belding's ground squirrels are frequent sights. In autumn, nearby aspen groves turn brilliant gold, making the region one of California's best-known destinations for fall color. The Eastern Sierra lies in the rain shadow of the range, so its meadows are fed largely by the winter snowpack rather than summer rain. The region is the ancestral homeland of the Paiute and other Native peoples, and many meadows were later used for summer livestock grazing. Today much of the land is managed within the Inyo and Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forests, and the meadows remain popular with hikers, anglers, and photographers drawn to their combination of open space and dramatic alpine scenery.