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Thirsty Thursday: A Day in the Wilderness

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: 2007 Scheid Reserve Chardonnay (top 5 favorites!)

Hey hey hey...Thirsty Thursday here again. Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. This evening we'll recount a day spent in the wilderness form our backpacking trip to the Trinity Alps from way back at the beginning of the summer. Can't believe its fall already! 

A typical day in the backcountry starts with a sunrise shoot. 

Yep, that big bump toward the right is Mt Shasta. 

Then we eat prepare to breakfast. Really hard work. 

Massey maintains a constant guard over the camp perimeter.

Breakfast actually gets made...and we try to keep warm until the sun kicks in. 

Then if the trip planner (which is me 99% of the time) has selected a good spot, we have plenty of hiking and exploring to fill up the day. 

And then we relax a bit and wait for the sun to set. 

Days in the backcountry are pretty fantastic. Wish we could get more days out there, but the rarity fuels the stoke to go bigger the next time. 

Get out there and have your own wilderness-filled weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: Mt Whitney Trail

Rambler: Beth

Drink at Hand: Bogle Vineyards 2010 Old Vine Zinfandel (thanks Kelly!)

Hey friends, Thirsty Thursday is here again! Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Here at Welliver Photography we're already planning our summer weekend adventures, and we're hoping that we win a lottery slot for an assault on Mt Whitney for one of those weekends. ​

For those who might not know, Mt Whitney is the highest point in the continental US. We summited the highest point in Japan three times in three years when we lived there, so the fact that we live mere hours from the highest (and easily hikeable) peak ​in the lower 48 and haven't climbed it yet is a little embarrassing. So when we were in Lone Pine over Thanksgiving, we did a little piece of the Mt Whitney Trail up to Lone Pine Lake. 

I had such a great time on our Thanksgiving hikes. Hopefully we'll get to do the full Mt Whitney trail this summer! Massey is pouting because she won't get to go, but we'l make it up to her. In the meantime we'll be getting out for some training hikes and trail runs on the weekends. Get out there and find your own fun trails! ​

Thirsty Thursday: Fingers Crossed

Rambler: BethDrink at Hand: Scheid Reserve Chardonnay (Tied for 1st on my chard list)

Hey Welliver Photography fans! Welcome to another addition of Thirsty Thursday...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. We are headed off to backpack this weekend, or so we hope!

Over Memorial Day weekend we headed up to backpack to George Lake in the Kaiser Wilderness. The in-house meteorologist blew the weekend forecast, and long story short, without a four-season tent, we were snowed out of our first backpacking trip of the season. So much for the unofficial start of summer! So this weekend we'll try again, and hopefully the trail doesn't look like this... But we definitely can't say it wasn't beautiful, even if we didn't camp in it. Get out there and doing something this weekend...and hope you get a good weather report before you go!

Thirsty Thursday: Tahoe Exploring

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Water...boring, I know. Tough run tonight.

Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pouring something yummy (or rehydrating in my case!) and make those weekend plans. A few weeks back I was looking at a weekend home alone while Terry was out of town, so I decided to go somewhere. My original plan was Mt. Shasta, but after a long day of work on Friday, I decided to go somewhere closer. I'd never been to Tahoe, so the dog and I jumped in the car Saturday morning and off we went.

I didn't really have a game plan. I literally woke up Saturday morning and decided that Tahoe was the destination. I usually do a little research to figure out good photo spots (and good places for grub), but this time I was flying blind. Ended up at Zephyr Cove for sunset, above Emerald Bay for sunrise, and took a little snowy stroll in Desolation Wilderness with Massey before heading back home Sunday. Tahoe was beautiful and I can't wait to get up there for a couple of backpacking routes I've picked out for the summer.

Get out there and explore a new place this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: More Aspens

Rambler: Beth Drink at Hand: Hot apple cider...mmmmm

Thursday is here again already, so that means its time for the weekly installment of Thirsty Thursday. Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. I just got back from a drizzly and chilly trail run, hence the warm drink in my hand! Fall continues to slide into winter, and sadly tonight will probably be the last weeknight trail run of the year with the time change coming this weekend.

Before I let fall scoot all the way out of my mind, I have to share some more autumn color. Last fall I spent an week in the Eastern Sierra chasing golden aspens and snow-capped peaks. I happened to be there in the days immediately following the first major snow of the year. This makes the commute from the central coast over the Sierra Crest a pain in the rear, but it was beautiful. This was the scene at North Lake. Yeah, not your typical North Lake perspective, but I was happy to work for this view away from the masses on the shore.

Sometimes the close-ups are just as good as the big views.

There's a big storm headed for California this weekend, so the high country will likely see quite a bit of snow. Heck, the snow level here is supposed to drop to around 3000' by tomorrow night. Who knows, maybe there will be a little dusting on the local peaks (probably not, but maybe). The first snow of the year is always magical. So clean and fresh.

Get out there and find something pretty to look at this weekend!

 

Thirsty Thursday: Eastern Sierra Recap

Rambler: Beth Drink at Hand: 2008 Ventana Chardonnay...oh so buttery yummy!

Its Thirsty Thursday once again...time to pur something yummy and make those weekend plans...or in this case, re-live an awesome weekend gone-by.

I brought work home every night this week, and every night I played with photos from our latest trip to the Sierra instead. Work will always be there, right? But there will soon be more trips to the Sierra and I can't have unedited photos hanging in the queue. As you've probably already noticed from our previous posts or rambles/rants on twitter, facebook, etc, we had a great time in the mountains, despite the boring skies and lack of dramatic light. I told my boss when I got back that Tuesday, it was an incredibly beautiful weekend in the mountains and a horrible weekend for photography! But nevertheless, we still came away with a few nice images. Aaaaand, we didn't have to worry about frostbite, getting drenched in a thunderstorm, or wind blowing the tripod over (all things that have happened before!).

These are my favorites from the weekend. Perhaps you'll see something you like. If you do, leave a comment. And as always, thanks for stopping by!

Sunrise at Silver Lake.  

Terry working his magic at Convict Lake. 

 Mono Lake is always a challenge for me. I rarely come away happy at sunrise or sunset. I suppose it didn't help that a bratty kid threw rocks at me this time around while I was composing a shot. He was lucky his parents called him back over not long after. This was from a hidden parking lot where there were no people, thank goodness.

 Terry had never been to Bodie, so I was more than happy to show him around the old mining town. Love shooting here, just wish the park hours were a little more photographer friendly. Some morning light here would be fantastic.

 On our last morning we went to Convict Lake again. We shot from the dam this time...a cliche composition of this lake, but I hadn't shot this angle before. Afterwards we hiked the trail around the lake, mainly so Massey could get a good run in before the 6-hour drive home. Some of my favorites from the weekend are from this hike.

 Finally, in the last 10 minutes of our last hike, some clouds moved in and gave us a few shadows and a hint of drama. And then it was time to drive home.

Thirsty Thursday: Eastern Sierra

Rambler: Beth Drink at Hand: Marilyn Remark 2009 Rose de Saignee...if you haven't had a Marilyn Remark wine yet, you owe it to yourself to try one if you can find it. Joel and Marilyn make some fantastic wines...and if you can splurge for the Grenache, do it! Or come visit us and we'll take you to the tasting room just around the corner from us.

Now that I got the free plug for the local winery out of the way, its time to get down to business. Another Thursday here, another night to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. I haven't gotten to write a TT for a couple of weeks, but now that all my bike racing is out of the way for awhile, I have a little more time to write bloggies and a lot more time for weekend adventures of the non-pedal-powered variety.

This weekend Welliver Photography is headed to the Eastern Sierra! I've been there a few times but Terry's only been there for a few hours...miserable and expensive hours at that. The plan for the weekend is "there is no plan!" We got a cabana for the Honda Element so we can throw down the therm-a-rests and sleeping bags and cuddle up with Massey in the back of the car to sleep. We'll drive around searching for good stuff during the day. Should be fun.

I remember my first time in the Sierra. I headed out of Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite for 4 days of solo backpacking. Having grown up with family vacations to Colorado followed by 5 years of living in Colorado Springs, I've always had a thing for the Rockies. But that first time I went to the Sierra blew me away. After those 4 days, I was hooked. The mountains are gorgeous, the alpenglow and twilight colors are phenomenal, the clouds are fantastic. I fully embrace any opportunity I can to get there, and I can't wait to share some sights with T.

Like I said, there is no plan. I pulled a few of my favorites from my visit there last fall. So many things we could check out this weekend...Bodie, Mono Lake, the June Lake Loop, Buttermilk Valley, Bristlecone Pines, Owens Valley, Alabama Hills, countless sub-alpine lakes, canyons, aspen stands...the choices are endless. I think we'll be tired on Monday evening!