A peaceful meadow in Yosemite. Finding solitude is in itself a viable goal if you’re willing to head out to a more remote spot. And it really doesn’t take much effort or time when you’re intent on getting off the beaten path. Knowing the risk and what it will involve getting back to where you were. The effort, strain, and cost to get that temporary peace. It takes a clear goal, intentional effort, and sometimes a persistence that doesn’t always come naturally.
While out exploring Sequoia forests, you’re going to come upon meadows here and there. And sometimes among those meadows are Sequoias that have fallen and lay in open view while in decay. With all of the upright and living trees around them, they are a reminder about the cycle of life. While their centuries of longevity may suggest a life of immortality, eventually they topple under their own weight. Due to natural forces and their shallow root system.
Dana Meadows in full view from the Gaylor Lakes Trail. Yosemite high country about a mile above Tioga Pass. With mild overcast weather yet without any wind, but a pleasant view in the distance.
Here in this photo, the floor of Kings Canyon is about a mile beyond Cedar Grove. Which is just over 4,600 feet above sea level. With ancient upward vertical cliffs far above the lowest glacier-carved depth. It is said that rivers carve a “V” shaped valley. While glaciers carve a “U” shaped valley. Yet here what is to become a canyon with soaring walls on each side. The depth of Kings Canyon is at about 8,200 feet. One of the deepest canyons in the U.S. Further shaped by plentiful rivers, cascades, and the life they support.
Leaving treeline in the Eastern Sierra has a distinct atmospheric feel to it. Not just by the altitude and reduced available oxygen level, but by the exposure and sparse shade that becomes more apparent. Either by miles from a trailhead or right when starting out, the terrain and shape of the wilderness tell a story. About its conditions, but also about what the area means to you while having been there.
Lukens Lake in Yosemite is a tucked away hidden body of water that is a pleasure to visit after a short hike from the trailhead. A forested perimeter around the circumference of the lake gave the place a familiar character. Much the same as many lakes throughout Yosemite and Sierra. Leading up to the lake is a long stretched out meadow to complement its beauty. A portion of the meadow submerged yet with a portion of the lake receded.
Sometimes there are much higher hardships and costs to get to places that are much more remote. Yet once there, the reward makes it all entirely worthwhile. The abundance of wilderness features both near and far really brings out a deeper awareness of life.
In the words of John Muir, “Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.”
In early Spring with the forest floor still damp, you can feel and sense the quality of this area. Just before nightfall, I was out and about the Giant Forest area in Sequoia scouting about for wildlife and unique openings to contemplate and absorb the natural settings.
In a world of enormous creatures in this wilderness place, Titans such as this can fall and come to rest. After centuries of standing strong and tall, they fall from their stature and come to rest such as this. In a very brief felling event, they begin to die. They come to rest in their space and provide shelter and sustenance for other creatures of this wilderness kingdom.
Sequoia’s fallen without erosion or decay reminds me of how recent they have toppled. Still protected by their thick bark and tannin surface, their eventual disintegration will be weather, exposure, critters, and wildlife. When looking far across this remote meadow, it is easy to see the fallen Sequoia as commonplace.
Sometimes the best place to be is in an open field under the shade of swaying branches. While in a slight breeze and in the warmth of the sun. With just the whispering wind to vanish and reappear again. If you listen carefully, it speaks to you.
Today was a very rewarding time in Sequoia to explore a well-known meadow to get away, open the spirit, and see what the time might bring. It didn’t take long to get separated from visitors, and in no time, I had the meadow to myself some distance away. Quiet, still, and cold, I saw beauty in the wildness of this place.
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