Folger Peak from the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness. |
After a hot California
summer (one for which I was admittedly away for a decent portion), fall appears
to finally be here. There are cooler temperatures in the Central
Valley and day length is noticeably shorter.
Last weekend I ventured to the crest of the Sierra for a
short excursion into the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness, one of the more northerly
of the string of wilderness areas, national parks, and national monuments that
protect much of the Sierra Nevada . The Carson is south of the Mokelumne Wilderness and north of Emigrant
Wilderness and Yosemite
National Park . It
straddles the crest of the mountains that Muir called the “Range of Light ”,
incorporating part of the Humboldt-Toiyabe
National Forest to the east and the Stanislaus National Forest to the west. The name of
the wilderness derives from an early California
settler (Kit Carson) and a unique rock formation within the wilderness (named
Iceberg).
Map of wilderness areas in the Sierra Nevada range. Map from sierrawild.gov. |
I hiked into the wilderness with B from the Tryon Meadow
trailhead. The trail was not very distinct in places, and therefore probably
not frequently used, but obvious enough to not get steered too far off course.
It passed through lightly dense forests of pine and firs, crossing a few very
tiny streams. Some remnant patches of snow lingered on the western flank of Folger Peak ,
but the evidence of the very wet 2016-2017 California winter was otherwise
gone.
We ended the hike at Milk Ranch Meadow, a lovely expanse of
sedge-dominated wetlands occupying a broad valley. The lush yellow-green Carex swayed with the mild gusts of
wind. The air was cool, but there was a clear sky full of warming sun. Open
water in the form of a small lake and even smaller ponds occurred within the Carex meadow, and the wetland itself had
standing water.
I spent about an hour trying to photograph dragonflies busy
with activity over the wetland. I walked out on to the white skeleton branches
of a fallen tree that penetrated into the wetland like a decaying pier. There
appeared to be three dragonfly species: a rarer black form, a smaller red
species, and a larger blue species that occupied much of my time. The red
species was relatively easy to photograph because it would land patiently on
the tree branches. The blue species, however, was constantly in motion, hovering
above the sedges for a second and then descending into the vegetation, then
pairing with a friend (or competitor) to dash off to a new spot above the
meadow. They moved nearly constantly, seldom landed, and often mid-flight took
a sharp turn to move in a different direction, all aspects of behavior that
made them a keen challenge to capture by camera.
The blue dragonfly species. |
Wetland at Milk Ranch Meadow. |
The wilderness and adjacent national forest had a variety of
flowers in bloom, including a very abundant species of pink Sidalcea, blue lupines with large
palmate leaves, Spiraea splendens,
and yellow and blue asters. Ipomopsis aggregata
showed off its flame red flowers, with a long floral tube and five sharp
pointed petals.
References
Wenk E. 2015. Wildflowers of the High Sierra and John Muir Trail. Wilderness
Press, Birmingham , AL .
Wilson L, Wilson J, Nicholas J.
1987. Wildflowers of Yosemite .
Sunrise Productions, Yosemite , CA .
The red dragonfly species. |
Ipomopsis aggregata (Polemoniaceae) at left and Sidalcea sp. (Malvaceae) at right. |
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