Introduction:
Last blog update Oct. 2021:
I revisit the Sierra at October 1-3 2021
From Hope Valley in the north (highway 88) to Bishop Creek in the south. The next 2-3 weeks is the time to visit and see the Aspen trees fall colors.
Important note: check for smoke conditions before your trip.
Few blogs links that provides additional information, this will help you plan your road trip to this area:
My Eastern Sierra blog directory
Death Valley
California have short fall color season and you can enjoy it at the Eastern Sierra....
The western
part of USA as well as California state has an amazing and divers nature but a
red-yellow foliage trees during autumn season is associated with the north-east
coast of the US with it dramatic color display (at states near New England…).
There are also
beautiful areas of fall colors in Colorado and New Mexico but to the best of my
knowledge not so much in California, where most of our wonderful forests are mainly
evergreen pines forests.
I will provide more in depth description on Bishop area.
I will provide links to blogs on each locations.
The yellow
colors in California mountain forests are usually from the Aspen,
Cottonwood and Willow trees that are growing at the creeks, valleys, and at
some mountain slopes.
Despite this
year (2021) wildfires near lake Tahoe, I would recommend on few places to enjoy
the fall colors of at the Eastern Sierra.
Most of the fall-color
recommended to visit locations in this blog, except for Hope Valley, are
located far south of lake Tahoe so I do not think they will be affected from
this year fires or smoke.
Eastern Sierra is
one of my favorite’s areas in California year-round, so the fall colors is just
used as an excuse to visit this amazing but somehow less known part of the
state.
Due Note 1: Make sure to
respect this year (2021) all forest closures as results of the fires.
Due Note 2: In past
drought years, color has arrived early and been short-lived (a week).
When we can see the fall colors:
This is the tricky
part, the exact timing when the leaves change their colors is related to the
weather leading up to fall and usually the peak timing of the yellow color is
quite short, for only about two to three weeks.
Because tree yellow
coloring depends on colder temperature and elevation, leaves start turning
yellow earlier at higher elevations compare to the lower elevations. The cold cycles and moisture varies from year to year so peak coloring is not happening
the same every year.
In my
experience from the last three years the recommended weeks for East Sierra fall
colors are just before winter, usually around mid-October.
For exact
timing and planning for each location you can look at the following map or other web sites that
track and report local fall color condition:
For how long to plan our visit in
the Eastern Sierra:
Assume you are
starting your trip at San Francisco, or LA, I will recommend planning for at
least a long-weekend trip i.e., at list 3 nights.
Things that I will not cover in
this blog:
I will not
provide in this blog additional information about what to do in this amazing
area of the Eastern Sierra.
As usual, I’m
not covering in my blogs information on where to sleep or where to eat… I’m
manly focus on nature and outdoor experience.
Everything I cover
in my Blogs is something I did and I took all my pictures…
For additional information please
look for my other blogs about the Eastern Sierra:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/p/blogs-directory.html#jump9_EasternSierra
Hope Valley: One of the best location to see Fall Colors is in Hope Valley on Highway 88. I wrote a detailed blog on what you can do and things to see in and near Hope Valley:
Trip route for those that are
coming from San Francisco:
State Highway 108:
From the town
of Sonora take highway 108 road east into the Sierra ridge, it is one of the
most beautiful roads there is. The road is closed in winter, exact timing
depends on the snow but usually it is close to traffic from mid-November.
Blog on Route 108:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/california-state-highway-108.html
Continue
driving on route 108 east to route 395 (Sonora Junction), which is the main
traffic artery from north to south, east of the Sierra.
Turn right and
head south on highway 395.
Twin Lakes:
On your way
south you will reach the small town of Bridgeport, here you will take Twin
Lakes Rd to the south-west, just after the first gas station on your right. This
road will take you to Twin Lakes. In this area near the lakes there are
clusters of Aspen trees and fall colors.
The lakes are
popular location for many outdoor activities.
Twin Lakes Blog:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/06/twin-lakes-bridgeport.html
Virginia Valley:
Continue south on
395 and then, about 12 miles south of Bridgeport, on the west side of the
highway (right-side for the one driving south) you can see a large valley full
of Aspen trees in varying degrees of yellow-orange colors.
Admire the view
on the other side of the valley below, late afternoon near sunset is not the
best timing because the sun will set at the exact direction you are looking at.
Here you can
also take a side paved road to the Virginia Lakes area, enjoy the road as well
as the beautiful lake (trip and hiking destination).
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/09/virginia-lakes-eastern-sierra.html
Keep driving south
on 395 and soon after you will reach, parking is on your right, high vantage viewing
point to the south: excellent place to see Mono Lake and the small towns of Mono
City and Lee Vining.
Continuing driving south, there are several other lakes in roads that are taking west of highway 395 into the mountain gorges. In many of those lakes you can find Aspen trees.
You can drive and
explore Lundy Canyon Lake or drive to the beautiful June Lake Loop area.
June Lake Loop:
15-mile June
Lake Loop drive passes along the shores of four mountain lakes each has
different personality but in all there are Aspen trees.
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/june-lake-loop.html
Mammoth Lake:
You can also
visit the many lakes near Mammoth Lake town, here I think there are less spots
with Aspen trees, mainly near Twin Lake.
The city of
Bishop and nearby locations will be our main
destination for fall color viewing.
Bishop:
From the town
of Bishop drive east using Route 168 into the Sierra. This road will take you
into one the most beautiful alpine valleys surrounded by jagged mountain
ranges, clear streams, and lakes as well as lots of Aspen trees.
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/bishop-and-highway-168-west-into-bishop.html
As explained, the
trees are getting the fall color according to altitude (and cold temperatures),
Highway 168 rises from the lower Bishop valley to the high mountains area. Here
you will surely find a yellow / orange trees at list at some elevation
At the lower
elevation the trees may still be green, other areas up the road where the
leaves turned yellow and maybe even higher sections that the leaves have
already fallen.
You can drive, slowly, in the town streets or stop at the unofficial
viewing point on the 168-road looking on the town from above.
After about 15
miles from Bishop there is a split at the road, to road taking left towards S.
Lake Rd and the road heading up the main valley.
I recommend continuing
driving straight, towards Lake Sabrina that is located at the end of Route 168.
The lake itself
is very beautiful and there is a hiking trailhead that you can take, it will
lead you up into the high mountains and lakes.
Blog about Lake Sabrina hike:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/sabrina-lake-hike-to-blue-lake.html
Immediately
after crossing the bridge it becomes a good dirt road that is climbing steeply
on the mountain slope towards the northern lake (North Lake).
This location has the most
beautiful fall colors landscape in the region and maybe in all of California!
Try to find a parking spot at the small
parking lot and hike to the lake. On the remote (west) side of the small North
Lake and the mountain slopes you will see all the Aspen Forest.
There is another
larger parking lot on the other side of the lake so you can park there but the
view from east to west is the magic view.
I must admit
that last year (2020) I missed the fall color peak, I arrived too late, a week
or two late (I arrived on October 24th), so most of the yellow leaves at this
elevation where already on the ground but it was still very beautiful sight.
On your drive
back, once you reach the road junction, you can visit the eastern valley. The road
passes through a large Aspen Forest with very beautiful fall colors.
Keep driving on
this road, parallel to South Fork Bishop Creek, all the way to the lake at the
end (South Lake) and enjoy the valley scenery and colors.
Hope Valley:
It is
impossible to end such a post on Fallen without mentioning Hope Valley on Route
88 east of Kirkwood.
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/09/hope-valley-highway-88-autumn-colors.html
Because of the
fires this year I do not recommend visiting this location, but this area is one
of the most beautiful fall color location.
Summer is one
of those places that is right on the edge of the fires (Tamarack Fire to the
east as well as north and west of the giant Caldor Fire that also threatens the
southern lake settlements).
As the Valley
of Hope is called, I am hopeful that the fires will be under control and this
location will not be harmed.
Hope Valley is
one of the most beautiful places to see a fall colors, there are many Aspen
trees that are growing all over the valley.
Just drive
along the road and stop at lookout points, you can explore some off-road side
trails with your car (4x4 car - Scotts Lake), Blue Lakes Rd or hike into the
valley.
Hope Valley is
located about 4 and a half hours drive out of San Francisco so it can be
visited as one long day-drive or overnight sleep at nearby towns (like South
Lake Tahoe).
Links to additional resources:
https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/fall-foliage/california-fall-foliage-reports-and-locations/
https://res.cloudinary.com/simpleview/image/upload/v1/clients/monocounty/EasternSierraFallColorGuide2013_f1a00f43-1c45-4bd4-9167-c1a764d3cf70.pdf
The yellow
colors in California mountain forests are usually from the Aspen,
Cottonwood and Willow trees that are growing at the creeks, valleys, and at
some mountain slopes.
Despite this
year (2021) wildfires near lake Tahoe, I would recommend on few places to enjoy
the fall colors of at the Eastern Sierra.
Most of the fall-color
recommended to visit locations in this blog, except for Hope Valley, are
located far south of lake Tahoe so I do not think they will be affected from
this year fires or smoke.
Eastern Sierra is
one of my favorite’s areas in California year-round, so the fall colors is just
used as an excuse to visit this amazing but somehow less known part of the
state.
Due Note 1: Make sure to
respect this year (2021) all forest closures as results of the fires.
Due Note 2: In past
drought years, color has arrived early and been short-lived (a week).
When we can see the fall colors:
This is the tricky
part, the exact timing when the leaves change their colors is related to the
weather leading up to fall and usually the peak timing of the yellow color is
quite short, for only about two to three weeks.
Because tree yellow
coloring depends on colder temperature and elevation, leaves start turning
yellow earlier at higher elevations compare to the lower elevations. The cold cycles and moisture varies from year to year so peak coloring is not happening
the same every year.
In my
experience from the last three years the recommended weeks for East Sierra fall
colors are just before winter, usually around mid-October.
For exact
timing and planning for each location you can look at the following map or other web sites that
track and report local fall color condition:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=12FSQxbVe9CedswOvJaWaeI5vvYU&ll=37.85374624754116%2C-120.27017115937497&z=7
For how long to plan our visit in
the Eastern Sierra:
Assume you are
starting your trip at San Francisco, or LA, I will recommend planning for at
least a long-weekend trip i.e., at list 3 nights.
The drive east from San Francisco (or LA) to highway 395 and Bishop is quite long (around 6 hours) and there are many things to do in this area on top of watching the fall colors.
Things that I will not cover in
this blog:
I will not
provide in this blog additional information about what to do in this amazing
area of the Eastern Sierra.
As usual, I’m
not covering in my blogs information on where to sleep or where to eat… I’m
manly focus on nature and outdoor experience.
Everything I cover
in my Blogs is something I did and I took all my pictures…
For additional information please
look for my other blogs about the Eastern Sierra:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/p/blogs-directory.html#jump9_EasternSierra
Trip route for those that are
coming from San Francisco:
State Highway 108:
From the town
of Sonora take highway 108 road east into the Sierra ridge, it is one of the
most beautiful roads there is. The road is closed in winter, exact timing
depends on the snow but usually it is close to traffic from mid-November.
The road climb
into the Sierra and pass to the east side at an altitude of about 10,000 feet
above sea level. When you are driving up near the pass and especially at the
other side of the pass, when descending there are Aspen trees spread in the
forest with yellow colors, stop at the roadside where it possible (outside of
the highway asphalt) and enjoy the view.
Blog on Route 108:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/california-state-highway-108.html
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/10/hope-valley-highway-88-autumn-colors.html
Continue
driving on route 108 east to route 395 (Sonora Junction), which is the main
traffic artery from north to south, east of the Sierra.
Turn right and
head south on highway 395.
Twin Lakes:
On your way
south you will reach the small town of Bridgeport, here you will take Twin
Lakes Rd to the south-west, just after the first gas station on your right. This
road will take you to Twin Lakes. In this area near the lakes there are
clusters of Aspen trees and fall colors.
The lakes are
popular location for many outdoor activities.
Twin Lakes Blog:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/06/twin-lakes-bridgeport.html
Virginia Valley:
Continue south on
395 and then, about 12 miles south of Bridgeport, on the west side of the
highway (right-side for the one driving south) you can see a large valley full
of Aspen trees in varying degrees of yellow-orange colors.
Stop carefully
at the shoulders of highway 395, there is no official parking lot so park as
far as you can on the right side (there are relatively wide section you can do
it safely).
Admire the view
on the other side of the valley below, late afternoon near sunset is not the
best timing because the sun will set at the exact direction you are looking at.
Here you can
also take a side paved road to the Virginia Lakes area, enjoy the road as well
as the beautiful lake (trip and hiking destination).
Virginia Lakes picture gallery:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/09/virginia-lakes-eastern-sierra.html
Keep driving south
on 395 and soon after you will reach, parking is on your right, high vantage viewing
point to the south: excellent place to see Mono Lake and the small towns of Mono
City and Lee Vining.
You can drive and
explore Lundy Canyon Lake or drive to the beautiful June Lake Loop area.
June Lake Loop:
15-mile June
Lake Loop drive passes along the shores of four mountain lakes each has
different personality but in all there are Aspen trees.
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/june-lake-loop.html
Mammoth Lake:
You can also
visit the many lakes near Mammoth Lake town, here I think there are less spots
with Aspen trees, mainly near Twin Lake.
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/mammoth-lakes.html
The city of
Bishop and nearby locations will be our main
destination for fall color viewing.
Bishop:
From the town
of Bishop drive east using Route 168 into the Sierra. This road will take you
into one the most beautiful alpine valleys surrounded by jagged mountain
ranges, clear streams, and lakes as well as lots of Aspen trees.
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/bishop-and-highway-168-west-into-bishop.html
As explained, the
trees are getting the fall color according to altitude (and cold temperatures),
Highway 168 rises from the lower Bishop valley to the high mountains area. Here
you will surely find a yellow / orange trees at list at some elevation
At the lower
elevation the trees may still be green, other areas up the road where the
leaves turned yellow and maybe even higher sections that the leaves have
already fallen.
On your drive you will pass the small town of Aspendell which has a lot of Aspen trees growing in between the houses, depending on the timing it can be a very nice over here.
You can drive, slowly, in the town streets or stop at the unofficial
viewing point on the 168-road looking on the town from above.
After about 15
miles from Bishop there is a split at the road, to road taking left towards S.
Lake Rd and the road heading up the main valley.
I recommend continuing
driving straight, towards Lake Sabrina that is located at the end of Route 168.
The lake itself
is very beautiful and there is a hiking trailhead that you can take, it will
lead you up into the high mountains and lakes.
Blog about Lake Sabrina hike:
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/05/sabrina-lake-hike-to-blue-lake.html
Just before the lake Sabrina (17.8 miles from Bishop) there is a side road that turns right.
Immediately
after crossing the bridge it becomes a good dirt road that is climbing steeply
on the mountain slope towards the northern lake (North Lake).
This location has the most
beautiful fall colors landscape in the region and maybe in all of California!
Picture Gallery Blog, North lake Oct. 1st 2021:
On your drive up to the North Lake along the narrow path you will get into a beautiful Aspan forest just before reaching the lake.
Try to find a parking spot at the small
parking lot and hike to the lake. On the remote (west) side of the small North
Lake and the mountain slopes you will see all the Aspen Forest.
There is another
larger parking lot on the other side of the lake so you can park there but the
view from east to west is the magic view.
I must admit
that last year (2020) I missed the fall color peak, I arrived too late, a week
or two late (I arrived on October 24th), so most of the yellow leaves at this
elevation where already on the ground but it was still very beautiful sight.
On your drive
back, once you reach the road junction, you can visit the eastern valley. The road
passes through a large Aspen Forest with very beautiful fall colors.
Keep driving on
this road, parallel to South Fork Bishop Creek, all the way to the lake at the
end (South Lake) and enjoy the valley scenery and colors.
Hope Valley:
It is
impossible to end such a post on Fallen without mentioning Hope Valley on Route
88 east of Kirkwood.
https://www.yiftahshahar.com/2021/09/hope-valley-highway-88-autumn-colors.html
Because of the
fires this year I do not recommend visiting this location, but this area is one
of the most beautiful fall color location.
Summer is one
of those places that is right on the edge of the fires (Tamarack Fire to the
east as well as north and west of the giant Caldor Fire that also threatens the
southern lake settlements).
As the Valley
of Hope is called, I am hopeful that the fires will be under control and this
location will not be harmed.
Hope Valley is
one of the most beautiful places to see a fall colors, there are many Aspen
trees that are growing all over the valley.
Just drive
along the road and stop at lookout points, you can explore some off-road side
trails with your car (4x4 car - Scotts Lake), Blue Lakes Rd or hike into the
valley.
Hope Valley is
located about 4 and a half hours drive out of San Francisco so it can be
visited as one long day-drive or overnight sleep at nearby towns (like South
Lake Tahoe).
Links to additional resources:
https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/fall-foliage/california-fall-foliage-reports-and-locations/
https://res.cloudinary.com/simpleview/image/upload/v1/clients/monocounty/EasternSierraFallColorGuide2013_f1a00f43-1c45-4bd4-9167-c1a764d3cf70.pdf
Additional Fall Color Pictures:
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