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Chushu at Grinding Rock
It is End of Heat (Chushu), the 14th traditional Chinese solar term, when the heat starts to retreat. It’s a day to worship ancestors and welcome Autumn. We decided to go for a drive to Indian Grinding Rock SHP, where we can slow down in the mountains. When we arrived, it’s already late, so quiet…
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Mountain Has It’s Own Thermostat
In the heat wave, we entered the mountains, thinking maybe we made a mistake to pick such a hot day. But the deeper we go, the cooler it gets. As if it the mountain controls it’s own thermostat, isolated from outside world, I wonder if the sun ever penetrates through. In the deep cool air,…
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Pinnacles at Dusk
Walking into the mountains at dusk. That moment, when soft light glows on half of the cliff, trees are dancing with the breeze, standing like a bonsai on the contour of rocks. Different birds starting their serenade for the nightfall. That moment is almost sacred, makes you feel like stepping into a different realm, where…
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Indian Grinding Rock
Haven’t been back to Indian Grinding Rock SHP for awhile. Different from last time during their annual Big Time Gathering, this time it’s almost empty. It’s a perfect place to soak in serenity. Strolling around the path, the ground almost echoes our steps. The traditional bark houses quietly nesting on the open field, randomly. It…
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Ancient Wind
There’s something about standing here at the entryway of the Whitney Portal. Just be still and listen. The mountain doesn’t need to announce its existence, just being there is overwhelmingly enough. Water just sings its way down to the valley. And that wind! That ancient wind that blows from the high Sierras to the mighty…
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July 4th
It’s hard to believe July 4th is gone almost a week now. Sometimes it feels like jet leg after vacation, switching from vacation zone back to daily life. Looking back at the pictures I took, some normal street shots from Columbia Old Town. A little boy insists on following me and being in the picture,…
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395, Elk, Mountain Lion & Bear
I saw the largest herd of elk on HWY 395 that I have ever seen. Like almost 100 grazing under the blue sky with the snowy Sierra as backdrop, it was quite distinctive. We pulled over and watched, there’s clearly a dominant chief, with the most magnificent antlers, shepherding his herd around. It became a…
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Travel – Yosemite
We’re on the road again. Passing by a dilapidated town: Chinese Camp, where only the store still carries the town name. The list of commodities echoes the past. Further down the road, Groveland is a thriving little town, architecture in all different shapes, high and low, speaking out the original mountain town character, yet somehow…
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Alabama Hills
Finally I’m back to the place that I dreamed of day and night. They say some places hold a special energy field, that will awaken your spirit. Alabama Hills is such a place for me. Sky seems higher, mountains seems so close, you can almost touch them. Huge granite formations make you feel like this…
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草莓月
暮色渐合，一轮初升的明月，在辗转迂回的山间时隐时现，终于豁然开朗，从天边的玫瑰色中跳跃而出，明亮的黄色泛着粉红，纯净而神圣，又一轮明月夜圆满伊始。山壁岩石的走向依然清晰，娓娓地讲着地球年轻的故事。追随着月亮，我们上了395号风景线，草莓月爬上树梢，松树的轮廓被月亮照出灵性的剪影；当月亮在山的崖壁正上方，如天地神龛，又如巨幅壁画从天而降。天地都渲染在月华如水的世界，高山，老树，湖面和我一样，都沐浴其间，不分彼此，分享着同一轮古老而年轻的草莓月。 海拔渐低，温度渐高，谷底升起一层淡淡的薄雾，薄雾下是我们要去的小镇，灯火在雾中闪烁，渐渐我们也融入雾中。明月东升那一瞬已恍如隔世。