#Central Sierra Nevada

[thorsenmark]

Get Yourself to the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While walking the Discovery Trail and taking in views of the ancient bristlecone pines in this portion of the Schulman Grove and Inyo National Forest. The view is looking to the southwest with a distant view of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

[kcvulpinestudios]

Along the Valley Floor, a passenger train of the San Joaquin Valley Lines makes its way through as it heads northbound to the small towns along the way before reaching Fresno. It's a nice warm afternoon, and the train is going at a nice smooth pace.

Little scene I made after the Michael native pic got so much attention. Wanted to make one more with the dry wild grass vibe of my area.

[kvvvnjamz]

Man I miss the rain, it's been years of drought in Northern California. Had to move a bit east and it's nothing but snow, I love the sound of raindrops against my window. It's probably one of the few things that truly make me feel at ease. Snow, a newer experience to me in my 31 years of life, is the most miserable thing on this planet outside of Chrismas movies and postcards. Anyways here's a little chop I did, not the first or the last, and certainly not the best because this was just a quick cookup. Still, the sample speaks for itself it is just a few bars of melancholy and soul.

[thechembow]

The California chill: State recorded fifth-coldest March in 129 years amid storms, snow

Apr. 11, 2023 - LA Times

Californians who feel like March was one of the coldest and wettest they've endured have the data on their side.

Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show that last month was the fifth-coldest March in California since 1895, the first year in the agency's database. The average temperature across the state was 44.2 degrees, nearly 9 degrees lower than the average of 53.1 degrees from March 2022...

Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA, posted Monday on Twitter that "a few regions of Northern California just experienced their coldest March on record.”...

With the cold weather came substantial precipitation across the state. The wet season was the "wettest on record in some parts of interior" California, Swain tweeted, referring to the Central Valley and central and southern Sierra.

With more than 27 inches of precipitation on average, California's recent wet season ranked as the eighth wettest. Eight counties — El Dorado, Amador, San Joaquin, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Alpine, Mono and Fresno — saw their most precipitation on record from November through March...

[autotrails]

American Auto Trail-Victory Highway/Central Pacific Railroad (Colfax to Alta CA)

American Auto Trail-Victory Highway/Central Pacific Railroad (Colfax to Alta CA) https://youtu.be/L8ZAwmx02wI This American auto trail follows the Victory Highway and Central Pacific Railroad from Colfax, California, and finishes in Alta.

[safecastle-sale]

California Braces for Historic Blizzard: Sierra Nevada Under Threat

A powerful winter storm is set to unleash its fury on the Sierra Nevada from Thursday to Sunday, bringing record-breaking snowfall and blizzard conditions. ️

Here's what you need to know:

Up to 13 feet of snow is expected at the highest peaks.

Mountain travel will be impossible due to blizzard conditions with near-zero visibility.

This storm is different from previous ones:

Colder and originating from Alaska, not Hawaii.

Stronger jet stream will push the storm system inland.

Potential for record-breaking snowfall at UC Berkeley's Central Sierra Snow Lab.

Impacts:

Heavy snow expected at lower elevations, including foothills and parts of the Bay Area. ❄️

Strong winds exceeding 110 mph on the Sierra crest.

Possible power outages and disruptions. ⚡

Stay safe! ⚠️

Avoid travel to the Sierra Nevada unless absolutely necessary.

Prepare for potential power outages.

Stay informed of the latest weather updates.

[circuitmouse]

California road trip

[transit-fag]

hello i hope you can appreciate or at least evaluate this idea of mine to fix the us states, i got rid of the emptiest ones and tried to include an equal number of big cities/metropolitan areas for most of them; i also imagined what the capital cities could be bases on the largest one but in some cases i went with the second largest if it was more central. i didn't name them on this map but they would mostly be the same as currently (the san francisco one would be nevada since it's where the sierra nevada actually lies for the most part). also i wasn't sure what to name the pittsburgh one but i suppose erie would be an apt choice

Finally, National Gerrymandering

[nazrigar]

Transformers All-Sparks: The Main Humans of the AU.

The central humans of my AU. Though waaaay ahead in the future chronologically speaking from when the Autobot vs Decepticon civil war actually begins, I still feel appropriate to share... plus a hint of what also crossovers with this AU.

Much like how on Cybertron this AU is a family drama inolving the Paxes and Carcers, the human side is of two families connected by two lovers...

With the added bonus of two agents stuck with each other and keeping an eye on a certain former G.I. Joe.

Jack Darby is a typical high school boy who is unsure of his future and has his soul thoroughly sucked out by the horror of the almighty KO Burger. He loves his mom, and his girlfriend (who most people consider wayyyyy out of his league) Sierra brightens his day. Though he doesn't lookit at first, he's quick thinking and resourceful. A natural survivor.

Sierra O'Hara is the most popular girl in school, has good grades and the local cheer captain. Though at times she can be sean as a 'mean girl', it's a defense mechanism, as she's not the most trusting person. Those who DO earn her trust and friendship find a completely different person. Curious and excitable.

She has a deep interest in chemistry and engineering, and feels at home in a fast car or riding (and working on) motorbikes. For whatever reason, she feels a connection with anything equipped with an engine.

Agent Simmons and Agent Fowler are the local secret agents. One is a member of a mysterious org known as Sector 7, and the other a liason between several government agencies. It is their job to keep an eye on one Shana O'Hara, the local baseball coach. She IS after all, Scarlett, one of the best of the best among the now mostly retired Joes. Unfortunately for them, she prefers to live a peaceful life as a civvie, thank you very much.

June Darby is a close friend of Shana and helped the retired vet get the hang of life in Jasper, Nevada. She's just a concerned mom who's worried about her son's future. She's a nurse, and knows all about how life is a precious thing, and wants her son to have a long and fulfilling one.

[herpsandbirds]

Name of this huge moth, please. 3200 foot level Central Sierra Nevadas. Photo date June

Large moth in the western United States: 

This looks like a Ceanothus Silk Moth (Hyalophora euryalus), family Saturniidae

[thorsenmark]

Get Yourself to the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While walking the Discovery Trail and taking in views of the ancient bristlecone pines in this portion of the Schulman Grove and Inyo National Forest. The view is looking to the southwest with a distant view of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

[myemuisemo]

While I was pondering whether Mrs. Douglas had a "freeze" reaction to trauma in chapter V of The Valley of Fear, chapter VI appeared with the answer, and I fear Letters from Watson will soon provide chapter VII, so let's get cracking.

There are three things top of mind for me today:

The Panic of 1873

Yews

Dumbbells

The Panic of 1873

When I worked out the timeline for Cecil Barker's recounting of "we did this for five years and this for one year," etc., etc., assuming that the story takes place in late 1888 or early 1889, the year I got for Barker's likely arrival in the U.S. was 1873.

That's significant: he set off to make his fortune, ending up in the gold fields of California, about the time that a global depression was starting.

The short version of the Panic of 1873 is that after the Civil War, U.S. railroad bonds (that is, the debt used to finance railroad construction) were the hot investment, not just in the US, but in Europe, especially Germany. Nineteenth-century investing was mostly in bonds -- this is why people talk in Victorian novels about having investments in 3-percents that pay 10,000 pounds a year, or similar. When you invested your money, the company was literally in debt to you, and it paid you a safe "coupon" of interest on that debt.

Not all bonds were the same. People were "ruined" by investing in companies that did not have stable cash flow or were outright fraudulent.

The initial problem in 1873 was not with the railroads, though, but with trading in the bonds. When German investors moved on to other investments, there were too many railroad bonds running loose, causing their value to plummet. That took out a US bank that had a hefty investment in those bonds, as their asset value dropped. The bank failure caused a panic, which cascaded through the system. This article and this one explain some of the specifics.

Anyway, Cecil Barker seeks his fortune abroad at a time loosely equivalent to the Great Recession of 2008.

In 1873, California was wrapping up efforts to exterminate native peoples -- no, I'm not exaggerating. This was not covered in 4th grade state history, 5th grade U.S. history, nor 8th or 11th grade U.S. history when I was in school!

By 1873, Gold Rush hysteria was over and some of the original sites in the Sierra Nevada foothills had been largely mined-out and abandoned, though mining still continued where it could. San Francisco was establishing itself as "the Paris of the West." The Central Valley, where I live, was getting rail built down its length, with towns established at various points for taking on fuel and water, as well as for picking up wheat and other crops that didn't require intensive irrigation (which wouldn't arrive for ~40 years).

It's not me, it's YEW

After decades of reading British novels, I have finally looked up what a yew is. I'd always envisioned something like the Chinese juniper that's planted everywhere around here: a low, dense hedge with soft packets of needles and a pungent, dusty scent.

Nope. I far underestimated the yew. It is a tree that makes Tolkien's Ents look small and non-threatening. Visit this yew-focused page to see the most terrifying trees. The existence of the yew also explains folktales of the British Isles where fair folk live in hollow trees. Yikes.

The yew traditionally symbolizes death, so the yew hedge is an excellent place to hang out after one's husband is mysteriously murdered.

(While you're there, the Ancient Tree Inventory is great for hours of exploration and arboreal terror.)

Where is the missing dumbbell?

The fact that Douglas has dumbbells at all is interesting, as the physical culture movement only really took off in the US in the 1880s, and it was slower to arise in England due to a greater cultural emphasis on "games."

He may have been influenced by his German first wife, as it was German immigrants in the 1850s who popularized the "Turner" movement of liberal political philosophy and physical fitness, the latter through vigorous gymnastics. Turnverein had a significant role in bringing PE into American schools.

Depending how one interprets the dumbbells, Douglas could be:

Forward-thinking

Eccentric

Worried about physical attacks or about aging

Very into German culture

We can't ask Mrs. Douglas, as, per Cecil Barker, Douglas' "perfect" trust in her did not include telling her... oh, anything actually important about his life.

I really want to know who was using whom in this household.

[catboybiologist]

Pine Forest vs Deciduous forest - which is better to hike through? No waffling Sierra be brave!

My name is literally Sierra, okay?

I have to do Pine- or rather, coniferous in general, if we apply the same broadness of

I think people dramatically underestimate the versatility of coniferous forest. Yes, its taiga and alpine zones- but its also cypress swamps, redwood forests, temperate rainforests, central american pine-oak, and so much more.

Deciduous can't even claim "classic" tropical rainforests to their name, because those are evergreen broadleafs.

Of course I love both, but I have to throw my hat in the ring for my Sierra Nevada Alpine zone, my PNW rainforests, my coast redwoods, and all my other Pacific coast of NA forests, as well as every other coniferous forest in the world.

[thechembow]

Snow Overnight, more on the Way

Jan. 16, 2023

Rain turned to snow yesterday afternoon, and we had a couple of inches overnight, which have melted off this morning here at around 5000 feet. At the higher elevations the snow is remaining and we are expecting another 2-5 inches later today into tomorrow.

The Sierras are forecast to get 1 to 2 feet of snow with this next storm, with possible “excessive rainfall” in the Sierra foothills. There are various weather advisories and warnings in effect for most parts of California today, including flood warnings for the already flooded valley and coastal regions.

[hi-sierra]

yoooo where did you take your header?

pretty just like you :D

Little Baldie, a granite dome in Sequoia National Park. The view looks South across the Southern Sierra Nevada and a bit of the central valley, and the direction I'm pointing is Southeast, approximately where the High Sierra Trail runs

[santoschristos]

“Mount Shasta – a vision of immensity such as pertains to the vast universe rather than to our own planet.” — James Dwight Dana

On Mount Shasta, Telos and Lemuria Mount Shasta is a majestic mountain that stands at the northern end of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. It's located in Siskiyou County, in Northern California, about 40 miles from the Oregon border. Mount Shasta is the cone of an extinguished volcano that reaches 14,162 feet above sea level and is the largest volcanic peak in the continental United States. The Ascension Masters have revealed that Mount Shasta may also be considered an incarnation of the Great Central Sun.

Mount Shasta, more than just a mountain, is one of the most sacred places on the planet. It is a mystical energy source for this Earth and a focal point for a City of Light, for angels, spiritual guides, astronauts and masters ascended from the Kingdom of Light and from many dimensions. Mount Shasta is also home to the survivors of the ancient Lemuria.

For those with clairvoyance skills, Mount Shasta is enclosed in a gigantic purple etheric pyramid whose summit extends far beyond this planet into space and connects us intergalactically to the Confederation of Planets for this sector of the Milky Way. This amazing pyramid also includes an inverted version of itself that extends to the very core of the Earth. Mt. Shasta is the entry point of the Grids of Light for this planet. It's where most of the energy initially comes from the galactic and universal core before spreading to other mountains and the rest of the grids. Most mountain tops, particularly high mountains, are Beacons of Light that power the light grids of this planet.

Mount Shasta/Mystic Mountain Image art by Mahaboka