HW395 Photoshoot
Previously I believe I mentioned that I was working on a photoshoot road trip. Well, the good news is that I’ve recently competed a fantastic trip up HW395 and I’m now back in Carlsbad working through the images I secured.
HW395 is very scenic, especially the section from Lone Pine to Mono Lake, and there are may places that are worthy photo locations. And right now, with the season change it’s extremely colorful. However, I should have gone about a week earlier as the recent snow had diluted he autumn colors, but the upside was the visible snow on the mountains, there is always a silver lining, right.
The photo trip began by driving to Big Pine, about 350 miles, where I stayed for the first night, sleeping in my Toyota Land Cruiser. Recently I built myself a bed in the Land Cruiser after watching some YouTube videos. It works really well, a little cramped as you would expect, but comfortable enough for several days away on the road.
Early the next morning I woke to capture the sunrise lighting up the snow capped mountains. After that I headed out to Willow Springs, my next campsite, but not before I had my coffee at Brewed Awakening in Big Pine. On the way up, I stopped at Convict Lake, a location I’ve been waning to visit for some time, and I took a leisurely 3 mile walk around the mountain oasis. I finished the day visiting Travertine Hot Springs and Two Lakes near Bridgeport before retiring to my car for another night.
The next day I was joined by a photographer friend and our goal was to shoot at Bodie but the road was closed because of the weather and so we revised our plans and visited the Virginia Lakes. The last mile of the road to the lake was also closed but we were able to park our cars and walk. After that we headed to Mono Lake where we captured the tufa’s in the late afternoon sun and stayed for an amazing sunset before my friend left.
Another early morning followed this time to capture the sunrise over Mono Lake. My vantage point was the Mono Lake Overlook on HW395 which was a great spot to watch the fog rolling over the lake as the sun made its daily appearance. After that, and of course my morning coffee, I headed to what now is one of my favorite locations, Parker Lake. Situated on the June Lake Loop, Parker Lake is magnificent. You can reach the lake by driving a few miles off road to the trailhead and then hiking 2 miles in to the wilderness. I highly recommend the hike and the reward is worth every step, see the photo for his blog. To finish the day I drove to Lone Pine, my final campsite location, and spent the late afternoon and early evening exploring the Alabama Hills, another place I’ve been wanting to visit for a photoshoot.
My final day on the road was driving 300 miles home but not without stopping at Fossil Falls. This location had more to offer than I expected and I spent some time exploring the area. In addition, the impressive Red Hill Cinder Cone is nearby which, for a photographer, is a definite must visit.
Overall I drove 1,100 miles, slept in my car 4 nights, and captured nearly 700 images. It was an extremely enjoyable photoshoot road trip and one I’m sure I’ll repeat. Next time I will be even more prepared and I’ll explore a few more new locations but for now my HW395 adventure was a great success.
