The tree is not situated in its environment; it is also situated against its environment. It faces challenges ...

The map of the bristlecone pine distribution on any high "peak" is, in this sense, a map of a battle... M. Cohen

Ancient Bristlecone Forest, White Mountains.

I'm fortunate to share this image with you all via Explore! Thanks to all who provided feedback and especially the continued encouragement!

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Tags:   tree sunset clouds landscape mountains oldest tree ancient tree bristlecone ancient bristlecone Ancient Bristlecone Forest White Mountains California Michael Carl Photography

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John Muir may have said it best about the western juniper...

"A thickset, sturdy, picturesque highlander, seemingly content to live for more than a score of centuries on sunshine and snow... The burly Juniper, whose girth sometimes more than equals its height, is about as rigid as the rocks on which it grows."

This old juniper anchored itself in the crevice of a large granite rock. And this rock embedded itself along an almost vertical slope of a canyon draining the eastern Sierra Nevadas. Talk about a risky and austere place to sink roots! But junipers are finely tuned to grow where other trees cannot.

I've camped in this canyon for over a decade, and would walk past this very juniper tree to scout landscape shots of the surrounding mountains. Then it struck me! The September night sky would offer the opportunity to photograph this gnarled, burly juniper with a portion of the milky way. So, here's one of the resulting compositions.

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Yosemite National Park in the Valley below.

Tags:   landscape fallcolor oak tree gold grass Yosemite Valley Yosemite National Park sunstar Michael Carl Photography California

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Eastern Sierra fall color.

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These trees don't create butter, but they do create carotene. In the process of breaking down their green color, chlorophyll, into smaller pieces to store for the following spring's crop of new leaves, the leaves are "melted" back to their predominate colors of yellow and brown.

With that said, the experience of being inside the small grove of black oak trees with the sun streaming through the canopy felt like bathing in a warm tub of butter;-)

Thank you flickr community for your comments, faves, and views! And the opportunity to share my image via Explore!

Tags:   trees forest nature fallcolor canopy oak tree sunlight Yosemite Yosemite Valley Michael Carl Photography Explore!

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