Birthday Trip to the Eastern Sierra

Last year on my birthday I made a trip to Bishop where I was born and lived until I was 16.  It is now one of my favorite places to photograph and to visit.  My trip from Mariposa took me through Yosemite National Park and across Tioga Pass to Lee Vining.  Bishop lies approximately 65 miles south of Lee Vining in the Owens Valley and is well known to outdoor enthusiasts who like to ski, fish, hunt, hike and take photographs.  The mountains on the eastern side of the Sierras rise steeply and dramatically, unlike the gradual rise of the mountains on the western side where I now live in Mariposa.  Inyo and Mono counties offer an incredible variety of scenery and interesting places to photograph.  These are a few images that I captured on my birthday trip.  Locations include North Lake, Bishop, Silver Lake, Mono Lake, and  Hwy 395.