Today’s morning shot is a beautiful HDR image from Cathy (aka haglundc on Flickr). High Dynamic Range, or HDR, images combine multiple frames captured at different exposures to produce an image closer to what the human eye sees rather than being limited by what the camera sensor or film will pick up. Great shot, Cathy.
Today’s forecast:
SNOW ABOVE 8500ft! That’s right. SNOW! The National Weather Service has a severe weather alert in place for the Central Sierra Nevada (Sequoia-Kings Canyon to Yosemite) warning of possible snow showers above 8500ft. The snow is a result of a low pressure that’s been building for some time now.
Yosemite Valley, El Portal, Oakhurst, Mariposa and the foothill regions as well as the Central Valley can expect thundershowers with heavy rains and hail.
Flash Flooding:
Although this is really cool, it’s also a really bad thing. Temperatures aren’t getting low enough to make this snow stick around for any lenght of time. In fact, tomorrow is expected to warm right back up. This means there’s a HUGE danger of flash floods. If you can, stay out of Tenaya Canyon today and tomorrow. Tenaya Canyon is a known flash flood zone and has even claimed lives in the past.
Small creeks and streams may swell to impassible heights in just miinutes. If you can stay put, do. Seek shelter during the storm and wait for the creeks and steams to subside.
Photo Opportunities:
Tuolumne Meadows – Tioga Pass – Got chains? Mud snow tires on your car? No telling how much snow the low could bring but if it does Tioga Pass and Tuolumne Meadows are the place you’ll want to be if you want to be in the thick of it.
Half Dome – Not advised. There is the possibility of lightning and that’s a HUGE danger. Snow on the dome and on the cables pose an imminent risk of slipping.
Glacier Point – Look east. If the clouds are high enough, sporadic or break in the west you should get some awesome views of the High Sierra.
Mono Lake – Tufa with the Sierra Covered in snow and huge puffy clouds? WIN!
Comments
2 responses to “Morning Shot Aug 6 2009: Weird Weather, Flash Flooding and Where To Be With Your Camera”
a bit random as a question, but would you have any insight, even anecdotal, into the following: how often Yosemite Park Rangers show up to court for contested speeding tickets/petty offenses?
getting a speeding ticket in the park is no fun… and it’s reported to the state too, right?
got snow up at TM campground. First at 830 then lots of it at 930 and then little here and there until about 1230