7-08 Kings Canyon NP Camping/Hiking trip

[surfstar]

(Note: if you have dialup, go get a beer or coffee)
We made it up there towards the end of last month for 3 nights. Amazingly the first-come-first-serve campsites were quite empty, while the reservation campgrounds looked completely packed. Any real hiking trail was quite empty also; most people don't venture off the paved paths.
This was also my first vacation/trip with my new Olympus e510 dSLR. I've always taken "nice" pics b/c we usually go to places that are beautiful, and I bought this camera to hopefully take noticeably "nicer" pics. Much of the distant scenery was lost in the lingering haze from the months old California fires, plus some haze from the fresh fire near Yosemite. UV and polarizer filters helped a bit.

Pictures cannot do the giant sequoias justice. Including people and cars helps to put them in perspective.
General Grant trail parking

Converse Basin

Boole Tree

Highway 180 dropping down into Kings Canyon

Our first full day there, we hiked up 7 miles up to Lookout Peak, gaining about 4000' from the canyon floor (already ~4000'). We saw 3 other people on the trail - none of them after we passed this little waterfall about a mile into the hike.
Sheep Creek Cascades

That's so pretty, how about one more?

View from Lookout Peak

The only shade we could find up top was from under the microwave repeaters.
Lunchtime

5 photo panoramic view from the top

We still had time to check out a waterfall and meadow after we came down from Lookout Peak.
Near Roaring River Falls

Zumwalt Meadow (aka mosquito blood donation center)

Just down from our campsite was the Kings River.
Sunset colors

The next day's hike took us up to Mist Falls and on to Lower Paradise Valley, where backpacking campgrounds start.
Trail to Mist Falls

Mist Falls

Gorgeous views along the trail past Mist Falls

We had lunch, then turned around at Lower Paradise Valley.
3 photo panoramic of our lunch view along the river

Hazy view on the morning we left

We left early enough to drive through adjoining Sequoia NP and do a couple short hikes.
View near Tokopah Falls

Tokopah Falls

General Sherman Tree (if you squint you can see people along the bottom path)

until next time...

 

[Shannow]

Awesome scenery.

Thanks for the pics.

 

[moribundman]

Good use slow shutter speeds when shooting flowing water. Did you have to use a neutral density filter?

Having this type scenery available is one of my main reasons for living in CA.

 

[Johnny]

Very nice. Thanks for sharing.

 

[surfstar]

Originally Posted By: moribundman
Good use slow shutter speeds when shooting flowing water. Did you have to use a neutral density filter?

Having this type scenery available is one of my main reasons for living in CA.


Yes I used a 0.6 ND, and also stacked the CPL for a couple to get even longer shutters, but found the best shots with just a 1s. It was also my first time shooting RAW, and I've had fun playing with the trial version of CS3 and Lightroom 2.

I agree - I plan on getting some gear for backpacking next summer. Funny thing was at the General Sherman tree, there were more foreign language speakers than English! I think more tourists have seen these sights than native Californians.

 

[Drew99GT]

Awesome pics!

 

[tom slick]

You really get around. Thank you for the photos. I think Kings Canyon rivals Yosemite but has less crowding.
I grew up just south of Kings Canyon, that scenery brings back memories.

 

[leftlane]

Im not a photographer so I wonder is there any reason people dont take 6-9 pan pictures to where it would turn out to be more of a square full picture view than a skinny rectangle view? I ask this because while the pan pics are pretty it always leaves you with the feeling of missing out on the other scenery around, like the bottom of the river thats missing in that pan river pic for example. I guess there is a good reason to not try 6-9 pan pics or else people would do it so Im just wondering why. Is it because the close sharply detailed pics wouldnt blend in well with the far away scenery pics that arent as sharp? Too many pics for the software to handle at once?

Thats one beautiful place I'd really like to see in person some day.

 

[tom slick]

In the above panoramic shots you'd only get more blue sky if more photos were stitched in vertically

 

[XS650]

Leftlane, I've done 3x4 arrays. It gets tedious with that many pictures and takes good software to do it. There are also usually more exposure related problems as you go up and down as opposed to sideways.

PS CS3 handles them OK.

 

[leftlane]

Oh ok XS thanks for the info.

One can tell from my siggy that I like pictures of beautiful things and places but I dont have the money to become a photographer and travel right now. Later on maybe. Btw I have some desktop pics of yosimite and other places in my siggy link if anyone would like to check them out. Save any you wish.

 

[surfstar]

I think to get the stacked panoramic picture to come out good, one would have to invest in a very expensive panoramic head for an expensive tripod. And you also have to worry about lens distoration. Those pannys I shot were handheld. My tripod pics (blurred water) used a $20 ultralight (4oz!) tripod - perfect for hiking...

The river panny was shot vertical, so it gave as much height as I could get compared to the horizontal lookout peak panny. I also could have backed up to get the river foreground into the shot more, but was more interested in the clouds - should've have thought about taking more pics before I left. Next time...

 

[XS650]

Surfstar, try it, CS3 photo merging hides a multitude of sins.

I've done quite a few vertically stacked and some horizontal-vertical combinations with good results. You have a better camera than I do and I think a better photographer.

 

[surfstar]

Cool - I'll definitely try some soon. I'm using the trial version of CS3 right now - those pannys were done with it. Amazing how it works.

 

[leftlane]

I'll have to try CS3 too. I have several pan pics from different vacations of beaches and mountains that I'd like to merge. Thanks for the info guys.

 

[crinkles]

bloody incredible scenery!!

 

[Pablo]

Thanks for the pictures.....I haven't been there for 30 years or so. Once a year we would hike the southern Sierra Nevada. Always seemed "moist" to me. Now my perception of wet/dry has changed so much!

 

[Oldmoparguy1]

Originally Posted By: crinkles
bloody incredible scenery!!


That's a total understatement! Fantastic place!