Journeys›Photograph

Early September at Picnic Rock

·Placer County, California·#hiking#summer#lake tahoe#sierra nevada
A vast blue lake bordered by dense evergreen forests and a winding road, with distant mountains under a clear blue sky.

Walked up to Picnic Rock again, first weekend of September, and the lake was busy the way it only gets on a holiday weekend — wakes crossing wakes all the way from Tahoe City toward the north shore, so many that the water looked scratched. You could hear the highway below through the trees for the first stretch, then it dropped away.

Hazy toward the south end, the far mountains flattened into blue layers, but clear enough overhead. The rocky outcrop at the top was the usual scramble, and the big dead log up there is still holding on, silver and twisted, with the same young pine growing behind it.

We traded selfies at the top with the lake behind us and shared the summit with a few other people out on the rocks. Dusty trail on the way down.

A panoramic view of a vast blue lake surrounded by dense green forests and distant mountains under a clear blue sky.A tall pine tree stands beside a rocky dirt path overlooking a large blue lake and distant mountains under a clear sky.A wide landscape view of a vast blue lake, boats, a forested shoreline, and distant mountains under a clear sky.A wide view of a blue lake with boats, surrounded by dark green forests and distant mountains under a clear sky.A clear blue lake with scattered boats and white wakes, surrounded by dense pine forests and distant mountains under a bright sky.A rugged rocky outcrop in the foreground overlooks a vast forested mountain under a clear blue sky.A large dead tree trunk, pine trees, a blue lake, and distant mountains under a clear sky.A weathered log lies on the ground, overlooking a vast blue lake, green trees, and distant snow-capped mountains.A large dead tree trunk in the foreground overlooks a deep blue lake surrounded by mountains and pine trees under a clear sky.Two smiling people take a selfie outdoors overlooking a large blue lake with distant mountains and pine trees.Two people smile at the camera with a large blue lake, mountains, and trees behind them.Two smiling people take a selfie on a rocky cliff overlooking a vast blue lake and distant mountains.

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