Backpackers crossing a log bridge over Lone Pine Creek in morning forest light on the Mount Whitney Trail.

First Crossing

Mount Whitney Trail, John Muir Wilderness, California

Mile one of two hundred thirty-eight, and the pack never heavier — a full week of food and 35 pounds on the Whitney Portal scale an hour earlier. I hung back at the creek and let the group string out single file across the logs; one figure per log beam is the difference between a snapshot of friends and a picture about a trail. Shade this deep at 26mm needs patience, not settings.

Nikon Z 7_2 · 17-35mm f/2.8D · 26mm · f/5.6 · 1/250 · ISO 180

June 29, 2025

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