A small creek winding through alpine meadow toward Guitar Lake below Mount Whitney at golden hour.

Guitar Strings

Guitar Lake, Sequoia National Park, California

The inlet stream at Guitar Lake, camp within earshot, summit day finally over. A thirteenth of a second, tripod-mounted, just enough to soften the water while the meadow grass stays sharp. After eleven hours on the mountain I had energy for exactly one composition, so I picked the one the landscape had already drawn: a bright line of water leading home.

Nikon Z 7_2 · 17-35mm f/2.8D · 17mm · f/5.6 · 1/13 · ISO 40

June 30, 2025

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More from Guitar Lake, Sequoia National Park, California

Black and white photo of two backpackers beside Guitar Lake below Mount Whitney with storm cloud building above.

More from JMT

Sunrise over Owens Valley from the icy cables section of the Mount Whitney Trail, hikers crossing old snow.Black and white photo of hikers among summit boulders beside the stone Smithsonian hut on Mount Whitney.Wildflowers above the Hitchcock Lakes with Guitar Lake in the distance, from the west slope of Mount Whitney.Storm clouds building over tundra and tarns below Forester Pass on the John Muir Trail in the morning.Black and white panorama from Forester Pass at 13,120 feet over the lakes and peaks of upper Kings Canyon.A dark tarn beneath the snow-streaked headwall on the north side of Forester Pass, Kings Canyon National Park.