Spectacular Autumn Color in Eastern Sierra in California

金黃葉鋪天蓋地， 最是秋意濃。吾心沈醉此景中，有種寧靜淡然安詳，必訪的賞秋景之地， 超美的景色，駐足欣賞，拍照留念。

The gorgeous tunnel of aspens in a deep brilliant golden glow for many visitors to enjoy a wonderful and serene autumn stroll around Convict Lake which is one of the most beautiful mountain lakes in Eastern Sierra in eastern California. The air was clean and crisp. 

In the five-day period from October 16 to October 20, 2023, we did a 900-mile big loop driving tour, started from San Francisco Bay Area, went  south to Bakersfield, then went east into Eastern Sierra in eastern California, then  toured north along Highway 395 through Lone Pine, Big Pine, Bishop, Lee Vining, Conway Summit, Bridgeport to Topaz Lake to enjoy many interesting vista points along the way. Then took the 4-hour drive on Highway 88 to cross the high Sierra mountains with spectacular vista points to loop back to San Francisco Bay Area.

On October 18, 2023, we came for wonderful hiking around beautiful  Convict Lake in Eastern Sierra. Many visitors, including us, were surrounded by fantastic golden yellow and orange leaves of aspen trees while hiking on the nicely paved trail around Convict Lake.  

This is part of our 5-day driving tour to enjoy spectacular autumn color around mountain lakes, canyons and along highways plus many other amazing vista points in Eastern Sierra. This travelogue website reports the fantastic autumn color seen in this trip. 

Many other interesting vista points seen in this Eastern Sierra trip are reported in a separate subsequent travelogue website.

白楊樹非常高聳茂密，在陽光的照耀下，全透明了，漫步穿越這條樹林小徑，像走入一片燦爛金黃當中。

When mother nature shows off spectacular fall colors in Eastern Sierra in California, it is the best time of the year to visit. The Eastern Sierra gets painted gold, crimson and orange plus green background. The principal players in this spectacular display of color are aspen, cottonwood and willow trees with green pine trees in the background to enhance the color contrast. You'll discover why fall in Eastern Sierra is one of California's best-kept secrets.

絢麗的“金秋畫廊”已隆重開啟， 那微妙的顏色之差異， 細細碎碎地塗描在蓊鬱蒼翠的綠意中。

In less than a mile you walk directly into the shining yellow and gold colors. The autumn golden color here is at its peak in the week (10/18/2023) we visited.

秋景如畫的湖邊風光，完美的倒影，美得令人陶醉， 一場視覺的饗宴。

This alpine lake sits at 7,850 feet above sea level,  and is only 2 miles west of Highway 395. It is well known for its crystal-clear turquoise-blue water and dramatic granite  mountain views. Its average depth of 100 feet allows the water to remain cold and ideal for trout to live long, happy and well-fed lives. It is a popular tourist destination and the two parking lots near the lake were almost full on the day we visited. 

金秋，璀璨的森林組成一幅絕美畫卷, 走在這裡彷彿穿行在人間仙境中。

Fall season is long in the Eastern Sierra. The topography of the region and varied elevations from 5,000 to 10,000 feet mean the trees peak in color at different weeks and provide a slow shift into winter that starts first at the higher elevations and descends slowly over the open plains of the valley, canyons, creeks and mountain lakes below. 

秋日，陽光變得很溫柔，照在金黃的樹葉上，讓人感受到光帶來的色彩活力，最能體現光影的感覺，「一葉知秋」，拍一片秋葉，道出它的意境， 那一路金黃的白楊太有魅力了， 一派 Eastern Sierra  的風光！

漫步林間， 享受色彩繽紛的秋天的美景， 那份浪漫與寧静， 使人恍入世外桃源一般。

這裡的天格外的藍，因此在藍天的映襯下，金色的樹林顯得格外美麗，沿途秋葉金燦燦，在日光照射下閃閃發光。

最迷人的季節，森林加上金色的外衣，婀娜風姿再添一抹彩顏，眼睛的陶醉，攝影愛好者夢寐以求的美麗景點。

The views here are some of the most classic scenes of California’s Eastern Sierra. 

一片深秋景色， 倒映湖面，視覺盛宴，富詩情畫意， 讓你由衷覺得是在欣賞一幅藝術家的傑作。

Autumn reflections at Convict Lake. 

In Autumn season, the aspen light up the lake with bright orange and yellow colors, The entire lake was turned to golden! The views are stunning! It is like finding heaven in the middle of nowhere. 

自然豐盈的色彩，到處都是拍攝絕贊地點， 令人流連忘返。

Great place to stop, walk the trails, rest and look at the beauty. 

秋天是浪漫的，拿起相機，出去走走，怡然地欣賞這明媚的秋色，秋陽高照，逆光攝影，與更多人分享這個季節的詩情畫意。

Aspen trees that are a spectacular sight to see in Autumn as the leaves pop with vivid yellow and orange. 

金秋時節，濃濃秋意，美麗色彩和光影。

漫步林間， 享受色彩繽紛的秋天的美景，為多少人所嚮往。

散步湖邊，風光旖旎，清淳幽靜，風韻柔媚， 讓人享盡湖賓秋色！

An absolute amazing hike with stunning views. This place is like a painting in real life! 

Absolutely gorgeous trail! Leaves are absolutely gorgeous. Couldn’t have asked for a more perfect fall hike. 

秋正濃，夢鄉的黃金樹, 陽光下，一片金黃，漫步林間，自有一番別樣味道。

What a beautiful and serene lake! paradise! Peaceful, quiet, and breathtakingly beautiful. 

金波泛筏 ，清風徐來 ，駕舟於清澈湖面 ，掩映於濃秋 金黃的倒影中。

Some people were enjoying kayaking on Convict Lake

碧波蕩漾的晶瑩 Convict 湖，在這裡，你可以：駕一葉扁舟，看湖水悠悠，賞湖邊金秋畫廊，於天地間肆意遨遊，令人震撼的美麗景點，夢幻迷離，別有一番韻味， 讓人憐愛鍾情。

乘一葉扁舟，緩緩划去，在這裡劃一艘小槳，哼兩串歌謠，快意一下人生  。

Some people were enjoying canoeing on Convict Lake.

多姿多彩的絢麗秋色，身置其中，如詩如畫，如入夢鄉！

Amazing color in the fall. Beautiful lake. 

It is one of the most spectacular fall colors, the best show of glowing golden- orange- crimson fall colors in western United States. This is the best place to take beautiful fall colors pictures. 

湖水清澈見底，魚游水中，歷歷可見。 

Just bask in the beauty of the Eastern Sierras. The scenery is amazing, pristine and panoramic.  Towering majetic granite mountains circles around the lake and aspen trees along the shore show pretty reflections in the lake.  This  blue lake is so stunning and a must see spot. The blue water is crystal clear such that we could see trout swimming in the water.

湖邊金黃絢麗秋色，倒映在平靜的湖面，湖光如鏡，如詩如畫，攝影者夢寐以求的美麗景點。

Gorgeous lake! Very peaceful and serene. Zoom in on the far side of Convict Lake with brilliant golden color and reflection.

The incredible scenery of stunning towering granite wall of Laurel Mountain with reflection on Convict Lake.

Some people were enjoying fishing on Convict Lake sitting on Float Tube Fish Cat 4 which is a floating arm chair.  It moves efficiently and keeps the angler up, out of the water, allowing for longer, more comfortable fishing day. More information on Fish Cat 4 can be seen here, here, here or on Amazon website.

These fishing people on Fish Cat 4 wear flippers on their feet to propel backward.

A great fishing lake of the Eastern Sierra. This lake is probably best known for its fine trout fishing and the fishing derbies held throughout the season here. 

那金黃色的樹葉千姿百態， 美麗極了！

This is a wonderful spot to enjoy the aspen forest come alive with yellows, oranges, and lime greens. 

浪漫美麗的秋景。

Absolutely great!! Great fishing, hiking and leisure boating for the family. Beautiful trails, beautiful water, beautiful scenery, absolutely breathtaking! Autumn wonderland! 

Some people were enjoying fishing from lake shore of Convct Lake

Some people were enjoying boating on Convict Lake

路兩邊的白楊樹“嘩嘩”舞動搖曳著金黃的樹葉。一片深秋景色， 視覺盛宴。

When driving on the 2.2-mile Convict Lake Raod in the canyon following Convict Creek between Highway 395 and Convict Lake, we also saw beautiful autumn golden yellow and orange colors on both sides of the road. Aspen, cottonwood and willows hug the sides of the creek and canyon walls. 

The 2-mile drive from Highway 395 to the lake is also beautiful. The closer you get, the more scenic it becomes. Once you reach the lake, the colors of nature explode. 

一林黃葉，千片萬片無數片，十月是這秋景勝地區 葉子變色的高峰期。

Welcome to brilliant and thick aspen groves in Eastern Sierra.

鮮明耀眼的深秋金黃色， 浪漫與寧静， 嫵媚動人。

深秋時節，絢麗的秋裝。

層林盡染，秋色宜人。

秋天濃豔黃葉，人們追逐隨秋漸深之翩然黃影，夢幻黃葉絕境之美。

絢麗秋色， 迷人色彩， 風貌獨特。

Highway 395 is one of the most scenic and diverse road trips in the United States. This scenic highway takes you through some of the most breathtaking landscapes in America, offering a unique blend of natural beauty, outdoor adventure, cultural history, and unique landscapes. 

Highway 395 going north beyond Bishop starts to climb to higher elevation and reached 8,137 feet of elevation at Conway Summit.  We also saw plenty of beautiful autumn golden yellow color on both sides of the Highway 395 beyond north of Bishop in our 5-day driving tour in October.

On the other hand, at Bishop and south, the tree leaves seen along Highway 395 were just starting to turn color and might not reach their peak until sometime in November.

秋葉泛黃，氣度醇美，色彩富麗， 金黃的艷色。

A view from Highway 395 when we were near Mono Lake

金秋，美景如畫。

Nice Autumn color surrounding a Mobil gas station and its associated Whoa Nellie Deli near the junction of Highway 395 and Highway 120 (Tioga Road going to Yosemite National Park). I enjoyed Cheeseberger and caesar salad lunch at Whoa Nellie Deli. If you pass through Lee Vining you absolutely have to stop here. Amazing food! 

陽光從樹枝間穿越、灑落，在藍天之下，被金黃山林包圍，金黃璀璨，超愜意。

自然豐盈的色彩與山村景緻完美的融合，夢幻人間仙境，清幽雅緻， 為之傾倒的詩意之地 !

Aspen groves that put on a stunning color show in the Fall at Lee Vining along Highway 395. 

秋正濃

人煙罕至的秋景，動人的秋色。

Granite hillsides with brilliant hues of yellow and gold. 

秋色高峰， 一片金黃， 引人無限的遐思。

Aspen line the drive and the creek from Highway 395 to Convict Lake and to several other mountain lakes in Eastern Sierra, so the views from your car are wonderful. 

秋葉泛黃，氣度醇美，色彩富麗， 金黃的艷色， 煞是撩人。

告別炎炎夏日，迎來涼爽舒適的秋天，沉著卻又絢麗的秋日風情是一年中最美的時光， 一路上越行秋意越濃。

秋天的顏色是金黃的，在陽光的照耀下，全透明了，唯美至極 ，意境像一首詩，帶你進入靈魂的深處。

Radiant golden Fall leaves along Highway 395. 

高原秋韻，盡賞大原風光，變幻莫測的大自然，給深秋大草原更增加了神奇 。

Aspen groves near Conway summit at elevation of 8,137 feet along Highway 395

天之涯，地之角，陽光明媚，遠看山景，被藍天白雲映襯著，登高遠眺，心馳神往，真有秋高氣爽的感覺，令人迷醉。

The autumn colors here at Conway Summit on Highway 395 with elevation of 8,137 feet are often some of the earliest to peak and blanket the landscape and up the hillsides. 

Much better photos of Autumn colors at Conway Summit can be seen here , here, here, here, here, here, here, and here. If you hit it at the right moment, the aspen color at Conway Summit is second to none, and a bonus for many visitors is that it is so accessible, being right alongside Highway 395. 

Near Conway Summit along Highway 395

那金黃色的樹葉千姿百態，如此驕艷 ，美麗極了！

豔陽高照， 秋正濃。

絢麗濃豔秋色。

When we were driving along Highway 395, from time to time, we saw at a distance a ribbon of golden yellow color of trees and shrubs following a creek of water flowing from the Eastern Sierra mountain down into the valley.

金秋，隨風搖曳的黃葉林，美景如畫。

Near Topaz Lake

Near Topax Lake going to Highway 88 west bound to cross the high Sierra mountains for the 4 hour-drive east to go back to San Francisco Bay Area. 

Near Topaz Lake going west to Highway 88 west

天高雲淡，豔陽高照，難得是照相的好日子，秋天的白楊林，別有一番風采，秋風掠過，樹葉“嘩嘩”地響著。

Near Topaz Lake going to Highway 88 west

金黃色的白楊樹葉耀眼， 奔入大自然的懷抱中。

黃樹秋意濃， Eastern Sierra 是 賞秋景必訪的地方。

秋景如畫的自然風光。

Going from Topaz Lake to Highway 88 west

On Highway 88 going west over Sierra mountains

On Highway 88

We saw some deer along Highway 88

山路疊翠點金。

The winding and twisting mountainous Highway 88 on Sierra mountains. 

On Highway 88 

On Highway 88 

The winding and twisting mountainous Highway 88 climbing on Sierra mountains to high elevation such that some autumn leaves on many aspen trees have already past their peak season and many leaves have already fallen off the trees when we were there on October 20, 2023.

Fall season is long in the Eastern Sierra. The topography of the region and varied elevations from 5,000 to 10,000 feet mean the trees peak in color at different weeks and provide a slow shift into winter that starts first at the higher elevations and descends slowly over the open plains of the valley, canyons, creeks and mountain lakes below. 

 The autumn color began to fade out in the upper regions of Sierra mountains with higher elevations on October 20, 2023.

這裡超過 8,500 英呎高度的部分路段的樹木是不一樣的。

Highway 88 climbs up to an high elevation of 8,573 feet above sea level. Many autumn leaves have fallen off the aspen trees already on October 20, 2023.

Eastern Sierra 的雄偉高峰， 危岩嶙峋，高山頭，氧氣稀薄，寸草不生。

High Sierra mountain peak with few small pine trees and no vegetation along Hwy 88 at high elevation

Rock wall along Highway 88

Bare mountain peak with almost no vegetation along Highway 88 at high elevation on October 20, 2023.

We were lucky, the weather was still quite hot on October 20, 2023 such that we did not have to worry about the possibility of snow storm while driving on high Sierra mountains.

We enjoyed very much the wonderful and serene autumn stroll around Convict Lake which is one of the most beautiful mountain lakes in Eastern Sierra. The timing was perfect when the brilliant golden autumn color was at its peak at Convict Lake in the week of 10/18/2023.

It is noted that Convict Lake is only one of many beautiful mountain lakes in Eastern Sierra. Many of these mountain lakes, such as Big Pine Lake, Lake Subrina, South Lake, North Lake, Big McGee Lake, Mammoth Lakes, June Lake Loop, Lundy Lake, Virginia Lakes, Green Lake, Twin Lakes, in Eastern Sierra are as beautiful as Convict Lake in the autumn season. Examples are beautiful North Lake, the road going to North Lake and South Lake Road all taken by Tony Chao. Each of these mountain lakes is also reached by a nicely paved road through a beautiful canyon lined by lovely autumn golden yellow and orange colors on both sides.

Photos, movie clips and associated stories of several other interesting vista points in this 5-day driving tour of Eastern Sierra in October 2023 are reported in a subsequent travelogue website.

Photos and associated stroies of my previous tour of autumn colors in Hope Valley just south of Lake Tahoe in Eastern Sierra on October 2, 2018 are on my travelogue website at:

https://www.shltrip.com/Fantastic_Fall_Colors_in_Eastern_Sierra.html

Photos and associated stories of my first tour of Eastern Sierra in the spring season in the week of April 26, 2012 are on my two travelogue websites at:

https://www.shltrip.com/Spectacular_Eastern_Sierra_Part_1.html

and

https://www.shltrip.com/Spectacular_Eastern_Sierra_Part_2.html

Some of spectacular panoramic views in Eastern Sierra are on my following two websites:

https://www.shltrip.com/Panoramic_Views_in_Eastern_Sierra.html

https://www.shltrip.com/Panoramic_Views_Part_2__in_Eastern_Sierra.html

The index of all my Travelogue websites is here.