Rainbow over Round Valley this morning, as seen from my driveway. Bishop, CA. #roundvalley #rainbow #owensvalley #easternsierra #california #bishop #bishopcalifornia

The cloud cover always makes for nice sunsets here in Bishop. #sunset #sierranevada #sierrasunset #bishop #bishopcalifornia #owensvalley

This article was published in Nature magazine, and highlights breakthrough research that uses the fibers in the Digital 395 project (California Broadband Cooperative) to detect, measure and report in real time, earthquakes anywhere along its 600-mile length from Barstow, CA to Reno, NV. It’s a remarkable innovation that was spearheaded by scientists at Caltech, who asked the head of CBC, Michael Ort, if they could use dark fibers for their experiments after the Ridgecrest earthquake a few years back.

Here’s the link to the published article in Nature:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06227-w #owensvalley #bishopcalifornia #bishop #sierranevada #digital395 #nature #naturemagazine #caltech

Sunset, moonrise over the Sierra Nevada. Bishop, California. #bishop #bishopcalifornia #sierranevada #owensvalley #moon #Moonrise #sunset

Horton Creek drainage, black and white mood. Took this last night while out walking the dog… #sierranevada #mustangmesa #owensvalley #californa #bishopcalifornia

Pleasant Valley reservoir is pretty low right now. I assume LADWP is keeping excess capacity in anticipation of more runoff. It’s supposed to reach 100°F today for the first time this year, so all the Sierra snowpack will be melting fast now… #pleasantvalleyreservoir #snowmelt #owensriver #owensvalley #sierranevada #california

I was walking our dog Yoshi a little later a couple days ago, and was treated to another great Sierra Nevada sunset. I think the composition turned out well. #sierranevada #owensvalley #bishopcalifornia #sunset #sunsetphoto #canonr5

I’m staycationing this week, using up as much vacation leave I accrued during the pandemic as I can, before I lose it at the end of June. It was such a nice morning, so I took the Vespa into town to grab some lunch. It’s super busy in Bishop for Mule Days, but the best part of living here is that in about two minutes, I can be all by myself and out of town again. Just another great day in California. #vespa #vespagtv #scootering #bishopcalifornia #owensvalley #ilovecalifornia #californa

Pretty good Sierra Wave on the evening walk. Here’s what Wikipedia says about it: “The Sierra Wave is a type of air current created by winds that lift off the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California. Known as lee waves, Sierra Waves form as winds hit the Sierra Nevada and are forced to rise, causing water vapor to condense as it cools and forming lenticular clouds on the leeward side of the mountain range.” #sierrawave #sierranevada #owensvalley #bishopcalifornia #ilovecalifornia #california

From the Los Angeles Times: “Indigenous tribes warned of a buried kingdom in Owens Valley. Now, Caltrans bulldozers are unearthing bones”

#OwensValley #CalTrans #Indigenous

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-05-22/caltrans-indigenous-burial-site

Coulter’s lupine is blooming all over the Mesa right now. #coulterslupine #mojavelupine #owensvalley #sierranevada #bishopcalifornia #mustangmesa

Ants-eye view of the wildflowers blooming all over Mustang Mesa this afternoon. #owensvalley #mustangmesa #sierranevada #wildflowers #mttom #bishopcalifornia

Just enjoying the nice weather in the Owens Valley, after a pretty rough winter. #vespa #gtv300 #owensvalley #sierranevada #scootering

Some of the erosion from the latest atmospheric river storm. This used to be a flat dirt road from the valley floor to the top of Mustang Mesa (just south of the petroglyph rock, for those who are familiar with the area). #mustangmesa #erosion #atmospheric_river #californa #californiastormdamage #owensvalley #sierranevada

Took a walk on Mustang Mesa, out behind the house, to assess the damage from the latest atmospheric river event, and caught this nice iPhone image of Mt. Tom in a puddle… #mttom #sierranevada #iphonephotography #photography #owensvalley

Today in Labor History March 12, 1928: The St. Francis Dam failed in Los Angeles, California, killing 431 people. It is the second deadliest disaster in California, after the 1906 earthquake, and one of the worst U.S. civil engineering disasters ever. A defective foundation and design flaws caused the failure. Yet, the inquest absolved chief engineer, William Mulholland, of all criminal responsibility, and he continued to earn a salary from the Bureau of Public Works (though his career was effectively ended). The authorities continued to find victims of the flood until the mid-1950s. Many of the victims were out to sea. Some washed ashore as far south as Mexico. Mulholland was also the designer of the 233-mile Los Angeles Aqueduct, which sucks water from the Owens Valley and is a major cause of the depletion of the fragile Mono Lake. As its water levels continues to decline, it threatens the world’s second largest gull rookery, home to up to 50,000 birds. The aqueduct’s construction, and the shady methods Mulholland used to acquire the water rights, led to the California Water Wars between LA County and Owens Valley farmers. Many of those same Anglo farmers (or their predecessors) usurped the land from Piute people during the 1863 Owens Valley Indian War, which was precipitated, in part, by the vast loss of human and cattle lives, and the displacements, caused by the Megaflood of 1861, which inundated much of the West, from Idaho and Oregon, down to northern Baja California. The corruption related to the construction of the aqueduct has been portrayed in the film Chinatown, and in the nonfiction book, “Cadillac Desert.”

For more on the Megaflood of 1861, please read my article, “Worse Than the Big One”: https://michaeldunnauthor.com/2023/01/04/worse-than-the-big-one-californias-coming-megaflood-2/

#WorkingClass #LaborHistory #flood #dam #mulholland #MonoLake #OwensValley #NativeAmerican #indigenous #piute #ecology #chinatown #IndianWar #HabitatDestruction @bookstadon

Serious flood damage to Lower Rock Creek Rd. in Round Valley. The community of Paradise is now cut off north and south. #owensvalley #flooddamage #california #paradise #atmosphericriver

Yoshi, majestic sojourner of the Sierra Nevada. #cornycaptions #sierranevada #owensvalley #mustangmesa #california #dogsofmastodon

Yoshi actually does this a lot, but I’ve never captured a photo of him doing it before. He’ll put his feet up on a rock, point his big, beautiful ears in the direction of whatever he hears, and listen attentively before bounding off again. #dogsofmastodon #dogposes #snow #mustangmesa #owensvalley #california #dogs

Mother Nature’s secret sculptures, made only for those who notice, and only for a few hours; to disappear until wind, water, gravity, and time decide to play together again. #snow #ice #owensvalley #sierranevada #icesculptures #footstepsinthesnow #transience