Photo JournalGonzalo Sanchez

Trip One

Mormon RocksCinder HillFossil Falls

Mormon RocksMormon Rocks are sandstone blocks that were formed by the San Andreas Rift. Water than ran through the area carrying sediments formed these rocks a long time ago.

Granular StructureMormon Rocks are mainly composed of layer upon layer of sand. Looking closely you can see its rocks and sand combined.

Stream Bed and San Andreas Rift ZoneThe stream bed is located in the Mormon Rocks. It is part of the San Andreas rift zone which separates the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate.

Cinder HillCinder hill is a cinder cone volcano.

Lava FlowsThis black rock is called basalt, which is formed by lava flow that was quickly cooled after flowing out of the volcano.

Fossil Falls Stream BedIt used to be a stream bed from the now dried up Owens River.

Fossil FallsThey were formed by volcanic activity and water of glaciers from the Sierra Nevada.

Metate HolesThese holes were formed in the stream bed. They were made when small pieces of debris such as rocks and pebbles revolved around the same place with running water and drilled these holes.

Obsidian FlakesNative Americans lived on these lands around ten thousand years ago. These Obsidian flakes were left behind by the natives because they would sit near fossil falls and chip obsidian to form their tools.

PetroglyphThese petroglyphs were drawn by the Native Americans that lived in these regions thousands of years ago. As an offering people will leave a cigarette because it depicts tobacco, which was very popular among Native Americans.

House RingsThe Native Americans used rocks to form their homes. Since they were migrators they would only stay in the summer and move when it became too cold for them.

Trip Two

Diaz LakeMt. Whitney Interagency Visitors Center

Keoughs Hot SpringsMammoth Rest Area

Mono LakePanum Crater

June Lake LoopConvict Lake

Eastern California MuseumManzanar

Lake DiazDiaz lake was created when an earthquake that occurred along lone pine fault, which caused the land to sink. Water then filled the area and created the lake.

Lone Pine FaultThe 1872 quake that hit in this fault made the Diaz Lake.

Mt. WhitneyIt is the highest summit in the contiguous United States. The elevation is 14,505 feet.

Orographic EffectWhen air rises up the mountains and it turns into rain or snow.

Inyo-White Mountains

Alluvial Fan

Keoughs Hot Springs

Dead ForestIt is being cut down because of the bark beetle.

Mono LakeMono lake is very salty due to the fact that it has no outlet to an ocean. Two islands are actually volcanoes. Neget is the dark one on the back and the white one is called Pehoa.

Former ShorelinesThere are three shorelines in the lake. The ancient shoreline was thousands of years ago. The 1940’s shoreline is were the vegetation ends. And the present shore line is as it shows.

TufasThey are really calcium rich spring that flow upward through the lake bottom. This forms calcium carbonate which is a type of limestone. This is what formed the tufas.

Burn AreaThe burns were created after the area was burnmant years ago.

Grant Lake and Moraines

Silver Lake And Waterfall

Convict LakeIt was created by glaciers. Its name comes from a group of convicts who escaped from prison and were caught and hanged there.

Eastern California MuseumI found it interesting how they had a collection of very antique guns from the early 1900’s.

Manzanar guard shach and plaquesManzanar was one of the ten camps where Japanese Americans were kept during WWII. About 110,000 were kept in these camps.

In Transit Photos

0Solar Power Plant0Doppler Radar Tower0Mine Tailings0 Joshua Tree0Koehn dry lake0L.A. Aqueduct 0Creosote Bush

Solar Power PlantIt is called the Solar Energy Generating Systems.

Doppler Radar TowerThe Doppler radar towers are designed to capture wind speed and weather information.

Mine TailingsMine tailings are pieces of rock that miners leave after they have taken the gold off them. They are their because of the gold rush of the 19th century.

Joshua Tree

Koehn Dry Lake

L.A. Aqueduct

Creosote Bush