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Whoomp, there it is!

The first aspen leaf of autumn, Virginia Lakes (9/13/22) Samantha Deleo

It is Just Starting, but the first true fall color of 2022 has officially been sighted in Mono County (Eastern Sierra) at Virginia Lakes and Rock Creek.

Mammoth Lakes color spotter Dakota Snider reports the color is definitely in the 0 – 10% range, but this is neither early nor late for Mono County. It’s right in the zone..

Both these areas of the Eastern Sierra are among the first to show. The Virginia Lakes can have a fairly brief show, so next two weeks should be good there.

Rock Creek is longer lasting and can be viewed at peak for up to a month, due to the extreme elevation gains there.

As seen in these distant shots of Rock Creek Canyon, there’s still a lot of green out there and just a hint of yellow, but the first spots of yellow indicate that it’s getting close.

  • Rock Creek Lake (9,705’) – Just Starting (0-10%)
  • Virginia Lakes (9,819’) – Just Starting (0-10%)