After photographing the Little Truckee on October 23, Philip Reedy decided that he really needed to take some fly fishing pictures against that colorful backdrop. So, on October 30, he headed back with his fishing gear.
“What a difference a week makes,” he reported. “The colors on I-80 from Emigrant Gap to Truckee still look great, but as soon as I headed north on 89 from Truckee, all I saw were bare aspens. Not a good sign, and when I reached my favorite spot on the river I found that the trees were stripped bare of leaves. I included the before and after shots, which show the stark difference. I’m marking my calendar for next October to be sure and get there earlier with my fishing gear.”
On to the north past the Little Truckee Summit to Sierraville there is still a lot of beautiful color but all of the aspens have turned and are losing their leaves, so in another week it will probably be too late, he said.
“Cold Creek campground is now a mix of nice yellow aspens and bare trees, so it is on its last legs as well.”
From there he headed north through Quincy on his way to Chester. Quincy is just gorgeous, especially the huge maple trees at the courthouse.
“I hadn’t been to Chester since the Dixie Fire and was shocked at the devastation it had caused,” Reedy said. “At least the town of Chester was spared but the surrounding area was bleak.”
From there he headed down the Deer Creek Highway (CA 32), one of his favorite areas.
“Although sandwiched between the Dixie and Park fires, the entire length of Deer Creek along the highway was spared and was lovely as always. It is definitely worth going now, as the upper elevations are losing leaves, but the lower reaches should be nice for a couple of weeks.”
After 400 miles and 12 hours he returned home to Davis and got some sleep before heading out on his next color mission.
Little Truckee – Past Peak. You Missed It.
Sierraville – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
Quincy – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
Deer Creek – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
