Moonlight Falls, by Paul Roark

The John Muir Wilderness has hundreds of small waterfalls that, at least in the "good old days," made carrying water on hikes and backpacks unnecessary. There were always clear, cool, and clean sources of water. Sadly, over the last 25 years carrying a water filter has become a necessity.

Although giardia may have made drinking the water risky, it has not spoiled the photographic possibilities the little waterfalls present. For water shots I prefer a minimum of 1/4 second exposure to capture the movement of the water; a shorter exposure may make it simply look unsharp. On the other hand, the larger the waterfall or stream, the longer the exposure must be to show good movement. However, when exposures get too long the highlight details get burned out. To get in close to this little falls, without getting too wet, the 150 mm lens was used with the Rollei SL66.

Moonlight Falls -- and the main falls is larger than that pictured -- is located below Moonlight Lake. There is a wonderful campsite very close to it that makes an ideal site for those who want a short trip out of the Sabrina Lake trailhead, above Bishop, California. In addition to Moonlight Lake, straight up the stream, there are also short hikes to Echo Lake, Hungry Packer Lake, and Midnight Lake.





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