Various features impress a person contemplating this scene.
The horizontal line is an old watercourse dug in the 1850s by hand on very steep slopes. It carried water from a spring among those rock cliffs; carried many miles through the mountains holding a slight gradient to maintain elevation.
The water was used in water cannons further west to wash away mountains in order to access the gold in them. This form of mining was halted in the later nineteenth century to protect the farmland and the fishing resources in the Sacramento Valley.
The bare hillside seen here is due to wildfires--this one caused back in the 1980s by lightening (if I recall my data correctly).
The white spot in the upper right is the last bit of winter's snow about to be melted.
In the distance, the white flanks of hills are due to decomposed granite sliding away a little bit each year. Very difficult for vegetation to become established in "soil" with such marginal nutrients and ground that is gradually, but constantly, moving and shifting.
Tough country this is with freezing cold drought conditions half the year and then burning hot drought conditions in the summer. However, the pines and firs know how to take advantage of a month or so of available moisture.
When the people leave their fires back at home, the forest does produce some fine trees.
The elevation of the tops of these ridges is not extremely high--ranging from some 6000 feet to around 8000 feet (about 1800 meters to about 2400 meters).
I really enjoyed this photography session with the storm moving above and around me, but got the blithering beejeebees scared out of me when a lightning bolt blew the sky apart over my head!

Angky.

[MikeNArk]

Receiving a good description of the scene you are viewing makes it all the more impressive. Getting the details of its different elements causes you examine each and provides you an understanding of why the terrain has this look. Those clouds add some drama. Where's the image of that lightning strike?😊. Excellent landscape image and great narrative description.

[RICHARD L.]

Using those water cannons to tear down dirt and gravel from the hills to reach quickly gold deposits was an environmental disaster in and of itself. But this was a technique used by greedy prospectors knowing nothing or having no care at all about Nature or renewable resources. We called it "the mining approach" when someone proposed a project that would totally scrap an ecosystem when I started working 45 years ago. Fortunately, things have changed, mostly for the better and people take better care of the Environment nowadays.

Nice picture BTW.

Regards

[eaglem]

You've captured a good amount of dramatic images in this shot.

[ToddK]

This is a terrific alpine scene with a lot to look at and contemplate. The clouds really add drama to it. Hydraulic mining was really destructive to the foothills and waterways in Northern California. Fortunately, they have recovered for the most part.

[angkymac]

You've captured a good amount of dramatic images in this shot.

Thank you!
There is certainly a lot to see up there.
I might need to limit some of it in future images.
Thanks for the good words!
Angky.

---------- Post added 07-09-22 at 09:53 PM ----------

This is a terrific alpine scene with a lot to look at and contemplate. The clouds really add drama to it. Hydraulic mining was really destructive to the foothills and waterways in Northern California. Fortunately, they have recovered for the most part.

There are some places in the "Alpha - Omega Diggins" where the ground still is bare.
Quite a sad note for me, because that area had great forests, but now it looks so hopeless.
I'm glad you are acquainted with the background of it.
Thanks for the note.
Angky.

[rhanz]

Thank you!
There is certainly a lot to see up there.
I might need to limit some of it in future images.
Thanks for the good words!
Angky.

---------- Post added 07-09-22 at 09:53 PM ----------



There are some places in the "Alpha - Omega Diggins" where the ground still is bare.
Quite a sad note for me, because that area had great forests, but now it looks so hopeless.
I'm glad you are acquainted with the background of it.
Thanks for the note.
Angky.

Thanks for posting the picture and the details about the area

[angkymac]

Thanks for posting the picture and the details about the area

You are quite welcome.
I'm thanking you for your interest in the images!
Angky.

[Tonytee]

A very well executed landscape capture. Just exactly what that awesome gear was designed to do. Many thanks for the comprehensive and very interesting narrative. Most impressive on both

points. Thanks very much for sharing.

Tony

[angkymac]

A very well executed landscape capture. Just exactly what that awesome gear was designed to do. Many thanks for the comprehensive and very interesting narrative. Most impressive on both

points. Thanks very much for sharing.

Tony

Thank you, Tony!
I got some exploratory shots with the K70 at first, then went back and opened up the K1 on a tripod--which does these images with a real finesse!
That the area has such an interesting history just means that a person cannot just shoot the image and forget about it!
Thanks for the note.
Angky.