Friday, June 24, 2011

Friday photo

Kaweah Valley from Moro Rock. Sequoia National Park, California, June 2005.

Moro Rock
is an impressive chunk of granite which, if I understand the process, formed deep underground, got pushed up toward the surface during the uplift of the Sierra Nevada, and was then exposed when softer material eroded away. As you drive up into Sequoia National Park, you'll see it rising impressively above you. But you don't get the full effect until you take the 800', 400-step climb to the top, when you see the Kaweah Valley falling away, some 3500 feet below. That contrast is the primary feature of this photograph here. If you were to try to hike down, you'd find it three times steeper than the Grand Canyon, which is probably why Moro Rock prefers to sit where it is and just look around at the crest of the Sierra.

Moro Rock has a special meaning for me because it is, as best I can recall, the very last place on Earth that I ever tried to pray, on a late September evening when I pleaded with God to convince me he was there and was listening to me. When you have it all to yourself, Moro Rock is a very quiet place.

1 comment:

Cranberry Necklace said...

If "god" is a metaphor for one's friends and family, society and culture as well as one's temporal environment and ecosystem, then you, Scott, are "heard", even in silent places such as Moro Rock when no one was near. You captured a dramatic environment and shared it photographically with us, connecting yourself and with friends and family, society and culture. We "heard". Or saw. Thanks for your stunning photographic celebrations of our environment. They are as reverent as any prayer.