Читать книгу Sierra South. Backcountry Trips in California's Sierra Nevada онлайн

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After traversing the forested meadow, the trail starts to climb again and culminates with a short but steep climb to the rim of the McGuire Lakes. The meadow-lined banks of the lake appear suddenly and make a welcome rest stop after the strenuous climb. From the vantage of the lake’s shores, it becomes apparent that this point is the entrance to a hanging valley. Rising proudly to the southeast is Blackcap Mountain; its granite summit blocks sit outlined like a dark sentinel against the vibrant red alpenglow at sunset.

HANGING VALLEYS

Hanging valleys occur when a tributary glacier carves its valley more slowly than does the larger glacier of which it is a tributary. In time, the larger glacier’s valley floor will be well below the tributary glacier’s. The tributary’s valley is left “hanging” high on the wall of the main valley after the glaciers melt, and the tributary’s stream drops, often from a lake, into the deeper main valley in the form of cascades and waterfalls. Yosemite’s Bridalveil and Yosemite falls are classic examples of this process. McGuire Lakes sit in one of a series of such hanging valleys that line the flanks of the LeConte Divide.