Part of our Saturday flight from Bishop to San Jose was quiet. After passing Mammoth we turned toward the Hetch Hetchy valley, and that took us by the area I call the Minarets. There are several other named features here, and all are remarkably beautiful.
1368 Minarets
But among all the lakes and magnificent peaks, the jagged Minarets really stand out and instill in me a sense of quiet awe. Adding to my quiet this day was the knowledge that famed aviation adventurer Steve Fossett died here (see my Photo Page for details). Flying here can be challenging even when weather is good, so I had waited a long time for this clear and almost completely calm day. So mingled with the other sources of my inner quiet was a respect for both the power of this terrain, and for Steve’s skill in flying here so many times in difficult weather. I share his appreciation of this as a favorite place, but not his willingness to fly here on less favorable days. Flying even higher and more quietly than usual, I contemplated what a magnificent place this is to be forever connected with.
1372 Middle Panorama
It might give you slightly more impression of the beauty here to see a broader panorama, so above is a photo taken about a mile from the first one and looking more toward the West.
1383 Toward Hetch Hetchy
This one’s also from the same general area, looking more toward the northwest where we flew over Hetch Hetchy valley. Imagine these three photos side by side, with #1372 in the middle and #1383 on the right. Now that you’re “flying” along with us, note that this is about a third of the panorama we were swimming in. More mountains in every direction, and Mono Lake visible in the distance behind us. Some places we’ve flown evoke gasps and joyful shouts, but here we were mostly in quiet reverie.
John & Anne Wiley 
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