Nestled at the base of the soaring Sierra Nevada mountains, the small town of Bishop, California, has autumn views that rival leaf-peeping destinations the world over. This rugged little mountain town is located in Owens Valley on Highway 395, near landmark destinations such as Death Valley National Park, Yosemite National Park, and Mount Whitney (the tallest point in the contiguous United States).
A yellow hose runs past the foot of giant sequoias in the Sierra National Forest, and sprinklers drench the forest floor. Those sprinklers are among the last line of defense installed by firefighters to protect giant sequoias in the McKinley Grove from flames, as thunderstorms continue to drive growth on the 29,718-acre Garnet Fire burning in the Sierra Nevada. "The fire is roughly three miles southeast of the grove's southern edge," said Joe Zwierzchowski, the public information officer assigned to the Garnet Fire, in an email to SFGATE on Tuesday afternoon.