The San Bernardino Mountains

(Left click to enlarge photos).  My sister sent me this picture of the San Bernardino Mountains, which are the mountains where I live.  I rarely see them when they look like this because I'm waaay up there in the snow!  The snow level in this photo is down around the 2,500 foot level in the foothills.  This range has eleven peaks that exceed 10,000 (3,048 meters) feet in height, the tallest being Mt. San Gorgonio at 11, 489 feet (3,502 meters), the highest peak in Southern California.  You can't see Mt. San Gorgonio in this photo; it's further over on the right.  

This mountain range is unusual in that it is a Transverse Range, meaning it runs west to east instead of north to south like most mountain ranges.  They were formed millions of years ago by tectonic activity along the San Andreas Fault and are still actively rising!  It makes a turn to the south right before Mt. San Gorgonio.

This is Mt. San Gorgonio (1) taken from about the 5,000 foot elevation out on Highway 18, the road that goes along the outer edge, literally, of the range.  It's also called 'Rim of the World Highway.'  In some places, the drop down to the San Bernardino Valley floor is a sheer fall of thousands of feet.  Off to the right is Mt. San Jacinto (2).  The town of Palm Springs, moderately famous for movie stars and Spring Break, is in the desert on the east side of Mt. San Jacinto.  Both peaks have snow on their tops year round.   

Okay, done indulging my inner nerd now...if you made it this far, thanks!