| You know when you hear amazing things about a certain place your entire life and you show up, and it's totally disappointing or anti-climactic? When it's been built up in your mind but then once you're there, you don't understand what all the fuss was about? Well, Yosemite is NOTHING like that for me. This place lives up to every expression of reverence, every awe-struck superlative it's ever received. The universe had our jaw-dropped faces in mind when this place was created. Nature-wise, this will undoubtedly be the highlight of my trip (although I'm getting ahead of myself because my trip is far from over...) But I'd bet good money on it. Wow, look at that!   El Capitan, the largest granite monolith in the world, reaching upwards of 3,000 feet (900 m) into the sky.  I hear El Cap is a popular spot with climbers, but don't bother trying to spot any in my photos -- my zoom lens is complete rubbish. Plus, I doubt anyone was climbing in the 108-degree heat (which would be amplified on the rock wall).  As hugely popular as this park is, I thought traffic was more than tolerable; the roads were well sign-posted and orderly. Basically, you are led along a one-way, double-lane loop which traces a large oval around the valley floor, with two shoulder lanes on each side for photo takers -- a brilliant idea. On a typical summer's day, an astonishing 14,000 people are visiting the Yosemite Valley. All things considered, the park does a good job controlling the flow. The only problem is getting to Yosemite Village itself. Drivers are encouraged to park in a large and cluttered parking lot, then get in line like cattle to await one of many crowded shuttle buses, which then unload their contents onto the Visitors' Center in Biblical proportions. I don't think so. Luckily for me, most tourists did just as they were told, so I was able to park directly in front of the building. Much simpler. I just needed a map! The Cathedrals   Middle Cathedral Rock (left) and Sentinel Dome (right)  Upper Yosemite Falls, fed solely on snowmelt, are a bit thin by now.  Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls. Put together, they make up the tallest waterfall in N. America at 2,425 feet (730m).  View from Mirror Lake, which is now unfortunately more like Mirror Puddle. The lake's all but gone dry; I had to search quite a bit to find this spot. That's Mount Watkins on the left.  Rising 5,000 feet above the valley is Half-Dome, the Incredible Hulk of all Yosemite superheroes. El Capitan is more like Spiderman, which you incidentally need to be, if you want to climb its walls.  The Royal Arches, quite literally those graceful arches carved into the mountainside.   Like any nature temple on the planet, Yosemite has its share of problems. Most of its wildlife has either gone extinct or is neatly on its way there, litter and filthy bathrooms are obvious issues and most areas of the park are feeling the effects of mankind's presence. A valley just north of Yosemite, Hetch Hetchy, was reportedly once on par with Yosemite's beauty. In the 1930s, after San Fransisco's devastating earthquake/fire, the government built a dam and flooded the valley in order to supply the city with (albeit, much-needed) fresh water. By all accounts still pretty, the once-stunning, now-flooded Hetch Hetchy reservoir is nevertheless rarely visited. Bridalveil Falls. The constantly-changing winds blow the falls every which way; each photo is different.   |
Went up to Glacier Point Drive and was rewarded with a breathtaking view. Sat down for lunch and admired the scenery. Not bad. There's Half-Dome at the top right. The Royal Arches look pretty cool from this angle, too.
Half-Dome with Nevada Falls (top) and Vernal Falls (bottom).
You can spot the top half of Yosemite Falls down there...
On Day 3, took a drive out on Tioga Road to visit far-away Mono Lake. I got to see some nice scenery on my way there, such as Tenaya Lake, below.
Tenaya Lake
Tuolumne Meadows, a dazzling contrast to the majestic Yosemite Valley, with its emerald-green fields and open skies.
Tioga Pass, at 9,943 feet -- the high point (literally) of the Sierra Nevada mountains.
Getting closer to the Nevada border; things are starting to look desert-like.
It's Big Sky Country out here. There's Mono Lake.
Mono Lake is exceptional because of the tufas that are growing out of it.
Tufas are limestone, essentially -- but formed in a very different way than regular limestone. Basically, what happens is this: Calcium-rich springs from the lake's bottom mix with carbonates (the stuff that gives soda its fizz) and forms limestone. Tufas can only form underwater, so their growth ends when they peek out of the lake's surface.
The reason that we get to observe and walk around these tufas is that the lake has lost hundreds of feet of water in the last century (it used to supply Los Angeles with most of its drinking water).
This is one of North America's oldest lakes. Geologists vaguely describe its ancientness as such: 'Definitely at least 760,000 yrs old, but probably between 1-3 millions years old'. Conservationists are slowly but successfully bringing water levels back, since Mono Lake is an important stop-over for migratory birds.
I returned to Glacier Point (this time, by car) to catch the sunset. While waiting for the sun to go down, I discovered a few settings on my new camera. Yay! Not so cheap, after all.
(Poster mode - looks like a painting)
(Toy Camera mode)
All in all, my 5 days in Yosemite passed by much too quickly. But isn't that always the case? Much of my time was spent hiking its paths (although no huge scrambles -- it was between 106-108 degrees every day!), lying on its beaches beneath the huge cliffs or driving around the enormous park.
(Ooh- Fish eye mode, cool!)
And yes, more than ever, it was impossible for me to properly convey Yosemite's beauty and grandeur. I'm certainly no Ansel Adams (who, incidentally, shot many of his famous photos here). You'll just have to visit Yosemite and witness its beauty with your own eyes -- and I highly recommend that you do!
Bye, Yosemite. Next project: A drive up to Lake Tahoe for 3 nights to celebrate the 4th of July weekend. That should be fun. xx
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