The drive through the forest on Wawona Road is long and winding. For those that have never been to Yosemite, the anticipation is around every corner: Are we there yet? Are we there yet? We sit in a long line of stopped traffic waiting to get to the park entrance. We climb higher and higher up the mountain, 4,000 feet, 5,000 feet, 6,000 feet, passing through fire-ravaged pockets of Lodgepole pines, scars of last year's forest fires. We teeter on the road's edge with heart-stopping terror (because the builders of the road didn't feel it necessary to build guardrails!) Suddenly, there it is...the tunnel that brings you to into the Yosemite Valley. It is longer than anticipated, but the reward at the end is indescribable. As you exit the tunnel, the valley jumps out at you with an unfathomable beauty, an "in your face" attitude that grabs your senses and emotions and holds on tight. Half Dome, El Capitan, Bridal Veil Falls all on display in one seamless panoramic view.
We make our way down into the valley towards our campsite, passing several waterfalls and tall, granite cliffs. The pines that line the valley floor fill the air with their vibrant scent. Traffic is slow but we don't mind so much. After 13 1/2 hours on the road, we're finally here and I can think of worse places to be stuck in traffic. There is something wondrous around every turn...our first glimpse of Upper & Lower Yosemite Falls, the deer grazing in the meadow by the river, the little chapel where a wedding just concluded and the bride and groom are standing on the threshold, just to name a few.
We got the good news that Glacier Point Road is open. We were going to hike the 4-Mile Trail up, but it was closed due to ice so we drove up early one morning to catch the sunrise over Half Dome, navigating yet another winding mountain road with no guardrails. We were a little late but were able to get in a few good shots of another breathtaking panoramic view at 7,200 feet. You can see the lower Vernal Falls and upper Nevada Falls from here, which you can't see when you are down in the valley.
The second good news we received was that the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias would reopen on Wednesday after being closed due to extensive storm damage that toppled 15 of the giant sequoia trees. This was a long drive all the way back out to the park entrance, about 30 miles, and we discovered to our dismay that we had to park in the lower parking lot and hike the remaining 2 miles up into the grove because the shuttles were not running. It was a strenuous hike but absolutely worth it. The storm damage was really bad and it was heartbreaking to see these magnificent giants lying on the ground, completely uprooted and crushing wooden walkways. There are a lot of the sequoias still standing, but photography proved challenging. We discovered that you can't possibly capture just how big these trees really are. It's difficult to show proper perspective so this is why we took the following video. Keep in mind that this is not the largest sequoia tree!(Click on the "full screen" icon in the lower right corner to see a larger version of the video. You can also click on any picture to see a larger version of it.)
We set out walking one day to find the trail that takes you up to Vernal Falls/Nevada Falls and ended up hiking the 3-mile round trip, 1,000-foot elevation gain Mist Trail to the top of Vernal Falls. In our defense, the signs did not indicate (1) that it was a strenuous hike, and (2) that it was as long as it was. Add in the 1 1/2 miles to get to the trailhead and we put in a good 6-mile hike that day. This is a good lesson in doing your homework before you set out! Luckily I had the camelback filled with cold water and it was a beautiful, cool day. We passed a bear foraging across the river, but we were unable to get a good shot of him. As we neared the top of the falls, we discovered why it's called the Mist Trail. There are stairs cut into the rock on the trail alongside the waterfall and the mist from the falls showers you with water as you ascend the path to the top. It would be great on a hot day, not so much on a 70-degree day! We decided not to continue to the top of Nevada Falls as we were running low on water and it was a 3-mile hike back down to the campground. Maybe next time!
El Capitan is a monster of a mountain. Its sheer granite cliffs rise about 3,000 feet from base to summit with an overall elevation of 7,500 feet. The immensity of it can't be fathomed until you spot one of the climbers on the rock face who looks like a tiny ant in your binoculars. We hiked up to the base of this monolith and met up with a couple climbers who were just starting out. One was free-climbing (yikes!) and the other was climbing for support for the first one. After they left, I decided to try to climb it and actually got about 5 feet up before I chickened out and couldn't go any further. So, I can say I climbed El Capitan. OK, it was only 5 feet of the 3,000 feet, but it was meaningful to me! I can't help but admire those that can make it to the top.
Lastly, I can't forget to mention Romin, who was our constant companion over this entire trip. His steady reliability allowed us to travel worry-free and kept us warm or cool when needed. It was difficult to get some good shots of him, but here are a few.
Up next, our blog on Sequoia National Forest!
Until next time, Peace
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