Today we drove into Yosemite Valley to gaze in wonder at that extraordinary place. It is about an hour drive from our campground to the Valley floor but it is actually only about 35 miles away. The road to the park winds around quite a bit and climbs about 3000 feet before descending about 3000 feet to the Valley floor. Our federal geezer pass saved us $35 at the gate.
The first sight entering the park on CA-120 is the magnificent Bridalveil Falls cascading almost 1000 feet from the rim of the valley to the floor. However, we tried to look the other way in a fruitless attempt to avoid distraction because we had a plan to eat breakfast at the Yosemite Valley Lodge. We found our way there where we were served some park concessionaire’s food that was very nearly almost nominal but pricey. The food was better than the food at the north rim of the Grand Canyon but worse than the food at the Federal Court in San Francisco. We are not convinced that having the low bidder in the private sector run the food and lodging concessions in parks is a good idea.
The Yosemite Valley Lodge is located right at the bottom of Yosemite Falls, a 1000 foot plus three-tiered waterfall that has so much water falling that is makes smacking noises when it hits the rocks far below the rim. The sound can be heard for miles.
In 2014 we passed this way during California’s dreadful drought and not a drop of water was falling into the Valley. However, this was a year with substantial rainfall and all of Yosemite’s waterfalls are open for business. The Merced River running down the Valley floor was swollen and considerable white water rapids can be seen throughout the Valley floor. The wildflowers and dogwood trees are in full bloom and very pretty.
The massive granite monoliths of Half Dome and El Capital loom over the puny tourists below. We stopped in a meadow below El Capitan and got out all our optical gear to look for climbers insane enough to climb the 4000 foot smooth granite block. It took us a while to spot any because they look like tiny black dots to the naked eye but between a long telephoto camera lens and a 20 – 60 power spotting scope we finally found quite a few loonies up there. It looks like about a two or three day climb for those experienced enough to try this amateur killer. I wonder where they poop. We stayed clear of the very bottom of this huge cliff in case my guess was right.
There are not sufficient superlatives to describe the stunning beauty of this place. People have flocked here for many years and only the most jaded would be unable to be awed by this place. It is absolutely magnificent.
See some photos by clicking the link. https://photos.app.goo.gl/QggnJrjWdUACQ21BA