In order to get a campsite inside of Yosemite, we got an early start. We made our way through Mariposa Grove to look at some of the giant sequoias that are hundreds of years old. This didn’t exactly make up for our decision to skip Sequoia National Park, but we were happy to see some of these gigantic trees up close. From here we drove to Glacier Point, an overlook that is about 15 miles out of the way, but well worth the drive. We looked across the valley at Half Dome (a granite dome that rises 4.700 feet above the valley floor) and had clear views of several falls that pour into the Merced River. We then made our way down to Yosemite Valley, an amazingly beautiful place with breathtaking scenery…if it weren’t for the crowded streets and overflowing tourists. The valley was ridiculously crowded, so we decided to skip the sightseeing at this peak time of day and head to a campground a few miles away. We were lucky enough to get one of the last remaining sites and we set up camp in our surprisingly peaceful site near a meadow on the outer loop of a very crowded campground. We were on high alert because we were told at check-in that there is a very active black bear in camp– day and night. We relaxed, read a little, played some Connect 4, and then headed back into the valley for the evening. We took a short hike to Bridalveil Falls. I’m not sure why, but water falling over a cliff is so beautiful to me. We then stood under El Capitan and enjoyed the peace of being away from the crowds. El Cap rises nearly 3,600 feet (more than 350 stories!) above the valley and is the largest exposed-granite monolith in the world. The granite in this park is unbelievable. It’s nice to hear Deven’s perspective having worked with stone for so many years – it really makes me appreciate the beauty of these mammoth glacial-formations. After seeing El Capitan, we strolled along the path to see Yosemite Falls. Even though it is not nearly as powerful as the spring snow melt, it is still a beautiful sight. Yosemite Falls is actually three falls that together constitute the highest falls in North America, and the fifth highest in the world (twice as high as Niagra Falls). After playing on the boulders around the base of the falls, we made it to the theater just in time for our evening event. We attended a one-man show about the life of John Muir, focusing on his fight to prevent a dam in the Hetch Hetchy Valley. The star and writer of the show has been doing this performance for 28 seasons and I immediately recognized his voice as that of John Muir in the Ken Burns documentary. We learned a lot about the life of John Muir and the implications of damming Hetch Hetchy: it erased a beautiful valley, but has provided water to San Francisco’s 2.4 million residents since 1913 and it is considered a major catalyst for the environmentalist movement. After the show, we made our way back to camp. To be on the safe side, we put our food in the bear locker and slept with the bear spray close by!
