May 29, 2007

May 29, 2007

Yosemite is a hikers paradise so we decide to do a hike our first morning here. Not far from the campground is the trailhead for the Mist trail that leads to Vernal and Nevada waterfalls. It starts out tough with a pretty steep path that follows the Merced River upstream. The trail is appropriately named because as we near the bottom of Vernal Falls we encounter a wall of mist. It is hard to get any photos without having the camera lens becoming drenched. That is unfortunate because there is a constant rainbow near the falls.

The trail climbs past Vernal falls towards Nevada and doesn’t let up. It stays steep all the way. It’s only three miles but it takes us three hours to reach the top of Nevada Falls. But our effort is rewarded with outstanding scenery. Yosemite is gorgeous. I can understand why John Muir fought so hard with his Sierra Club to protect this section of the Sierra Nevada Mountains as a national park. Unfortunately these stunning vistas attract a huge crowd. Despite the length and steepness there are lots and lots of hikers. I didn’t know this many people like to hike! Many of the hikers are diehard and are continuing on this trail to the top of Half Dome, probably the most famous granite monolith of the park. The last section of the trail requires pulling yourself up cables sunk into the granite. I would love to do it once in my life, but at 17-miles roundtrip we will need to come prepared to camp halfway up the trail.