Skip to main content

Yosemite (Sierra) Reflections 2018 - Part 2

“Let’s do it, this morning drive to Glacier Point, the weather is beautiful today, no plans, just spend some time exploring.” Little did we know that the trip would provide an experience we would fall in love with yet again.

For our 30th anniversary, we were drawn once again to the tranquility of Yosemite. Exploring the National Parks - exquisite solitude, exhilaration, and the delight of re-discovery. Once we arrived, no set agenda, just go wherever nature leads you.

This year, we arrived in Yosemite early October; the gold and crimson colors were clearly evident. The vibrant colors of fall, mixed with the stark coal-black recent fire damage, tiptoed up the mountain walls. Early mornings, a slight mist hugged the meadows at Wawona, illuminated by a soft diffused light.

The air was crisp and cool – many would say downright cold - clean with the fresh scent of wet pines carried on the breeze. Temperatures dropped into the 30s at night.

Our vacation home this year, the Victorian-era Big Trees Lodge, originally established in 1879. Situated 27 miles (16.5 km) from Yosemite Valley on Highway 41. This National Historic Landmark is near the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias. In keeping with the authentic Victorian decor, there are no TVs, telephones or internet available in the guest rooms.

 The Big Trees Lodge (Wawona Hotel) has hosted several prominent guests during its early history. Distinguished visitors included President Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, John Ruskin, Lily Langtry, Bernard Baruch, Diamond Jim Brady, William Jennings Bryan, William Harrison, and many others.

 As expected, the number of visitors’ was minuscule. It may have been the lack of services, or it was simply off-season. Whatever the reason, this made for a quiet, and peaceful stay at Wawona.

Well readers, back to Glacier Point. From Wawona, the drive through the winding mountain roads is about 45 minutes to an hour. We must have spent about three hours just loafing around the public viewpoints taking snapshots, watching the tourists, just relaxing.

“While we’re here, what possible hikes can we take?”

“What about Taft Point?”

“That’s an easy hike, the map says 2.2 miles round-trip; 2-3 hours.”

So, we hopped into the car with the expectation of finding a parking spot at the Taft Point trailhead. As we approached the parking area cars were strewn all up-and-down the roadway. Not a chance.

We continued down the road then impulse or a small voice within screamed, “Turn around, try another pass.” As we did, it happened in an instant.

“Lori, look, there’s a bear crossing the road!”

A big black bear lumbered across the road. We watched, in awe, as he disappeared into the brush.

“That was pretty cool, I’m so glad we turned around.”

Within seconds a parking spot appeared, we stopped, loaded our packs and headed up the road to the trailhead.

At the trailhead, you have two options: turn left to head toward Taft Point and The Fissures or right to Sentinel Dome.

Your walk to Taft Point is easy at first, through the forest and fern-filled meadows. Watch your step around The Fissures and at Taft Point. The sheer drop-offs are dramatic, even frighting. Here you'll delight in spectacular views of the Yosemite Valley.

When you come upon a spot like this one, you simply stop, relax,  enjoy your lunch, and take in the panorama. Time in the mountains loses all meaning . . .

 What a memorable day. Serendipity has a way of making things simply magical.

“Romantic sponges, they say, do it
Oysters down in oyster bay do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love.”
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular of All Time

When Fear Becomes the Default

In this special episode, When Fear Becomes the Default. Early Sunday morning, I was cycling past a small veterans’ pocket park in San Marcos. The air was still, the streets nearly empty. On one corner stood a young woman, alone, holding a hand-painted sign that read: “Be ANGRY. ICE agents are murdering people.” I pedaled past, but the words stayed with me. I knew the context—the footage and headlines from Minneapolis the day before, already ricocheting through the country and hardening opinions. Even in the quiet of the ride, the noise followed. Two miles later, I stopped at a red light. A black car with dark windows pulled up inches from my bike. My heart jumped. My first instinct wasn’t neighbor —it was threat . I found myself bracing, scanning, and wondering if the person inside was angry, armed, or looking for trouble. Then the door opened. A well-dressed young woman stepped out, walked to the trunk, and pulled out a sign that read “Open House.” She turned, smiled brightly, and sa...
2 comments
Read more

Boy on a Beam

In this special bonus episode, Boy on a Beam. In a world long ago, when the days moved quite slow, Before buzzes and beeps and the fast things we know, A boy sat quite still on a very fine day, Just staring at nothing . . . and thinking away. No tablets! No gadgets! No screens shining bright! No earbuds stuck in from morning till night. No lists, no charts, and no chores to be done. He just sat there thinking—that's quiet-time fun! His name was Young Albert. He sat in his chair, Thinking of things that weren’t really there. “Suppose,” said Young Albert, with eyes open wide, “I ran super fast with my arms by my side! Suppose I ran faster than anyone knew, And caught up to sunshine that zoomed past me—too! If I hopped on its back for a light-speedy ride, What secrets would I find tucked away deep inside?” “Would stars look like sprinkles, all shiny and small? Would UP feel like sideways? Would BIG feel like Tall?” He giggled and wondered and thought, and he dreamed, Till his head fel...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sweden Called . . . They Said No.

Have you ever wondered about  the Nobel Prize? Let's look at Where Genius Meets “Wait—Where’s My Medal?” Every October, the Nobel Prizes are announced, and humanity pauses to celebrate the "greatest benefit to mankind." And every year, like clockwork, a specific type of person appears online to complain—at length—that they were robbed. (Well, maybe this year more than most.) The Origin: A Legacy of Guilt The prize exists because Alfred Nobel, a Swedish inventor, had a crisis of conscience. Nobel held 355 patents, but he was most famous for inventing dynamite. When a French newspaper mistakenly published his obituary, calling him the " Merchant of Death, " he decided to buy a better legacy. In his 1895 will, he left the bulk of his massive fortune to establish five prizes (Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature, and Peace). Because he was Swedish, he entrusted the selection to Swedish institutions, such as the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. The only outlier...
1 comment
Read more

The Thought Experiment–Revisited

In this episode. The Thought Experiment–Revisited The Boy on a Light Beam In 1895, a sixteen-year-old boy did something we rarely allow ourselves to do anymore. He stared into space and let his mind wander. No phone. No notes. No “Optimization Hacks” for his morning routine. Just a question: What would happen if I chased a beam of light—and actually caught it? That boy was Albert Einstein . And that single act of curiosity—a Gedankenexperiment , a thought experiment—eventually cracked open Newton’s tidy universe and rearranged our understanding of time itself. Not bad for an afternoon of daydreaming. Imagine if Einstein had been “productive” instead. He would have logged the light-beam idea into a Notion database, tagged it #CareerGrowth, and then promptly ignored it to attend a forty-five-minute “Sync” about the color of the departmental logo. He’d have a high Efficiency Score—and we’d still be stuck in a Newtonian universe , wondering why the Wi-Fi is slow. In a post I wrote back in...
2 comments
Read more