"SPRING JOYS"
Glacier Point
We can hear special sounds in Yosemite Valley during each season. In springtime the melted snow water creates roaring waterfalls that seem to awaken plants to life with colorful leaves. Living creatures start their singing. But this joyful season ends by autumn when the grasslands turn golden and silence descends to the valley. Even the air becomes thin. Autumn is like a sad serenade as the valley slowly falls to sleep as if to wait for visiting gods. Human visitors disappear from the valley, while the forest-covered mountains become silent except for occasional animal sounds.
 Red-winged Blackbird |
Yosemite National Park is located in California. The park is usually crowded because it takes visitors only five hours to drive from San Francisco and seven from Los Angeles. The parking space is particularly limited in summer.
 Nevada Fall |
All my previous trips to Yosemite were made in wintertime. My regret is that I never could view the valley from such higher elevations as Glacier Point and particularly the spectacular Vernal Fall. Roads are closed to these mountain areas in winter because of the snows. However, my last trip was made in June when most hotel rooms and cabins are already reserved especially on weekends. I was lucky to find lodging for two nights.
My plan was to hike on the trail from Vernal Fall to Nevada Fall that had reopened to visitors after its winter closing. This trail covers a distance of seven miles and rises more than 1860 feet. Then it joins the John Muir Trail connecting with the Half Doom Trail. Hiking to the summit of Half Dome mountain would have required an entire day and lots of physical stamina.
 Vernal Fall |
The trail to Vernal Fall begins at the Happy Isle parking lot located near Curry Village. Initially, this trail of about three miles rises gradually and provides a wide view of Merced River. Then it links with the steep Mist Trail, named for the mist of the nearby roaring waterfalls. It is difficult to walk up this part of the trail that consists of a slippery rock path. The final and steepest slope has a handrail to help hikers reach the top of Vernal Fall. The top gives a wonderful view of the nearby waterfalls that is the reward for having made a difficult climb.
 Yosemite Fall |
Now it was time for a rest and a change of dry clothes before the next hurdle of climbing a steeper uphill trail to Nevada Fall. My camera bag and tripod felt very heavy on my shoulders. During frequent rest breaks I had to drink a lot of water. My "aging" body didn't respond as it did earlier. Other hikers, young folks in good physical shape, kept passing me. However I moved forward step by step. It was no time for vanity. Climbing the mountain trails depended only on a person's strength. The alternative was to stop and turn back. That is life. And I even reached Nevada Fall ahead of a young fellow who had passed me earlier on the trail. I recognized him as the hiker wearing a bandana and a carrying a large hunter's knife on his waist. The Nevada Fall site was as far as I went.
Dry winds were blowing on the mountain. They were very cooling to my sweaty forehead. Also the cold water from the melting snow soothed my feet and relaxed my body. After resting I returned down the mountainside to my car.
 Half Dome |
But I was not ready to leave the park. I followed a circular route in the lower part of Yosemite Valley and drove to Glacier Point. What a panoramic view! The distant mountains, especially the Half Dome, were flooded by the slowly changing colors of sunset. While looking from a distance down at Vernal and Nevada Falls, I opened a can of beer to celebrate my pleasure in coming here. Indeed, this was one of my happiest moments among the majestic mountain sights. Soon, however, distant clouds threatened to bring thunderstorms from the opposite side of the Half Dome. The impending storms were a sign of the arrival of a new season of sounds.
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Yosemite National Park P.O. Box 577,Yosemite National Park, CA 95389 Phone: 559-372-0200 www.nps.gov/yose |