Day Trip to Yosemite National Park

While on my two week work trip to San Jose, I finished up a project early near the end of the first week and my boss was kind enough to encourage me to take today off.  I was already dreaming up adventurous outing possibilities for Saturday, but having Friday available to me allowed me to think even bigger.  Yosemite National Park caught my attention almost immediately when looking for destinations not too far from the San Francisco "bay area" and I quickly realized it was within striking distance.  Some quick googling led me here which informed me to the fact that Yosemite has several very incredible Waterfalls which immediately sealed my plans for taking a road trip.

My only immediate regret was that I did not have my Canon Rebel SLR with my big zoom lens, but I decided I could see the waterfalls with my eyes and take the best pictures I could of them.  The rest of this blog post presents photo recaps of my day in Yosemite.  Hopefully, Mark Streit's critical "camera eye" will approve of my snapshots.

Coming Out of the Tunnels

There are some tunnels carved into the mountains that you drive through just before you enter Yosemite Valley and once you come out the other side you are blown away with the scale and the beauty of everything around you.

I was happy to immediately find a small unnamed waterfall just off the roadside at this first overlook.

You can also see the Merced River that runs through the (4000 foot above sea level) valley floor from this vantage point.

If you have an exceptionally good eye (and you know where it geographically is), you might be able to make out Bridalveil Fall if you follow the river further and further back.  I was thrilled to see this 617 foot tall waterfall with my naked eye so far away.  Maybe the next picture will help you find it in the one above.

Bridalveil Fall

As you drive into Yosemite Valley, the first waterfall is (as suggested above) Bridalveil Fall.  Like so many others I stopped there first, but my recommendation is to see the waterfalls on the north side of the valley first as my pictures were terrible due to the sun being directly above the top of the fall when I got there around 11am.  Fortunately, I ended up coming back at the end of my day to get a few nice pictures of this beauty.

This late in the season, this is really one of only two waterfalls that are getting any decent flow of water.  The hike up to this view is extremely easy and a must do when in Yosemite.

Yosemite Falls

The other waterfall that is flowing relatively strongly is the park's showcase; Yosemite Falls.  This behemoth has three sections and stands 2425 feet tall even though it doesn't look like in this picture that I took at the start of the short Lower Fall Trail.  Yes, this waterfall is almost a half-mile tall and it truly must be seen in person to appreciate its size and beauty.

When you get to the end of the trail you are treated with an insane view of the 320 foot Lower Fall.

Unless you are willing to climb the Upper Fall Trail (described as a "strenuous, all-day hike") you will not get to see the 675 feet of falls making up the Middle Cascades as they are not visible from the valley floor.  Fortunately, you get the see the 1430 foot drop of the Upper Fall from MANY vantage points around the valley.

You are also blessed with views of the Upper and Lower Falls from a few spots.

Truly magnificent!  Looking at the picture above, start imagining the hike to the top!!

Half Dome

One of Yosemite's most recognizable icons is Half Dome whose peak is 8836 feet above sea level.  Yes, Mr Kiser, this is where Captain Kirk was climbing in Star Trek V.

I turned around on the bridge where I took this picture to grab another one looking down the Merced River as it was such a nice day.

Sentinel Falls

I had to hike a bit to finally make it to the base of Four Mile Trail (which climbs over 3000 feet up to Glacier Point; 7214 feet above sea level) to finally find the trickle that was the 1920 foot tall Sentinel Falls.

You might be able to make this almost dried up waterfall out in the picture above, but I can promise you when standing at the bottom of Glacier Point (the tall mountain on the left) in the very bright early afternoon it takes a few minutes to finally make it out.  The next picture might help you see it.

As I said before, these pictures really do not due the scale of this place justice.  I'm still in awe thinking of how tall everything was around me in the valley.  God's Country for sure!!

Ribbon Fall

There is no shortage of "giant rocks" towering above the valley floor which includes El Capitan.

I ended my waterfall hunt looking for the falls that flank it on the east and west sides.  Unfortunately, the 1570 foot tall Horse Tail Fall had already dried up, but I was able to barely make out the barely flowing 1634 foot tall Ribbon Fall on the west side of El Capitan.

This is the longest single-drop waterfall in North America!!

I have to admit this was probably the coolest solo day-long road-trip outing I've taken in my life.  It was a complete joy despite it being a 14 hour day (four hour drive each way plus six hours hiking around the valley).  It reminded me of the beauty that God created for us to enjoy here on Mother Earth.

I'll wrap up this posting with two big thank you's.  First, to the National Park Service as this place is incredible and I hope it always stays public land and remains as pure and undisturbed as possible.  Second, a big shout out to David Streever for getting me to come work at Hortonworks two and a half years ago as it has offered me opportunities such as this outing.

I feel so blessed and I hope you enjoyed the pictures from this incredible experience.