Another one of our 3-day weekends has come and gone. This time we went to Yosemite, which was a must-do on our California list.
We stayed in Oakhurst, which is about 15 miles from the closest entrance of Yosemite. We were a little shocked when 15 miles from the entrance meant it took almost 1.5 hours to get where we needed to go. In Yosemite, the really stunning views (AKA where you want to be) seem to be right in the middle of the park, with lots of woods and mountains surrounding.
The first afternoon, we just walked around Yosemite Village area on some paved paths. It was packed with people and very busy. We were lucky to find a space to park in, and it wasn't even a real parking space. (One of the many benefits of the Prius!) It was also surprisingly hot. My phone's weather app clearly got the weather in Yosemite wrong - I was expecting highs in the 80's and lows in the high 30's, and it was close to 100 each day! It was much hotter than Livermore has been. We were reminded of how thankful we are to be skipping the extreme Columbia heat, at least for the time being.
The hike we did took us to the top of one of Yosemite's famous waterfalls, Vernal Falls. Above is our first peek of the falls. The color of the water was gorgeous.
The Mist Trail is, well, misty. The mist creates a rainbow, which was really cool to see. Part of the trail was pretty wet and cold due to the mist, but it was refreshing during the hot, uphill hike. We weren't sure if the waterfall would be going full force because of the drought, but it seemed strong to me.
Once we got to the top of the falls, we had lunch overlooking the "Emerald Pool," which is what Vernal Falls is generated from. There is another waterfall further above that makes its way to the pool.
The squirrels in Yosemite are NOT shy and will approach fearlessly. Too many people have given them food, and they're not afraid to ask for more! There were 2 that wouldn't leave us alone during our lunch. I love animals, but the squirrels did lose their appeal after a couple of minutes. They kept coming up from behind and they were getting so close, I was genuinely worried one would crawl up my back. Luckily, this didn't happen!
We also couldn't leave before taking a look down the waterfall. Apparently 200 people per summer have to be taken out on a stretcher from the hike we did. After hearing this, I was cautious about getting too close, but they had a railing near the edge, so it seemed much safer than I thought it would be up there.
Later on Saturday, we headed up to Glacier Point to see sunset overlooking Half Dome.
A little later:
Visiting Yosemite was a lot of fun. It was great to be back in the wilderness. William and I both miss that from our Jackson days. Yosemite is gorgeous and the views are surreal, but Grand Teton still takes the cake for me. A lot of that is due to its remoteness and fewer crowds. I think Yosemite is so crowded because there are so many people living within easy driving distance that can get to Yosemite just for a day or weekend, which I can't blame them for doing. This isn't quite as feasible in GTNP and Yellowstone, which is a good thing, in my opinion!
We stayed in Oakhurst, which is about 15 miles from the closest entrance of Yosemite. We were a little shocked when 15 miles from the entrance meant it took almost 1.5 hours to get where we needed to go. In Yosemite, the really stunning views (AKA where you want to be) seem to be right in the middle of the park, with lots of woods and mountains surrounding.
The first afternoon, we just walked around Yosemite Village area on some paved paths. It was packed with people and very busy. We were lucky to find a space to park in, and it wasn't even a real parking space. (One of the many benefits of the Prius!) It was also surprisingly hot. My phone's weather app clearly got the weather in Yosemite wrong - I was expecting highs in the 80's and lows in the high 30's, and it was close to 100 each day! It was much hotter than Livermore has been. We were reminded of how thankful we are to be skipping the extreme Columbia heat, at least for the time being.
We are lucky one of Yosemite's many squirrels didn't come running by during the above photo! What you can't see here is that Sammie is facing a row of adorable cottages, most of which had large windows on the front. Can you imagine seeing this view every time you look out the window? We think it was housing for some of the park's staff. It was a little hazy while we were there because of a wildfire near the town we were staying in. Usually, the views are clearer.
On Saturday, we wanted to get in a good hike. We decided on the Mist Trail, which is one of the most popular trails in Yosemite. We were surprised to see that the trail was mostly paved, and during our hike, we saw a filtered water station and 2 bathrooms along the trail. This is much different than what we are used to from our hikes in Grand Teton National Park. It was super busy and there were all kinds of people on the trail. I'm guessing that many of these people either didn't make it to the top, or made their way up very slowly. After moving at a normal speed and passing a few people, it was much less crowded.
While crowds can be a little bit frustrating at times, it was nice to see so many different types of people getting outside to experience Yosemite. In many national parks, a lot of people stay inside their cars. I loved that many people and families were actively exploring and not just driving through.
Once we got to the top of the falls, we had lunch overlooking the "Emerald Pool," which is what Vernal Falls is generated from. There is another waterfall further above that makes its way to the pool.
The squirrels in Yosemite are NOT shy and will approach fearlessly. Too many people have given them food, and they're not afraid to ask for more! There were 2 that wouldn't leave us alone during our lunch. I love animals, but the squirrels did lose their appeal after a couple of minutes. They kept coming up from behind and they were getting so close, I was genuinely worried one would crawl up my back. Luckily, this didn't happen!
We also couldn't leave before taking a look down the waterfall. Apparently 200 people per summer have to be taken out on a stretcher from the hike we did. After hearing this, I was cautious about getting too close, but they had a railing near the edge, so it seemed much safer than I thought it would be up there.
Later on Saturday, we headed up to Glacier Point to see sunset overlooking Half Dome.
A little later:
Visiting Yosemite was a lot of fun. It was great to be back in the wilderness. William and I both miss that from our Jackson days. Yosemite is gorgeous and the views are surreal, but Grand Teton still takes the cake for me. A lot of that is due to its remoteness and fewer crowds. I think Yosemite is so crowded because there are so many people living within easy driving distance that can get to Yosemite just for a day or weekend, which I can't blame them for doing. This isn't quite as feasible in GTNP and Yellowstone, which is a good thing, in my opinion!
