Today we spend an entire day exploring the Yosemite National Park,
which is going to be one of the highlights of our stay in California.
This park, situated in the Sierra Nevada, was established in 1890 and
is one of the most famous parks in the world. We enter the park via
the Tioga Pass, which is the East entrance to the park.
The road from Mammoth to the Yosemite National Park.
On our way to the park we met this fisherman who had already caught
some trout and other fish.
Yes, we came here to watch rocks.
Another signboard. Is it a warning or an invitation? The park has
hiking trails but it also has special trails for horse riding.
The surface of these rocks was polished by glaciers many thousands
of years ago.
The road passes through a fascinating landscape of rocks and trees.
Some clever landscape architects did a good job here.
Fires destroyed a part of this forest. What remains are black tree
trunks, but new vegetation is already starting to grow. There are still
some new fires nearby because the sky around us is clouded with smoke.
Smooth rock surfaces that were polished by glaciers ages ago. Also
the small boulders that are scattered on the rock surface were deposited
there by glaciers. Far in the distance we see Half Dome, a famous granite
rock that rises 1400 meter above the floor of the valley.
Huge granite rock walls form the main attraction for tourists and
for climbers. A cliff of 900 meters high and 1600 meters wide is believed
to be the biggest monolith in the world.
No signboard prepared us for this lucky encounter with a bear.
Trees, rocks and sunlight. Just sit down and relax.
Cliffs like this attract hundreds of climbers from all over the world
to test their skills.
But where are the climbers?
Is there anybody out there?
Yes, with a lot of zoom we discover a small figure like a fly on
a wall.
It takes several days to climb a wall like this. Climbers spend the
night hanging on a rope. Will they sleep? And if they do, what will
they dream?
It's impossible to see the climbers with the naked eye.
Enlarged through a binoculars we see a climber who has found a place
to stand. With a rope he/she is hauling up equipment from a fellow climber
below.
From the valley floor it is possible to spot the climbers through
a strong telescope..
Yosemite is a fantastic experience. Words nor pictures can describe
or show this wild beauty.
Relax near a small stream at the valley floor and enjoy nature.
Landscapes of hills and mountains.
We are amazed that trees can grow on these solid rocks.
The sun is going down as we say goodbye to Yosemite, hoping that
one day we will be back.
Tomorrow we will continue our journey south to Death Valley and to
Las Vegas. Goto Day 10.
