How it Was Today: Reflections in Yosemite Valley

What is my favorite season in Yosemite? Hard to say, but I tend to think that it is whatever season it is when I happen to be there. Except maybe for hot dusty August. I just had the happy opportunity to spend two straight weekends in the valley introducing my students to the fascinating geology to be found there.

 And a few living things as well. Can anyone tell me what kind of butterfly this is?

The spring melt, very unfortunately, is coming early this year. We had a great beginning in our precipitation totals through December, but the skies suddenly dried up, and we had the driest January to March precipitation on record, with a paltry 26% of normal. The early snows are gone, and the few additional snowdrifts are melting rapidly. But there is water in the valley right now, and the falls were full and booming. It was a beautiful day.

Iconic Half Dome was nicely reflected from a pond in the Cooks Meadow area. Half Dome, or more correctly Three-Quarters Dome, stood high above the icefields that filled Yosemite during the ice ages, and achieved its shape from exfoliation and jointing.

Sentinel Dome is sometimes missed, as it lies on the opposite side of the valley from Yosemite Falls. It is a spectacular edifice that would be the focus of a national park if it existed any place besides Yosemite Valley.

We went to some of the usual places. From Tunnel View we had a perspective of Half Dome from near the spot where the valley was first discovered by Americans of European descent. It must have been a stunning sight in 1851, although the significance of the awesome valley was lost on most of the militia members, who were more intent on capturing Miwok Indians. The medic for the crew, Lafayette Bunnell, was deeply impressed and his writings were part of the inspiration for making Yosemite a national Park. The Cathedral Rocks were sharply etched into the cloudless sky, and Bridalveil Fall was full. Thousands of people see this every day. What was it like to be the first person to see it, whether in 1851, or 4,000-5,000 years ago?

In springtime, Yosemite is graced with a multitude of incredible waterfalls, some of which don't last into the summer. One example is Ribbon Fall, which at 1,612 feet is actually higher than Upper Yosemite Falls (1,430 feet). It is just west of El Capitan and is easily viewed by visitors at Bridalveil Falls across the valley. It will probably be dry in a few short weeks, which is why it is less known.

Yosemite Falls was nothing short of spectacular. With a total drop of 2,425 feet, it is the fifth or sixth highest waterfall in the world. Its roar could be heard all over the center of Yosemite Valley.

I hiked to the lower falls as well. At 320 feet, it is dwarfed by the others, but a trail ascends quite close to the base, and it both wet and exhilarating to draw close. I had chosen to walk to the upper end of the valley, realizing that I could get there almost as fast as the tramways (lots of tram stops getting from one end of the valley to the other).

 The dogwoods were starting to bloom out too. It's one of the nicest signs of spring.

There aren't many other flowers on the valley floor yet, but our drive through the foothills afforded a great deal of color. There were white lupines....

 And a small magenta flower I didn't recognize. Can anyone identify it?

 Blue lupine could be seen all over the place...

And finally, a robin posed for me.

And that's how it was today.

Yosemite Reflections and the Answer to the Wee Mystery

Most everyone who tried figured out the trick in yesterday's little mystery. Half Dome in Yosemite was indeed reversed, and it was reversed because we were looking at a water reflection of the iconic rock that looms over Yosemite Valley. One of the reasons I love the fall season in the valley is that the rivers are at their lowest ebb, providing a unique mirrored perspective of the high cliffs. The first and second pictures today are yesterday's mystery pics in their correct orientation.

As I noted in yesterday's post, I was walking from Yosemite Lodge to Happy Isles, and as much as I could I followed the banks of the Merced River. There was no wind, and long stretches of the river were motionless pools. I've been to Yosemite around 70-75 times in the last 20 years, but these scenes were new to me.

So, enjoy the view! The Merced River is the largest river in the valley. It runs all year, but on this day the flow was 23 cubic feet per second, about as low as it can get. Normal spring runoff can produce flows of 1,000-2,000 cubic feet per second, and the worst recorded flood in the upper valley (1997)  reached 10,100 cfs.

As mentioned yesterday, the riverbank environment has been severely impacted by the visits of 4 million people per year. Vegetation has been trampled, leading to sedimentation of the river where soil is not held by the roots of trees and shrubs.

Only two fish species are native to Yosemite Valley, the rainbow trout and the Sacramento sucker. Other species were introduced in the 1870s, and trout were stocked through the 1970s. The fish that remain today are 'feral' populations. The non-native fish have had a profound and negative effect on the other creatures in the riparian ecosystem, especially the amphibians. The endangered Sierra Nevada Yellow-legged Frog is an important example. It has been extirpated in almost every lake and stream where fish have been introduced.

I walked past a very quiet tent camp in Curry Village. This was the most deserted part of my walk, but during the summer, it is a hotbed of tourist activity. I just love this time of year!

I've never really seen Stoneman Bridge before. We always drive or walk over it all the time, but on this day I wandered up to it from downstream to get a different view. Half Dome and Washington Column were reflected in the water. I couldn't help but notice that photographers had piled rocks in the riverbed to form a bridge to the best vantage point.

 In the picture below, North Dome is reflected in the water...

The water in the river was transparent and totally still. At this point, I had to leave the river. It makes a long meander to the north and I was running out of time. I needed to talk to my students about the huge Happy Isles Rock Fall that took place in 1996, damaging the Nature Center, and killing one person. We would also be talking about the catastrophic flooding in 1997. Those violent natural disasters seemed distant and improbable in the peaceful setting along the river on this fall day.

I've enjoyed photographing birds over the years. The water ouzel has proved to be one of my most elusive quarries over the years. I've seen them, but they never seem to stop moving. I saw one this time and I snapped a dozen pictures, but I remain mostly defeated in my efforts towards a sharp picture. This was the best one....

Better luck next time! And I hope it is soon...

Reflections on...Reflections

After spending two and a half weeks on the road in some of the driest landscapes that I have ever witnessed, I really wanted to see and feel a place that still had a bit of water left. So I did, and found some nice reflections to share. I suspect it won't take some people very long to guess where I found a beautiful river and cliffs, but if you can't figure it out right away, follow on through to the end of the pictures!

Of course, all one has to do is look at the photos upside down. Yosemite is always an entrancing place, and when I got to the Valley View turnout as the sun was starting to set, I was mesmerized by the water of the Merced River.

We stayed quite a while, but still had time to drive up the valley to Sentinel Bridge for the last light on Half Dome. It was a beautiful day, and a cool respite from the dust and the heat in the Central Valley.