When you travel west on Tioga Road, you eventually run into the Big Oak Flat Road, which can either take you up and out of the park, or down into Yosemite Valley. As I traveled down that beautiful road towards the valley, I realized quickly that autumn was in its full glory at these lower elevations. It was stunning to see the trees and bushes in all their reds, yellows, and orange regalia. But, as I moved up the valley I could see that the Merced River was very low and the major waterfalls were either gone or barely a trickle. There is always a trade-off for those beautiful autumn colors. While I was exploring Yosemite's High Country, I was at 8,000 to 10,000 feet. Yosemite Valley sits at about 4,500 feet. Quite a difference in elevation and a good reason why I was seeing these beautiful colors. They were everywhere, although the eastern part of the valley was well ahead of the west, where the majority of spectacular colors were most evident. 
As camping in Yosemite Valley is by reservation only and most of the campgrounds were closed, I headed for Camp Curry to see if I could get a spot. At the camping reservation center, I found there was no problem getting a site and I wound up under Half Dome at the Upper North Pines Campground, although I could not see that great dome because of trees. Being a two-day expert on camping, I set up my tent in no time and headed out for some photography.
In the late afternoon, I headed up to Glacier Point, high above the south side of the valley. From here I hoped to photograph the sunset from up on high. For a while, it looked like a major disappointment, color and light-wise. But as I prepared to leave, suddenly Half Dome and Cloud's rest turned a bright pink. I snapped away happily until the light was gone, then headed back to my camp in the valley.
The next day, after a comparatively warm night in my tent, I got up and spent the rest of the day photographing autumn scenery in and around the valley. It turned out nicely as found plenty of still water in the Merced River to record reflections, including reflections of El Capitan and the major domes.
Finally, towards the end of the day, I drove over to Camp Curry to make use of their free public showers. It felt so good to be clean and shaven again after four days in the wilderness. You can take the boy out of the city, but...
I will always be drawn back to Yosemite because of my roots. It is a special place in my heart and soul... and still one of the most beautiful places on this planet. If you have never been there, know that no picture by any photographer, past or present, can replace actually going there. It is more than a place...it is a feeling.
The photographs you see are of the pink light at Half Dome from Glacier Point, the Yosemite Chapel, and autumn trees looking up at a non-existent Yosemite Falls.
The next morning, I broke camp and began the first steps of the next part of my journey. After some quick photographic stops along the way, I headed west towards Oakland and a warm clean bed. But, before leaving Yosemite completely behind me, I decided to visit one other place in the park that I had not seen in over 40 years...a place that makes me a little sad, but still an important place, especially for many residents of the San Francisco Bay Area...the place known as Hetch Hetchy Valley. Stay tuned...
No comments:
Post a Comment