We spent the entire day in Yosemite National Park today! It was beautiful! We're staying at a nearby campground so we didn't have to take the camper in with us, which was great. We needed reservations and they were very strict with that, requiring ID be shown as well as the QR code for the timed entry. Many people were being turned away, but it was nice to have a limited amount of people in the park. We went in via the southern entrance which was very long and winding. Another time we'd go in through one of the western entrances. Because of this, there was only a small National Park sign here too but we were determined to get a quick picture with it. We went through the tunnel and stopped at Tunnel View which is a beautiful spot to see a panoramic view of the park, including El Capitan, Half Dome, and Bridalveil Falls. We got into the valley early, found a parking spot easily, and then used the free shuttle all day long. We went to the visitor center to get our passport park stamps and learn more about the valley. Blake found a section on the owl he studied this year in school and then we went to watch the Spirit of Yosemite video at the theater.
After, we did a lot of hiking. We walked around the trail to see Lower Yosemite Falls as well as Upper Falls. It is beautiful and still flowing even though it dries up later in the summer once the snowmelt dries up. Then we went to get a closer view of El Capitan where many rock climbers climb the vertical rock. Finally we went up the Mist Trail to Vernal Falls. This was a shortish hike but straight up the entire time with little relief so it was tiring, but worth it. The Vernal Falls are beautiful and there was a nice place to relax and fill waters. I'm so glad that we used the shuttle transportation because it was perfect to get around the valley and reduce our driving as well. On our way home, we stopped at Mariposa Grove, which was close to the exit. There was a separate shuttle there to bring us to the grove. This grove had many Sequoias in it including Grizzly Giant and the Fallen Monarch. The size of the branches alone on these trees is unbelievable! I also got some pictures of the wildflowers which are so pretty and slightly different than ours.
When we got back to the campground, the kids went swimming again in the swimming hole behind our camp site. The Fresno River runs down behind the campground so there is a beautiful swimming hole there with a rope swing too. Blake went on the rope swing and loved it. Evan and Ella just enjoyed swimming and counting it as their "shower". :) It was a long but great day!
                                   |                                  |
No comments:
Post a Comment