Re: Pet Peeve(s)

It is the Sierra Nevada. Not the Sierra Nevadas.

It is the Sierra. Not the Sierras.

It is Nevada Fall. Not Nevada Falls.

It is Vernal Fall. Not Vernal Falls.

It is Yosemite Falls.

Upper Fall.

Lower Fall.

Middle Falls. And they are not really falls, pools, or rapids (take the hike and see).

List other peeve(s) below.

See you in the park, looks like Feb. 13-15 for me's. Wouldn't mind organizing a little yosenews get together and meet at Happy Isles. Not Isle.

Vince wrote:

> It is the Sierra. Not the Sierras.

That one drives me nuts!

Vince Wrote:

> It is the Sierra. Not the Sierras.

eeek Wrote:

>That one drives me nuts!

It used to bug Ansel too. Also contrails. He called them "sky worms."

The actual Spanish translation of Sierra Nevada is "Snowy Range" (Snowy Mountains in some text) so I guess that it would be ambiguous at best to refer to them as "Snowys" or "Ranges"

DB

PS Funny that they dont mistakenly refer to the Sierra Madre as the "Sierras", too.

You need to complain to wikipedia.org too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Nevada_(U.S.)

I'm ok with Sierras... but I just call it my backyard.

bill-e-g wrote:

> You need to complain to wikipedia.org too.
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Nevada_(U.S.)

Don't complain. Just fix it.

When did the Yo Semite become Yosemite?

http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/in_the_heart_of_the_sierras/map_of_routes_to_yo_semite_valley.html

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan

Note name of book. Sierras is fine.

Regarding "yo semite" vs "yosemite"

The article suggests that the correct pronunciation is something like
yo-SE-mea-tea.

A pronunciation I have never heard. Also, interesting that the phrase means "Those who kill" (maybe appropiate given the rockfalls?)



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http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/origin_of_word_yosemite..html

Origin of the Word Yosemite

by Daniel E. Anderson
(December 2004; last revised August 2007)

Gresham’s Law of information: Bad information drives out good. No matter how long ago a correction for a particular error may have appeared in print or online, it never seems to catch up with the ever-widening distribution of the error.

What does Yosemite mean?


The Miwok called Yosemite Ahwahnee or “mouth,” because the valley walls resembled a gaping bear’s mouth. Yohhe'meti (Southern Miwok) or Yos.s.e'meti (Central Miwok) originally referred to the Indian tribe that lived in Yosemite Valley. Yosemite means literally “those who kill” (Yos, “to kill,” the modifier e, “one who,” and the plural suffix -meti). It was used by the surrounding Miwok tribes. The Yosemite people were referred to as killers by these surrounding tribes, who feared them. The Yosemite tribe, led by Chief Tenaya, were composed of renegades from multiple tribes, including Mono Paiute from the eastern Sierra. The Paiute were traditional enemies of the more-peaceful Miwok people. ............

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan

The "diving board" is sort of annoying, when people use it to refer to the visor on top of Half Dome, but I think we discussed that here before. Of course the diving board is nowhere near the summit, but the location where Ansel Adams took his famous photo of the face of Half Dome.

Naturally you would never "Falls" off the diving board OR the visor, but then you wouldn't want to "fall" off either 8^).

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Gary
Yosemite Photo Galleries: http://www.pbase.com/roberthouse/yo

I must be out of the loop -- I never heard the term "diving board" for that ledge on half dome (I hike mostly by myself, so I dont get in on as much conversation)

>>Of course the diving board is nowhere near the summit<<

Its been a few years since I hiked half dome, is the summit of the dome much higher at another point than the ledge? I seem to have lost perspective on this orientation.

B

Sierrafan wrote:

> the location where Ansel Adams
> took his famous photo of the face of Half Dome.

I really, really, really don't want to carry my view camera there.

eeek wrote:

> I really, really, really don't want to carry my view camera
> there.
>

Yep, here I am wondering whether it's safe to go to the diving board solo with my (relatively) little ultrazoom, and he goes up there with a view camera, no doubt wooden tripod, and I imagine the film was no small issue either.

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Gary
Yosemite Photo Galleries: http://www.pbase.com/roberthouse/yo

Sorry, the tripod is steel.

Bee, a lot of folks get to the top of Half Dome and think the sharp appendage that 'hangs' over the valley is the diving board, and it's a logical assumption, but that is usually called the 'visor' as it resembles a hat's visor.
The "diving board" name was given to the rocky ridge part way up the face, that's accessible by going between Liberty Cap/Mt. Broderick and Half Dome.


So the summit is indeed a lot higher than the diving board, and I think a little higher than the visor too, being a rounded top dome.

The diving board is on my list of places I want to get to, but haven't yet. One of these days... (I hike alone often too, though usually have my sons with me on the Half Dome hike. Some hikes aren't wise to go alone, and I'm not sure whether the diving board is a good one for a solitary hiker or not, but may find out one of these days).



Post Edited (01-15-09 08:12)

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Gary
Yosemite Photo Galleries: http://www.pbase.com/roberthouse/yo

Thanks, Gary, for the tutorial! I love the little arrows and labels.

This explains a LOT (I could not understand the perspective of how Ansel Adams would have taken THEE photo from where I thought the diving board was)

Is it much of a detour from the usual Half Dome hike to get to the diving board? (hmmm, I know its on the pet peeves list to use the term "diving board" so feel free to tell me the proper name) I know that some folks break up the half dome hike into two parts (camping halfway in Little Yosemite, I believe its called) but I uaually start from Crane Flat and do it in a day(so any additional time/length would have to be factored in)

Thanks for the info!

B

(PS I get a lot of grief for hiking alone -- especially in the desert, but I love grand canyon and I try to be responsible)



Post Edited (01-15-09 09:31)

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The body betrays and the weather conspires, hopefully, not on the same day.

Crane Flat to Half Dome?!? That's probably a little more than a day hike...

My pet peeves:

1. Incredibly large groups hiking together (usually some school group or foreign tour group). These people usually show no respect for their surroundings or other hikers and generally act like they are at the mall. Yes, you can avoid them by going on longer or more strenuous hikes, but it is a shame than some parts of Yosemite are continually affected by this.

2. ANY trash alongside the trail.

3. People who insist on camping in prohibited areas. Especially the Lower Cathedral Lake campers who insist on setting up camp 10 ft from the water. (Also usually using a bear bag...) That's at least 3 rules broken at once, and it ruins a lot of pictures...

4. People who drive 15 miles under the speed limit on Yosemite roads and refuse to use the turnouts. (I don't speed...)

5. People who think it's okay to drift 3 ft over the yellow line while driving their gigantic rented RV around the turns. If you are going to drive an RV or pull a trailer, mountain roads are NOT the place to learn how...

6. The guy who goes up to Glacier Point and hauls $10 million worth of camera gear with him, stakes out the corner spot on the right side of the lower lookout deck at sunset, then tries to start fights with everyone who tries to stand in "his" spot. Hey buddy, my mom has never seen Yosemite and deserves this view as much as you. If you were a real photographer you would go find a place by the little Geology exhibit AWAY from the hordes of people.

7. People who go to Yosemite to party, drink, stay up late, and generally pay no attention to their surroundings. There are plenty of other less visited/less beautiful places for this type of activity. Do not spoil it for those who have traveled around the country/world.

Enough soapbox, though... Despite all of that I still love Yosemite and will keep coming back.

>>Crane Flat to Half Dome?!? That's probably a little more than a day hike...<<

I camped out at Crane Flat, walked to the first shuttle bus depot (dont remember how far that was) and begin the Half Dome hike via the Mist trail. Altogether, the mileage was about 25(strenuous) miles up/back(if my guesstimation was correct, which it could be wrong....)

(The military demanded far worse and my sometime hiking buddy is a Navy Seal, so there's no mercy there, either!)

B



Post Edited (01-15-09 17:48)

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The body betrays and the weather conspires, hopefully, not on the same day.

Crane Flat to the Mist Trail Trailhead is around 20 miles round trip (as the crow flies - prob. at least 25 by trail or road), not counting the mileage of the actual hike up to Half Dome from the Mist Trail (14.2 miles round trip). 35-40 miles in one day? Did you ride the bus for part of that? I don't mean to sound rude at all; I have just never heard of anyone hiking up Half Dome from Crane Flat and I don't know of any regular route for that. Are you sure it was Crane Flat and not some other location that you started from? There aren't even bus stops near Crane Flat. Crane Flat is a little bit in the middle of nowhere as far as trails to Half Dome are concerned...

>I have just never heard of anyone hiking up Half Dome from Crane Flat<

The actual hike began from the Mist Trail (without looking it up, I believe that the hike actually covered three different trails: Mist Trail, Muir Trail, and the actual trek to Half Dome)

>Did you ride the bus for part of that?<

Yes, I did ride the bus for part of the trip TO Mist Trail, but now I cannot recall if I had to drive to one of the bus stops to begin the odyssy (its been a few years) I remember that the whole thing was last minute (hence, how I ended up so far away from everything) so my usual documentation is not what it would be (most all my hikes are filed with maps and notes for future reference)

>I don't mean to sound rude at all<

Not at all. While I have some vivid memories of the actual hike itself, the logistics of getting there remains a bit murky...! One thing that still stands out was the sight of bathers in the shallows right before the bridge over what I think was Vernal Fall(s)

YES!! my pet peeve...

1) Fools who bathe within the vacinity of certain death, or allow their kids to do so, thus, giving folks like me a stress attack (over the kids, not the Darwin Awards candidate adults)

B

Ryno 98: You covered most of my pet peeves. I don't speed in the Valley either, but I do wish people would use the turnouts. The rangers at the entrance stations should (and could) do more to remind people with their 40 ft RVs to use the turnouts.

However, my biggest "pet" peeve is PETS on wilderness trails. It gets worse every year. And the rangers absolutely refuse to enforce the regulation. They just say there isn't much they can do about it. Really? A few escalatng fines might help. If you won't enforce a regulation, people are going to ignore it. Even some of the park rangers seem to be founding members of PETA and think the regulation should be ignored. I have nothing against pets, but they don't belong on unpaved wilderness trails.

Don't get me started on W Bush allowing mountain bikes on trails in some parks. That's just what I want to see while I'm trying to enjoy a nice, long hike in Yosemite. I don't think bikes have been approved in Yosemite yet, but it's the camel's nose under the tent. It will happen. It's bad enough to have to negotiate around all the horse and mule dung on the trail to Half Dome. Trying to avoid some 12 year old on a bike at the same time should make it even more fun.

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Bill

Bee: I find it almost horrifying to see people bathing in the pool just above Nevada Fall.

Ever read "Off the Wall: Death in Yosemite"

The chapter on waterfall deaths is the scariest thing I've ever read, and all real life!

Vince, some of my friends thought that it would be funny to give me the book, Yosemite: Off the Wall, as a B-day gift before one of my trips to Yosemite. I thought that the book was going to be trivial and gimmicky. I could not have been more wrong!!

I sort of used the book as a checklist of a lifetime of Pet Peeves, as I went from one potential disaster scene to another. I make an annual trip to Az (Reservation) and while at Grand Canyon, I picked up the companion volume Grand Canyon: Over the Edge -- it was even better.

B

I am TERRIBLE about knowing which fall(s) are named what. Maybe someone could give me a rundown of the starring favorites(ie, the one thats visible as you enter the valley to the left near El Cap, the one the Mist Trail goes to (I think the same with the bridge) Anyway, I am embarrassed to admit that while I digest all of the logistical info about co-ordinates, topos, and survival, I still mix up all of the waterworks.

B

Emerald Pool didn't used to have ALL the railings and 20 signs saying
no swimming. The very first time I ever went to Yosemite (1990)
a friend and myself went swimming in there. There were were a huge
number of people in it and also sliding into it from the Silver Apron.
We knew the fall was there and we didn't go anywhere close to the
outlet.
Let's just say we were sorta clueless anyway since when we were also
swimming in Mirror Lake we mistook Mt. Watkins for Half Dome.
Some little kid points to the face and say 'no, that's it'. We poo poo'd him.
Ooopsie... my bad

Probably soon there will be even more railings above Nevada since
there always seems to be a number of people tauting death there.
Even though there are plenty of signs saying 'fall in and die'.

BTW. One of my biggest pet peeves is:
Sign says: "Area Closed"
Schmo walks right past sign to closed area.

Bee,
Go to http://www.nps.gov/yose
and click on "view map" right above QUICKLINKS.

The only falls I can think of not on there is Lehamite Falls.

West of El Cap is Ribbon. Mist trail goes to Vernal followed by Nevada.

West of El Cap is Ribbon, east is Horsetail (Firefall)

Illouette FALLS!!!! Heh

Bill: this one's for you, Cottonwood Canyon below Bodie State Park and just north of Mono Lake. Road closed my butt! Several miles of six-inch-deep snow had the 4x4 slipping a little and plowing axle-deep in a couple spots, but hey it was only New Year's Day, I imagine most of that stuff you see below is all gone by now. What a pathetic snow pack this year (so far).

Much hard to ignore the signs here:



http://yosemitephotos.net/main.php/v/lee-vining/sh-dscn2272.jpg.html

Worse:

Meow
It's ok... I forgive you... (saw it already on your Bodie Post)

I love the "do not drive on the meadow" signs you see every once in awhile.
(like at White Wolf)

thanks for the link, bill. Its a nice comprehensive map (instead of the parts and pieces that I use for specific areas) because most of my trips are determined by how long the maintenance is going to take at either Sentinal Dome or TM (I hitch along and play while the work is taking place) My hikes at Yosemite have mostly been limited to how much I can cover in a day, thus, my overall familiarity with the park is not as good as I would like it to be.

B

BTW the photographer in the Pet Peeve who takes up all the space at Glacier Point during sunset also vacations at Grand Canyon; he blocks the view from the lower deck on the South Rim trail.