Here is an interesting picture. On the right is a slide of my mom at Nevada Fall 56 years ago and on the left is a picture I took at almost the same spot in 2004. Note how much the trees have/n't grown in that period of time! I have other slides I'll add to this thread in a bit.

Here are a few more from 56 years ago.

Nevada Fall, a couple other looks:



Bike riding in the valley. Don't know if that sign is still around, it says Top of Cliff 7042 Base of Cliff 4144 Valley Floor 3890 Ht of Vert Cliff 2898 EL CAPITAN


Mules on the Vernal Fall bridge:


Top of Vernal Fall:


Tuolomne Meadow:


I've only been on 120 once so not familiar, is this Tenaya? Note the cars on the far shoreline


Bridge on Merced


Glacier Point tree


Glacier Point Firefall coals pile (posted previously in another thread)


Another look at the railing at Glacier Point


Kicking back in the meadow waiting for the Firefall. Nice shoes, huh?


Glacier Point Hotel:

Thanks for posting all this old photographs, they're great!

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Vince

Bridge on Merced

This looks like the original Swinging Bridge located near the Four Mile Trail TH and the Yosemite Lodge. Today, people wonder why the current “Swinging Bridge” is called Swinging Bridge. It's because of this original bridge shown in this photo!

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Vince

Glacier Point tree

As Bearproof already mentioned, this is a photo of the famous Jeffery Pine on top of Sentinel Dome while the pine tree was still alive.

Again, thanks for taking the time to scan and post these great photos of how Yosemite was back in the '50s.

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Really great pictures!!!! I would love to see more. Do you know exactly where that bridge across the Merced was? Looks like I need to drag out my old saddle shoes.

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parklover
Really great pictures!!!! I would love to see more. Do you know exactly where that bridge across the Merced was? Looks like I need to drag out my old saddle shoes.

There are only maybe a dozen more slides but they aren't all that interesting unless you want to see people do handstands along the Merced beaches or float in innertubes (real ones for real tires). I don't know a thing about that bridge, hoping someone out there remembers it

Thanks for posting. Love the shoes !

Very Nice! The "Glacier Point Tree" is actually at the top of Sentinel Dome, and shown in the famous Ansel Adams photo. And yes, that is Tenaya Lake.
I haven't seen many shots of the old Glacier Point hotel...very cool.
Thanks for sharing!

I have another image of the original swinging bridge and I believe it was located within about 25 feet of the current bridge. I also recall the north bridge foundation laying on the riverbank when I worked in NPS campground maintenance in 1969. As romantic as the original bridge might have been, I vividly recall people rocking the bridge up and down to frighten the scaredy-cats (like me) who were on the bridge. I wish I could have seen more of the Glacier Point Hotel, but I believe it was closed when it burned in summer, '69. I also recall the square nails from the Mountain House laying on the ground for a while.

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Dearborn
I have another image of the original swinging bridge and I believe it was located within about 25 feet of the current bridge. I also recall the north bridge foundation laying on the riverbank when I worked in NPS campground maintenance in 1969. As romantic as the original bridge might have been, I vividly recall people rocking the bridge up and down to frighten the scaredy-cats (like me) who were on the bridge. I wish I could have seen more of the Glacier Point Hotel, but I believe it was closed when it burned in summer, '69. I also recall the square nails from the Mountain House laying on the ground for a while.

My mother called it the "monkey bridge" probably for the very reason you state.

I would have LOVED to have been a photographer with the atmospheric conditions back then.

None of the massive amounts of valley industrial/pollution haze that gets in so many shots nowadays.

Smokey conditions, due to more unrestricted camp fire rules, made visibility within the Yosemite Valley itself worse on many days back then than it is now.

Also, car pollution in some parts of California, like Los Angeles, was far FAR worse back in the 50's and 60's than it is today. Don't know how bad car pollution was in the Central Valley in the 50s, but back then it wasn't uncommon for vehicles to belch black and gray smoke from their tail pipes.
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Dearborn
I also recall the north bridge foundation laying on the riverbank when I worked in NPS campground maintenance in 1969.

There is still an old concrete footing (cable anchor?) on the right maybe 50 yards after crossing the current not-very-Swingy Bridge heading towards the Lodge; it is surrounded by some fairly mature cedars.

Not sure how I missed these. Thanks for putting them up.
Really great.

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Ed Cooper is probably correct: that Jeffrey Pine was "loved to death."

Top of Cliff 7042: as marked on the disc, I believe.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/14/2013 04:22PM by Ohnivy-Drak.

Got no idea what 7042 you talking about. Enlighten me.
GP is 7214
Sentinel Dome is 8117 I believe...

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chick-on
Got no idea what 7042 you talking about. Enlighten me.
GP is 7214
Sentinel Dome is 8117 I believe...

The sign is referring to El Capitan. It says Top of cliff = 7042. Which is what the marker at the edge says. Historic sign. My guess is that it's probably not there anymore. Could there be a marker "at base of cliff 4144?" Maybe Rocky Point?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/14/2013 08:29PM by Ohnivy-Drak.

Ah. OK.
BM 4144 ... I looked earlier this year... but could not find anything. Looked quite a bit.
It's supposed to be right at the base of the nose. With the extreme popularity... it is
more than likely long gone. Couldn't even find any indication where it had been.
The one on top (BM 7042) is still present and accounted for.

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chick-on
Ah. OK.
BM 4144 ... I looked earlier this year... but could not find anything. Looked quite a bit.
It's supposed to be right at the base of the nose. With the extreme popularity... it is
more than likely long gone. Couldn't even find any indication where it had been.
The one on top (BM 7042) is still present and accounted for.

Poked around a little myself. Met and watched quite a few climbers. 4144: obliterated or buried under rubble.