Re: Yosemite Falls is quite dry

Can't help but think of George Penca. Poor fellow.

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Ohnivy-Drak
Can't help but think of George Penca. Poor fellow.

I'm still not convinced that George went over the falls. You would think that this mystery would have been solved by now.

Now is the time to go explore that area. Nice and dry, no slippery rocks.

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Dave
Now is the time to go explore that area. Nice and dry, no slippery rocks.

And it, hopefully, won't last long.

We're going to the valley next week and it never occurred to me that this might be something to do. Is it fairly easy to get down to where the water normally is? We don't do any climbing so if you can't just walk down there from the trail we wouldn't try it. Our original plan was to go up to the Ribbon Falls amphitheater which is dry now too.

Quite easy to ramble down to the base of the falls; very large cave there (~20' high by maybe 80 yards wide) is fun to explore.

We hiked up the there on Wednesday but were unsuccessful because we couldn't find a place to leave the trail. We spent about an hour looking along the flat part of the trail and went up about 10 switchbacks heading up to the top. We were up far enough to clear most of the trees and to look down at the cave. All we could find was thick brush or steep drop-offs. Where did we go wrong? Does anyone know exactly where you need to leave the trail to head over to the cave?

You need to go up more. Probably about too tents more than what you did.
It'll be obvious. If it's difficult... then you're not far enough.

If you prefer... you go off right here
(yes, you go a couple hundred feet above the cave)

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Thanks! We didn't go far enough. I'll remember this for next year.

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Calaveras
We hiked up the there on Wednesday but were unsuccessful because we couldn't find a place to leave the trail. We spent about an hour looking along the flat part of the trail and went up about 10 switchbacks heading up to the top. We were up far enough to clear most of the trees and to look down at the cave. All we could find was thick brush or steep drop-offs. Where did we go wrong? Does anyone know exactly where you need to leave the trail to head over to the cave?

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Chick-On
You need to go up more. Probably about too tents more than what you did. tongue sticking out smiley
It'll be obvious. If it's difficult... then you're not far enough.

If you prefer... you go off right here: map link
(yes, you go a couple hundred feet above the cave)

I was up there today. A nice morning hike before driving back to San Jose after lunch. It's beautiful place to wander around in, and not in any way difficult to get to. Here are some more specific directions:

1) Go up to the fifteenth switchback. But you don't have to count them. It's the only one where the trail takes you right to the smooth apron of rock on that side....you can reach out your hand and touch the cliff while standing on the trail. Up until that point, the off-trail prospects look horrible....steep brush-covered boulders. But there is natural rock staircase along the base of the apron. The X marks the switchback in question.



There is no snow in this photo, the rocks are dry. The white spots are just light coming through the trees and overloading the camera sensor.

2) Walk down to the low point of the apron, then up beyond it to the first bush beyond the low point which is next to the cliff face. Pass it on the right, step over a small dead log, and look under the tree branches to your right (see the spot marked X). You will find a use trail going through 15 feet or so of trees, and onto the open rocky meadow beyond. From there it's a easy walk to the area under the falls.



Here is the rocky meadow, looking back:



From there, if you stay to the left, you can just walk around to the base of the falls.



Or if you like slick rock, you can go down a bit lower, and then traverse out onto slick rock by the pool below the falls, etc.



The white snow cone is where some melt water was coming down in the late afternoon and evening and freezing there. In the morning, the falls were dried up, or more properly, frozen solid at the top.

I had never been up there when the falls were dry. In the Spring, the meadow area has something like a continual hurricane going on, which is why it is completely brush-free...

Great shot on the slick rock.

Here's looking up:

(at Eagle Tower)

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Thanks much for the details. This will be on our to do list for next Fall.

Taken Saturday November 3, 2012:

View of base of fall from the trail


View of rock field at base of fall


View of cave at base of fall


Human Beans at cave

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Old Dude



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/17/2012 09:56AM by mrcondron.

Tanks for Sharon OD,
Those are awesome.

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mrcondron

View of cave at base of fall

There's a human bean in this photo too!


.

It may be easy to get down there and all... but everything above
where you would start a rap down The Middle Tier is amazingly
free of rubble. Nothing like base of Lower Falls, Nevada Falls, Vernal,
or the likes.

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Last weekend:

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chick-on
Last weekend:

Top of the middle falls? I'd love to see more pictures.

Sure. Here's a few more:

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Did you get down there for these pictures from the Sunnyside trail side or the Yosemite Falls trail side?

The answer is ...never been on Sunnyside Bench.
Cave was so cool... went in there on the way up to Eagle Peak... and then again on the way down.
On way down had loads of time to hike around both sides of the stream bed.. and in it for a bit.

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Dave
Now is the time to go explore that area. Nice and dry, no slippery rocks.

The middle cascades of Yosemite Falls (between the base of Upper and the top of Lower) contain a number of very deep pools that don’t dry up. It certainly is a possibility that George is in or at the bottom of those pools. There is a descent/mountaineering route that goes through it call Middle Earth. So it is conceivable that SAR could send in a dive team there, but it would not be very easy.

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buster
The middle cascades of Yosemite Falls (between the base of Upper and the top of Lower) contain a number of very deep pools that don’t dry up. It certainly is a possibility that George is in or at the bottom of those pools. There is a descent/mountaineering route that goes through it call Middle Earth. So it is conceivable that SAR could send in a dive team there, but it would not be very easy.

Some rope with grappling hooks would do. If he was in one of those pools, would there be anything left?

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Ohnivy-Drak
Can't help but think of George Penca. Poor fellow.

Yeah, I thought about him when I took the photo.

..but not for long

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