Maybe this will help: Left=35mm equivalent wide angle Right=420mm equivalent telephoto Both Buzz and Woody stayed in the same spot (about 3' apart, I moved closer (a few inches) for the first photo, farther for the telephoto (about 10' away). I guess I should have matched up the wheels on both for a 'same height' shot, but didn' t think of it..But Buzz would be Half Dome, Woody the silo. Thby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Bill, I can see why he's frusrated, but with so many doctored photos being posted, people are skeptics. That doesn't mean they need to post a "this is phony" comment though, unless they have something concrete. Frank, that aerial shot is really nice, wherever it's from...the shadows and lighting with the snow everywere are great. You can see how objects that appear higher than Halfby Sierrafan - General Discussion
I'm pretty sure it's a legitimate photo, at least there's nothing to show it isn't that I can spot. But the guy's not handling it very well, which doesn't help, and he's defeating his own purpose by calling people stupid, in essence. I left a reply at the Whitney board about it that goes into why I think it's real and why this guy doesn't necessarily know as much as he professes, but it's a litby Sierrafan - General Discussion
eeek wrote: > I never brought gloves to Half Dome; never needed any either. > Hands work fine for me. > Don't your hands get cold during the snowball fight? 8^) I think I'd have to change my downhill method for no gloves going down. The leather works like cable brake shoes. Skin, probably not...by Sierrafan - General Discussion
I had looked this morning and there were sites available at the KOA campground near Midpines at the end of July. This might accomplish two things...a place about an hour away from the trailhead, and a campground more suited to large groups. While I've seen a lot of larger groups that were fine camped in the valley, most every late-night noisy bunch was a large group. With granite walls surrounby Sierrafan - General Discussion
y_p_w wrote: > Maybe not a lottery system, but how about just general > categories. Right now it's a random shot at a particular open > site. Collapsing it into four or five general site types might > work out better because it won't be dependent on getting lucky > with choosing one particular site before anyone else. > That might end up as kind of a circus though; peopleby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Bee wrote: > adjust. I bought two pair about a week ago (4 X 4) but I have > not really experimented with them (I have never yet been > required to chain up with the rig that I use)(famous last > words) > There's nothing worse than learning to fit chains (or learning they don't fit) when you're kneeling in several inches of snow along the roadside while it's snowing hard and yourby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Seems to be anybody's guess: The first one was taken last October and definitely has plates to lock; the second one was taken last March, and definitely doesn't. Both are at Upper Pines and both are the new style boxes. My fingers also appreciate the new ones. It used to be standard practice to come home with nicked cracked infected finger cuts after a visit; no matter how careful you wereby Sierrafan - General Discussion
There are no hookups in the valley campgrounds. I remember a building back in that corner of the campground...it's actually in a pretty nice location as I remember. What it's used for, I don't know, but maybe just emergencies. There's electrical power for the restrooms and kiosk, and I'm sure that's not generator-powered, so probably you have nothing to worry about. I've always hated the wayby Sierrafan - General Discussion
The campground is in the 'refrigerator' section though, and snow lasts a lot longer there, way later than Ahwahnee meadow. Probably a bunch of dirty piles by now though, nothing as pleasant as Vince's photo.by Sierrafan - General Discussion
I really hope they never go to the lottery system; the only one I've used is for the Whitney main trail, and it's very frustrating to use. Give them a whole month and a half of any-day date ranges, wait for weeks while you check your bank or card for charges in hopes you got in, then finally the notice that 'sorry' and all your plans change. At least with the current system, you know if you gotby Sierrafan - General Discussion
dqniel wrote: > I did the Yosemite Falls hike last year about 2/3 of the way to > the top before the weather got too bad to continue. Even with > the POURING rain the trail was in good enough condition for me > to feel safe. I'd say it must have improved a lot since > fifteen years ago In fact, there were actually people > working on it the day I was there; they had the heaby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Yes, I agree that getting that many sites in the valley during summer is probably hopeless...even if you had 3-4 people each working on getting a site, the likelihood of some being aced out is pretty high. There are 3 or 4 group or double sites in Lower Pines, but not for 20 people...I think it's 12. I don't think the 2-tent rule in the valley is enforced, probably unless there's a problem likeby Sierrafan - General Discussion
I like the one about "can I set the clock on my computer ahead and make reservations earlier?" They didn't have the follow-up question though. "If the reservations are all taken, can I set the clock back to 6:59AM and try again?" 8^)by Sierrafan - General Discussion
March 15 is coming up Sunday; If staying in the valley, rather than the early drive, is acceptable, I'd suggest being up at 7AM with good internet access, the reservation site already open to upper pines (or whichever one you prefer), credit card in hand, and a campsite map handy; with your clock set right, click on the dates you want right at 7AM (maybe go through the process earlier so you knowby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Slipping into the Emerald Pool is pretty hazardous; it's not far to the falls from there, and at some times of year can be a deadly mistake to get a little careless there. Don't give a thought to being 'bad luck'. Nearly every time we go there, something just happened, happens when we are there, or we see a rescue operation and find out later what it was. A couple of Half Dome trips ago a guyby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Nice photos; it's hard to be in the right spot to see what's going on when you hear a helicopter there. Good thing you had a pretty strong telephoto, you definitely needed it for these shots. Any idea what happened? Seems like helicopter rescues are a pretty common ocurrence all year. I heard and saw the one getting the avalanche-buried guy near Half Dome in the early morning on our last visiby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Gee, that sounds like a nice, pleasant walk. 8^)by Sierrafan - General Discussion
My map shows 3.5 miles from the trail junction to the top of El Cap (4+ if you take the Eagle Peak spur. Add that to about 3.8 from Camp 4 to the junction. For a dayhike from the valley, that's a respectable hike, (~15mi.) especially when you consider the upper falls trail. A lot of people start out planning to go to the top of the falls, and end up with Columbia Rock or the Upper falls base vby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Or if you can manage to be staying at the campground when it floods, they may put you up there for free; I think it was in 1997 that happened, but maybe 2005. The '97 flood was in January when hardly anybody's there anyway, but 2005 one was in May when theyr'e usually pretty full.by Sierrafan - General Discussion
I think you're the only one who mentioned tearing anything down, other than rockfall or earthquakes doing it. We can't tailor a national park to our own specific needs, 'cause the next person probably would do it a different way, and it's theirs too. One guy wants smoky campgrounds all along the river from the Pohono Bridge to Happy Isles, the next guy wants a luxury hotel at every outcroppingby Sierrafan - General Discussion
> It's a pretty hotel and even though very expensive it is not > pretentious. ?? So what is it then, ostentatious? Or just a simple unassuming place for the elite to get a night's rest? > It's not an eyesore like a lot of crap in the Valley. i.e. > Tent Cabins Yeah, maybe they should tear down those ugly things and build Ahwahnee-style lodging there. Then Joe Schmo can stumbleby Sierrafan - General Discussion
Those early 1900's weren't the best for Yosemite. First they make one of the two major valleys into a personal water tank for SF (I think that was railroaded through around 1913), then in the early '20's they need a "luxury hotel". Glad they wised up before the casino got built 8^).by Sierrafan - General Discussion
Vince wrote: > I'd be more concerned about a giant rock falling on it. No > amount of seismic overhaul would survive that. Especially if it's North Dome. 8^)by Sierrafan - General Discussion
Well, that would make the shuttle bus a lot nicer to ride, with no Ahwahnee loop...by Sierrafan - General Discussion
Wow, they've sure been having troubles with that road. Ironic that it's the "all weather highway" when storms hit, yet the mountains keep falling on it. I finally took a photo of the Ferguson slide when I went through in February, since no one was behind me (the river's not curved, but even with a 24mm wide angle I couldn't get it all in the frame, so had to use 2). I like going thrby Sierrafan - General Discussion
The valley should be great that time of year; while the meadows will still be brown, the falls should be big and healthy. Wawona campground is very nice, but quite a distance from a lot of the things you might want to see and do. I don't think you'll have any trouble getting reservations at Upper Pines that early. https://www.recreation.gov/camping/Upper_Pines/r/campgroundDetails.do?parkId=7092by Sierrafan - General Discussion
dqniel wrote: > I got a Nuvi 760 because I needed a GPS for my road trip and > got a good deal on it at one of the CC closeouts. I assume > this type of GPS can't be used for trail maps? You're right, they're two different beasts. The automotive units are street map based, and made to route you between your location and a destination via streets. In an emergency, you could maybe useby Sierrafan - General Discussion