The 41 has road construction this year within the park, between Wawona and Glacier Point Road. There are traffic delays (except on weekends as no construction work is being done on the weekends). Sections of the road are currently unpaved, making the drive slower than normal. Someone on another site reported it took them 2 hours to get from Yosemite Valley to Wawona. So you may want to avoid theby Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
There are several species of wild iris that grow in the Sierra Nevada, this is probably either Western Blue Flag (Iris missouriensis) (most likely), maybe Hartweg's Iris (Iris hartwegii) (less likely) or even possibly Iris versicolor, but my money would be on Iris missouriensis. All require lots of water to bloom.by Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Do they really need three web cams pointed at Half Dome, with zero pointed at Yosemite Falls?by Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
This year, I would probably use the 395. There is road construction on the 41 within the park, causing delays of anywhere from 0 to 30 minutes each way. That's the main reason. The park is more crowded this year than last year, so you would want to avoid some of the traffic by taking the east entrance. Normally I think the 5-99-41 is a better way to get there, because there are services all alongby Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Where exactly will the checkpoint be located? I thought I read a few months back, on the park's web site, that the permit will be required to ascend the subdome as well, and not just the cables. But the announcement above says that no permit is required up to the base of the cables. Is that where they will check for the permit, right where the cables start?by Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Always have a couple of stink bombs with you, just for situations like this.by Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
June 4 at Happy Islesby Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Thanks, it is very refreshing to see snow. It was 97 yesterday at my house in San Diego. And very humid too. The "monsoonal flow" pattern. The last 4 days have been hot muggy and yucky. I can't wait for fall.by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Mount Whitney trail. The Alabama Hills and Lone Pine are in the background of the first photo.by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=157&sid=7643900by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Jim, That's it! Thanks! I wonder if you can just hike up to those falls from somewhere on Tioga Road. Would make for a fun and easy hike. Bobby Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Jim, Thanks for the great photos! I am pretty sure that the waterfall you show in this picture: http://yosemitephotos.net/main.php/v/tomdisco/Yosemite++2009/Yosemite+2009+135.jpg.html is actually visible from Tioga Road. I remember seeing a waterfall after leaving Tenaya Lake and before arriving at Tuolumne Meadows, and it seemed like it was coming from Cathedral Peak, but I only got one glimpby Bob Weaver - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
An 11-year-old boy died in the intense heat of Death Valley National Park after he and his mother became stranded in one of the world's most inhospitable areas and survived for several days on bottled water, Pop-Tarts and cheese sandwiches, authorities said Friday. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/08/07/national/a104604D58.DTL&tsp=1by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Thanks, that was hilarious. I laughed from beginning to end. We love Huell Houser and watch his shows frequently. I have learned a lot from his shows about places in California that I might otherwise have never even known existed. I think he performs a valuable service.by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Death Valley is forecast to hit 126 today.by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
31. Why was Yosemite stolen from the Indians? Why couldn't they have respected the Indians and their land and left it in their hands? They could have made the entire area an Indian reservation. It's their land, for chrissakes. (In fact the entire continent is.)by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Well they have 5 cams but they don't all seem to be working at any given time. The Turtleback Dome cam showing El Capitan and Half Dome is great. It would be nice if they could reposition it slightly to show Bridalveil Fall, but that might not be possible where the cam is located. The cam looking west to show the air quality is pretty useless as far as I'm concerned. That should be moved toby Bob Weaver - General Discussion
My guess for Yosemite Falls on July 23rd is that it will be a gossamer spray. This past winter was on the light side for snowfall. Bridalveil Fall, the first major one you see as you enter Yosemite Valley, is capable of running all year, but is just a trickle in the autumn. It will probably still have some flow on July 23rd. The park's web site states that both Vernal and Nevada falls are capableby Bob Weaver - General Discussion
So did they ever figure out what caused that fire?by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
I wish they would point one of the webcams at Yosemite Falls, so people could check it on a daily basis. Alas, they have decided to point 3 of the webcams at Half Dome, which never moves. Kind of a waste of technology. There was a late snowstorm in early June which provided a little extra snow, so the falls will run slightly later in the season. You can see how they looked on June 3rd by going toby Bob Weaver - General Discussion
What snobs... I can't believe this forum.by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Who can afford that?by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
I think emergency service in remote areas is one of the BEST possible uses for cell phone technology!by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Oh sorry... I didn't even notice the Tuolumne Meadows gas station because nothing there was open when we went through (June 4). To me paying the extra 50ยข/gallon is nothing, because it means not having to leave the park to get gas, which involves a lot of extra time (and gas used up just getting to the station). So what if it cost me $3 extra to buy 6 gallons of gas inside the park. Well worthby Bob Weaver - General Discussion
So Sequoia had a "bear pit" too. When we were at Yosemite Falls 3 weeks ago, we chatted for a long time with a couple who have been going to Yosemite since 1948. They told us about watching the firefall and about the bear pit there. Also, we have pictures from our 1968 summer vacation, when Mesa Verde National Park was one of the places we stopped at. A few of the pictures show me anby Bob Weaver - General Discussion
In the National Geographic book America's Wonderlands: The National Parks, which was published in 1959 and again in 1966, there is a photo on page 357 of a teenage boy standing on one of the columns, about halfway up the postpile. Now the monument's regulations state that "the fallen columns, the cliff face, and the tops of the columns on the cliff face are closed to all entry and recreationby Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Daily Kos rocks... thanks!by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Crane Flat is a pretty area and quiet (the name makes you think it would be plain, flat and ugly, but it's forested and beautiful). One of the 2 gas stations in the park is there, and the price is about 50 cents higher per gallon than outside the park, but still it's good to know it's there and to have that right near you as you start out each day is comforting. There is a small convenience storeby Bob Weaver - General Discussion
But... Yosemite Valley is the claim to fame of the park, and is what makes the park a world-class destination. The rest of the park is similar to the rest of the Sierra Nevada range. Yosemite Valley is what makes the park unique and famous. It is the best part of the world's best park, and instead of leaving it as a park, they turned it into this:by Bob Weaver - General Discussion
Only the eastern end of Yosemite Valley specifically. It's a park, yet they've turned it into a resort.by Bob Weaver - General Discussion