Cool photos! I'm glad you and the TQ are getting out there while I'm stuck at work, gives me something to dream about in my downtime. Thanks folks!by abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
In a similar vein, the James Lick Observatory up on Mt. Hamilton had a couple great shots all the way across the valley on their twitter feed: https://twitter.com/LickObservatory/status/1097646752163741696 I grew up in San Jose and always dismissed as fantastical the idea of being able to clearly see across the Central Valley to Yosemite. Looks like I was wrong!by abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
A lot of the problems could be fixed if the NPS actually did something to stop that dude from booking up 100s of reservations at a time and then selling them on the secondary market. (Yes, he's still doing this. No, the ID requirements haven't helped.)by abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Great shot, chick-on! And great write-up, David! I'm sure most everyone knows about the California Fall Color website, but if you don't, it's a great resource documenting seasonal changes throughout CA, via crowdsourced reports. Worth checking out!by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Yeah, that's a gorgeous photo for sure. Thanks for sharing!by abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Yup, our plans for Yosemite were tanked hard. SEKI and Lassen were just as smokey, from what I heard. This is what, the fourth? fifth? July/August/September in a row in which fires have affected the park, and it's only going to get worse as the climate continues to change all around us. At this point, it's probably smart to just not make long-term plans that involve the mountains in summer.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Thanks for sharing some hot insider tips, basilbop! I'm very happy to benefit from all of your expertiseby abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Yeah, I also was able to get a site for the end of June Big thanks for the update!by abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Your photos are as wonderful as ever, especially that second-to-last shot Any chance you can tell me where in the park(s) this is? The fiancee and I are headed down to SEKI this weekend, and I have no idea where to even begin.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Try reddit. r/yosemite, r/campingandhiking, r/backpacking. That sort of thing.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
I'm impressed with your resolve, Balzaccom! I would have malingered in bed for a few days if I got even a hint of the symptoms you were displaying. Looks like you had in the end, though. Thanks for sharing!by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Dang Kevin, some of those photos are top notch. Thanks for sharing them! Even though I've got a sudden hankering to buy a Jetboil for some reason... Sucks about the trash, glad to hear you did what you could to pick up after others.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
My good fellow, attending Yosemite, aside for the very small minority of nutcases like us on this forum, is pretty much the textbook definition of an elastic good. There are so many reasonably similar alternatives that are cheaper and closer to populated areas that there's no way a marginal increase of $30 (^ +75%) isn't going to result in a huge decrease in attendance. That's especially trueby abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
My understanding is that this will just be replacing the Peet's Coffee that's already been established at Yosemite Lodge (and the Curry Coffee Corner, too). Which makes this more a fight against something that's already been settled, as opposed to further corporate encroachment. Which in my mind makes it a bit less horrifying, although I'd still prefer to have some independent coffee shop inby abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Happy birthday, basilbop! Thanks for all of the sweet TRs over the years!by abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
This is definitely a top-5 TR for me, (not quite the) Geezer. It's abundantly clear from your prose and photos how much you care about this place, and how eager you are to share your experiences with the rest of us. I'm so grateful for such a nice read to break up the monotony of the workday. So having said that, I had no idea you could go up Gaylor Peak. Is there a use trail, or do you justby abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Dang chick-on, I know you just your photos with your smartphone, but some of these are really special shots. The penultimate one looking across El Cap (I think?) to the foothills at sunset especially so.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Whoa, when did the Watkins tree fall over? Also it's December and there's like, no snow. So much for the drought being over Thanks for sharing!by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
That's a lovely photoset, balzaccom. Thanks for sharing. I still can't get over how many dead trees are in that first photo though, jeez.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Hmmm, I can't for the life of me figure out how to resize photos in BBCode and keep them visible on the forum. Here are some direct links, while I wait for one you super users to help me out Ribbon Falls: https://imgur.com/9HnHw0F.jpg El Cap: https://imgur.com/LUIbM7o.jpg Yosemite Falls: https://imgur.com/YVsfhlo.jpgby abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The Yosemite subreddit isn't nearly as exciting as this corner of the internet, but every now and then they post a few gems. For example, this collection of aerial photos of Yosemite, which were taken from a trip intended to map the valley to "detect the extent of dead and dying trees." I figure you all would enjoy taking a look at them. Here's a few: Ribbon Falls: El Cap:by abetterpitchfork - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Chick-on, where is this? SEKI?by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
"There has been significant erosion and undermining along the base of the rock retaining wall on the John Muir Trail, in the area known as the " Ice Cut." National Park Service backcountry trail staff members have conducted an initial evaluation of the area and have determined that it is not safe to traverse by foot or by stock. The rock wall is of older construction and an unknownby abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Great photos, thanks for sharing! For someone who's never done it: how long does the hike take from TM to Vogelsang pass?by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Jeez, that's impressive. I hope the TrailQuest folks realize that this is now an unofficial trailby abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Glad to hear your body finally let you enjoy your trip, JR! Do you have any idea what could have caused the metallic taste in the water? Low pH? Presumably you didn't get too sick from drinking it, since you had time to write up this lovely report for usby abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
This was a beautiful trip report. I'm really grateful to you for sharing it, ags!by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
This was great! Thanks so much for sharing.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Jeez, the lighting on that last photo is incredible. Almost literally, in fact. Did you use a filter? Also, as much as I love reading the SEKI stuff you guys put out, I'll always be partial to your Yosemite adventures. Thanks for sharing!by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Beautiful photos. Now we've just gotta convince the closedcontour folks to release a SEKI map so I can sort of understand where the heck you guys are this week.by abetterpitchfork - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra