Looking southwest into Tenaya Canyon with Yosemite Valley in the distance. |
I took a quick weekend trip to Yosemite
this month. The waterfalls were full; the new foliage on hardwood trees was bursting
forth like lime green jewels. There were two new destinations on this trip for
me: a hike into Yosemite wilderness on the northwest wall of Tenaya Canyon
and a drive to Glacier Point on the southern rim of Yosemite
Valley . Both afforded incredible views of Half Dome, Tenaya Canyon ,
Yosemite falls, and the other gems lying at
the heart of the park.
From atop Glacier Point it was easy to see how crowded and
developed Yosemite Valley has become. Meadows,
forests and the sinuous Merced River still
occupy most of the valley floor, but the roads and clusters of cars are in
plain view from above. John Muir described the view as follows: “From Glacier
Point you look down 3000 feet over the edge of its sheer face into the meadows
and groves and innumerable yellow pine spires, with the meandering river
sparkling and spangling through the midst of them. Across the Valley a great
telling view is presented of the Royal Arches, North Dome, Indian Canyon ,
Three Brothers and El Capitan, with the dome-paved basin
of Yosemite Creek and Mount Hoffman
in the background. To the eastward, the Half Dome close beside you looking higher
and more wonderful than ever; southeastward the Starr King, girdled with silver
firs, and the spacious garden-like basin of the Illilouette and its deeply
sculptured fountain peaks, called ‘The Merced Group’; and beyond all, marshaled
along the eastern horizon, the icy summits on the axis of the range and broad
swaths of forest growing on ancient moraines, while the Nevada, Vernal and
Yosemite Falls are not only full in sight but are distinctly heard as if one
were standing beside them in their spray.” – The Yosemite ,
1912.
View from Glacier Point. Tenaya Canyon entering Yosemite Valley in the foreground. Half Dome to the right. |
Left: Vernal Falls. Right: Yosemite Falls. |