Yosemite

It is appropriate that my first travel article should be about Yosemite. The world is full of exotic places to visit with many impressive man-made monuments such as the pyramids, Roman Colosseum in Italy, the ancient city of Ephesus in Turkey and Angkor Wat in Cambodia. But even these impressive structures pale into insignificance compared to the age and grandeur of Yosemite.

Take for example the Giant Seqouias, not only are these graceful giants old but they are living creatures. In fact, if you had to name the biggest living thing on earth, it would not be a whale or even a dinasour, it would be the awesome Giant Sequoia.

Take for example The General Sherman Tree in Tulare County California. It is a staggering 2.7 million pounds and stands at 275 feet tall from its base, which is more than 100 feet wide. Not only is General Sherman the largest living tree, it also owns the title of largest living organism on the planet.

These Giant Seqouias have been proudly rooted in their soil since before Jesus walked the earth. While the Romans were a rowdy, violent mob of Pagans persecuting the Christians in the Roman Coloseum our Seqouia was a foot in diameter (70 CE). By 300 AD when Constantine was strengthening his rule by creating an amalgam of Christianity and Paganism our tree was 20 feet in diameter. In 750 AD when Charlemagne was crowned Holy Roman Imperor in Rome our Sequoia was still a mere child at 40 feet wide. While Manchu Pichu was flourishing in Peru our gental giant continued to spread its base. When the Hindus and Buddhists were building Angkor Wat in Cambodia (1113 AD) the Sequoia was slowly growing to sixty feet across. In 1368 AD when the Chinese where building the Great Wall of China our mighty Sequoia was still standing strong. By the time Dark Ages were ending and first reformers such as Martin Luther (1546 AD) entered the scene risking their lives to translate the Bible into different languages our now wise and ancient Sequoia was 80 feet across. Finally when the first swarthy Naturalists such as John Muir (1872) started exploring, admiring and documenting these mighty docents of the forests they were firmly rooted with their girth spread 100 feet wide.*

These mighty giants of the earth only survive on the sunny slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the state of California gets the privilege to hosts these ancients of the earth.

That is to wax poetic on only one amazing aspect of this incredible National Treasure that is called Yosemite. Yosemite is an incredible Valley with vast granite bluffs jutting straight out of the earth and hovering over the green valley floor at a towering 13,000 feet. Yosemite may have started out as any beautiful valley when water starts to flow from higher elevation and forms a river that slowly carves its way through the mountains and out to sea. But add to that an enormous prehistoric glacier that moved through this valley started by the river millions of years ago.

The Glacier shoved itself between mountains ripping them open and dragging with it massive boulders and displacing them randomly in meadows and streams. It polished mountains and made them into smooth domes like the iconic Half Dome that is the mascot for the region. Other mountains were grated against with such force that they were ripped in two, exposing their granite interior and resulting in hanging cliffs. These hanging cliffs stop abruptly but the flowing river continues, throwing itself over the edge with thunderous velocity, resulting in the dramatic waterfalls that typify the region.

Take for example Yosemite Falls, this waterfall that bears the Valleys name, is actually a double water fall: Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls. Upper Yosemite Falls tumbles from a height of 2,425 feet and ranks among the world’s tallest waterfalls. It boasts viewing stations at several points of the waterfall, the top, middle and bottom with views opening up of the entire magestic valley with green meadows, icy tumbling churning rivers and massive cliffs all around.

Vernal Falls allows intrepid hikers to climb straight up the side of its thunderous waterfall along steps carved in the rock leading always up, up, up. As you embark up the waterfall you are enveloped in a fine mist of water that is breaking free from the river crashing over the cliff and reaching airborn speed that turns it from its water form into fine mist. Thus the name of the hike being “The Mist Trail”.

As you ascend the face of the water fall you are struck by the sheer force of the raging water plummeting over the cliff. The knowledge of your own fragile life that could end up plummeting down the fall keeps you in deep respect of nature. The thunderous falling water creates its own wind as the force of millions of gallons of water rages down the cliff, hitting your chest and taking your breath away. You are covered in a fine mist that envelopes you and eventually drenches you to the bone. You would be cold if it weren’t for the extreme exertion you are expending as your tired muscles strain to continue hoisting you up the steps to the top. Your lungs are filled with crisp cool air of the high altitude and your heart is pounding to keep up with the excretion and excitement of fraternizing with this magestic giant.

After climbing Yosemite Falls we are ready for lunch and grab our picnic basket and head for a wooden picnic table under the commanding view of the waterfall. A friend who had joined us for the hike had the good foresight to bring along a couple of jugs of homemade beer and a lovely fine wine. The guys happily savored the hoppy malted brew while us girls relaxed our worn muscles with a zinfindal from Paso Robles. It paired nicely with our sandwiches, chips and Oreos. What could be more satisfying than dining under the shadow of the waterfall you just conquered?

We strolled the walkways of Curry Village, the hub of activity for campers and day hikers exploring Yosemite’s wonders. Here you can revive yourself with a cup of hot cocoa or grab a slice of pizza while hobknobbing with fellow hikers. The Dog Woods were in bloom on this spring day as we walked along with our steaming hot cocoa admiring their large white flowers they boasted like it was their wedding day.

When it was time to return to our base camp we began our drive out of the park only to be stopped by the beautiful site of three black bears happily dining in the green grassy meadow. We watched this rare view of the true inhabitants of this region with the respect they deserve. After we had fully taken in the view we continued a few meters down the road only to be stopped again by the site of a herd of deer in another of the green sanctuaries that Yosemite offers. They were startled by our presence and raised their attractive heads to peer at us with their large brown eyes, flinching their soft pointed ears to be in tuned to our intentions. They weren’t comfortable with us being so close so they started to move away. We longed for the day when we wouldn’t have to stand so far away from these docents and could frolick with them in the meadow. Oh, to put your arms around the fury shoulders of the black bear and pet the velvety ears of the female deer, one day my friends.

We took the curving road home to our cabin in the woods, we see first hand the ever changing landscape of Yosemite, this year we had record rains that ended the multi-year drought that plagued California the last couple of years. The heavy rains and deep snow pack provided the massive amounts of water for our dramatic waterfalls and thunderous rivers. It turned everything green and marshy making the dogwoods bloom profusely and sprouting the purple lupines that dotted our landscape.

It provided the berries and seeds that would sustain and replenish the black bear after her long hibernation. But the rains did not come soon enough to save the acres and acres of pine trees that succumbed to a voracious beetle that wore them down after years of drought. Now this section of the forest is dotted with the dried up and blackened skeletons of lifeless trees devoid of foliage. They stand in their barren battlefield torched and naked, the defeated victims of the war fought and won by beetles. Maybe this too is part of the ebb and flow of nature, years of drought and years of rain, glaciers and rivers in an ever changing landscape. Once these trees that had dominated the area are gone, the flowers and shrubs that lied dormant in the shadow of the great trees can now sprout and flourish in their new sunny environment. This landscape will be changed for the next fifty years while new trees take root and grow among the lower bush. What is fifty years to Yosemite when it has taken shape over millennia? It will take this too in stride and adapt. We are but a brief moment in time for this National Treasure that had stood the test of time.

*this fictional information is based in the fact that Sequoias will put on growth rings of one inch per year. That would increase the trunk diameter by 2 inches per year. At that rate you could expect the tree to have a trunk diameter of 20 inches in its 10th year, 60 inches in its 30th year, 100 inches in its 50th year, and 200 inches in its 100th year. 200 inches is nearly 17 feet in trunk diameter.   The General ShermanTree is the largest tree on earth, nearly 41 feet in diameter that means it currently measures 100 feet across.

For More “Homestead” Articles see our Archive stories:

The Beginning of a Blog (Published May 18, 2017)

The Cherry Tree (Published May 20, 2017)

How to Roast Your Own Coffee Beans (Published May 22, 2017)

Successful Square Foot Gardening (Published May 23, 2017)

Yosemite (Published June 7, 2017)

My Tiny House (Published June 15, 2017)

Making Noyaux (French Bitter Almond Extract from Stone fruit pits) Published August 7, 2017)

Sweet & Spicy Pickles (Published July 21, 2017

Classic Canned Peaches (Published August 6, 2018)