Back to The Valley

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The others were going horse riding for a couple of hours, so I decided that I would brave the drive and go to The Valley for the day. Whilst 35 doesn’t sound too far, the bendy roads, not to mention some long stretches of road-works, meant that it still took well over an hour to get there.

When I got there, boy was it busy. I had to park on the approach to the valley and then walk the rest of the way, but given that walking / hiking is the main occupation in Yosemite, that was not a problem.

I went to the Lower Yosemite Fall, which was a very easy walk. Too easy in fact as it was absolutely covered in people - the chances of getting an unobscured view were nonexistent. I decided to do the walk to the Upper Yosemite Fall. That was hard work, but at least there were a lot less people up there. As well as the Upper Fall itself, there were some particularly good views from Columbia Rock, which is just over half-way to the fall. The walk continues to Yosemite Point, however it was getting a bit late in the day for that. Some people seemed to be going for it however, although I wouldn’t rate their chances of getting back before it got dark. My chances of getting back to the hotel before it got dark were also pretty remote as the valley one way system meant that I still needed to drive into the valley and then sit in the horrendous traffic all trying to get out.

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Photos

Yosemite Falls
Both Yosemite falls from viewed from the valley

Upper Yosemite Fall
Upper Yosemite Fall from the hike