Yosemite Valley -- Day 1

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Yosemite Valley - Day 1

I said in the Introduction that now we are in the Information Age and so can get both verbal as well as visual information about Yosemite on the Net. Thank the Lord for that.

However, back in 1981, we were NOT in the Information Age and the Net was in its infancy and not available to the common man/woman. Consequently, our information about USA travel was based on an old dog-eared copy of Fodor’s. Yosemite figured in it only as a footnote to San Francisco environs.

But, I had pinned my faith on Mark Twain, who had mentioned the beauties of Yosemite.

Avi pointed out to me that Mark Twain had died in 1910, and so his information was likely to be rather out of date.

Yet, I was firm that we must visit Yosemite.

Avi was not particularly willing to spend two nights in a tent in the Yosemite’s wilderness, but that is what we had to do as the wooden cabins were already booked.

The trip was also expensive.

Basically, he had no clue about the Yosemite.

So, I had to practically drag a reluctant Avi to the bus station on a cold morning for our trip to Yosemite.

Here I must mention that we did not have any idea about how cold California can get even in summer. We were carrying woolens fit for Mumbai winter but they were not adequate for California summer. I had not thought it necessary to wear socks and boots but was wearing ordinary ‘chappals’. Those ‘chappals’ had given me good service for four months of summer in LA and Frisco, but now the summer was ending and cold was slowing making its presence felt.

Yosemite is about 320 kms from Frisco towards East.

The road up to the town of Merced was more or less level and then it started climbing up and up.

We came across the dark green Merced River, which originates in the Yosemite Valley, for the first time at the Merced town. I was captivated by the beauty of that placid, lovely river that reflected the greenery all around it. Being from South India, so far I had only seen pale grey rivers, which turned muddy brown after the Monsoon.

However, Avi was not pleased.

“Why, the river is BLACK. How awful!!” He exclaimed.

I was taken aback by Avi’s outburst.

“No, it is not black; it is a beautiful dark green shade, the bottle-green.” I said.

“I don’t like this color of the river. OUR Himalayan rivers are so frothy, so pristine, so pure white.” He said.

“I am so proud of our rivers” he added as an afterthought.

This amused me no end.

“Why YOU should be proud of ‘our’ rivers or mountains for that matter?” I pointed out him. “After all, YOU did not create them.”

He just sulked and probably decided to find fault with Yosemite and blame me for dragging him there.

However, our first glimpse of El Capitan rock that guarded the entrance to the valley, with the Bridal Veil Falls cascading down the opposite cliff, changed his mind and he profusely thanked me.

Now I have a clear idea of the Paradise - It should be a thickly wooded valley, 7 miles by one mile and 4000 feet high, with a little river flowing through it which is fed by the crystal-clear waters of several waterfalls cascading down the cliffs - Yosemite Valley, in fact.

We had reached Curry Village in the Yosemite Valley around noon. We went to the restaurant for lunch. We met an older Australian couple there and discussed our route and the sights to be seen.

Then we took possession of our tent, envying the Australian couple for getting the wooden cabin with a private bath.

The tent was a basic affair, just a wooden frame covered with canvas cloth. Inside, there were only two camp-cots with bedding.

No attached bath. However, the restrooms block was nearby.

This tent was to be our home for two nights.

We dumped our duffel bags in the tent and set out to see the sights of the Yosemite by taking the shuttle.

We were young and energetic in those days and so did not find it difficult at all to hike to the prominent sights from the shuttle stops - The Bridal Veil Falls, The Lower Yosemite Falls and the Mirror Lake.

The Mirror Lake actually turned out to be a calm, grassy meadow. It was a tranquil spot but it certainly did NOT mirror the Half Dome above it, which it is supposed to mirror.

The Half Dome is an awesome sight irrespective of whether it is reflected in the Mirror Lake or not.

Each waterfall had its own beauty. Some were tall and graceful like a maiden, while the macho Vernal Falls was broad.

By this time I was totally fagged out and when Avi wanted to hike to Vernal Falls, I was not very enthusiastic.

“Just think, we will meet the Australian couple at dinner and they would have seen the Vernal Falls.” Avi knows which button to press to get me moving.

I did not want to be outdone by the older, Australian couple, so I agreed to hike to the Vernal Falls.

It was a very steep and very tiring climb and I had to pause at many places to appreciate the scenery.

At a point on the trail, we got a glimpse of the Illilouette Falls or the ‘Hidden Falls’ (so called because it is not visible from any road in the Valley. I prefer this name because ‘illilouette’ is not easy to spell.) thundering down the cliffs. At least I believe it ‘thunders’ down, because the Hidden Falls was so far that we could not hear it, nor could we see all of it. Only a small segment was visible.

The distance to Vernal Falls was not much, maybe about a mile, but it was almost a vertical mile.

Hopefully I used to ask the returning hikers how far it was to Vernal Falls. The answer was always the same “Very near. Just a couple of turns and you are there.”

Liars, but well-meaning ones!

The broad Vernal Falls, falling like a white curtain was well worth the effort.

We were gleeful that the Australian couple had not visited Vernal Falls. They were too tired.

What else you expect of people who book a wooden cabin (with attached, private bath) in Yosemite Valley when people like us rough it out in an ‘unheated’ tent? They are bound to be softies.

Boasting about staying in the unheated tent is fine, but we spent our night tossing and turning because it was too cold and the blankets were not warm enough for us.

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