Yosemite National Park

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After having just experienced Niagara Falls, the Grand Canyon and the Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Parks, I've run out of superlatives!

Yosemite Valley was carved by glaciers and further sculped by water & ice. Of all the US National Parks, John Muir pronounced it to be the most magnificent. And who am I to argue.

The crystal-clear river, the sheer cliffs, the waterfalls, the massive granite boulders, the wildlife, and the lush valley floor all combine to make this another amazing example of the beauty of the natural world.

The scale of the valley was brought home to us when we saw rock climbers scaling the sheer face of El Capitan. They looked like ants on the 3,500-foot cliff, one of the longest rock faces in the world - so high that it takes 2 days to climb, with an overnight bivvy clipped into petons under an overhang halfway up.

Because the winter rains haven't fallen yet, the waterfalls weren't as grand as the classic Ansel Adam's photos you see. Nevertheless, Katrina & Jackson ignored the 'Warning: risk of death' signs at the Bridalveil Fall, scrambling up the boulders to the base of the fall and got soaked in the process. Great photos!

Now heading west to San Francisco...

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