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I am going to be a bit naughty and skip ahead again a little with a promise to go back and fill in the gaps after we get back. We are sitting on a train that is the second stage in our four step, 11 hour exit strategy from Yosemite Valley National Park to LAX for our flight home. By the time we get home we will have travelled for about 30 hours straight!
So this post is all about the last stop on our US adventures, Yosemite. Being a huge waterfall fan, the lure of the fifth tallest single drop falls in the world (Upper Yosemite Falls) not to mention the pristine wilderness area were difficult to resist, especially given the California Zephyr stopped in Sacramento which was KIND OF on the way. After a train and bus trip (5 hours!) we alighted at Curry Camp in the heart of the park. This camp was started in the 1960's to provide families with an affordable accommodation option in the park aside from the lodges. The camp consists of timber framed huts covered with waterproofed canvas to make tent/cabins. Each cabin has a lockable bear proof locker outside and there
are strict instructions to put all scented (eg toiletries) and food items inside at night and not to have such items in your cabin! we have to sign a declaration that we are "bear aware" after receiving instructions on how to handle an encounter. Gotta love an insurance waiver!
After settling into our cabin we head straight to the courtesy shuttle bus stop for our first walk to Mirror Lake where we can get a view of one of the two main landmarks - Half Dome. The park is situated in a deep valley sided by massive granite cliffs which dwarf even the giant pine trees dotting the valley floor. In spring (yay we are in the right season!) snow melts and the resulting streams flow in dramatic drops over the cliff sides. The cliff walls are upwards of a kilometre tall. As you stand at Curry Camp you see the base of the pine trees and follow them up to their tops and then your eye is caught by something even taller - the cliff walls - and then you follow them up and are awed by their dramatic height and breadth.
The park is very accessible
with a small village consisting of various accommodation options and numerous hiking trails. The park is also a popular destination for mountain climbers with many challenging cliff faces. Half Dome is a 1.46km peak that is visible from a gorgeous trail that takes in a meadow that on still spring days becomes a mirrored lake. Fortunately just such a day greeted us and the beauty of the view was breathtaking. Sadly we missed out on a bear sighting (walkers told us they had seen one on a different trail) but still had a great walk.
The next day we tackled the 20 km Valley Loop trail to see El Capitain (one of the worlds largest granite monoliths), Bridalveil, Horsetail and the Upper and Lower Yosemite falls. The valley is dotted with beautiful grassed meadows and the stunning Merced River flows through its length. The water is incredibly clear and near transparent. The waterfalls are just incredible. Some are just single streams of water plunging down vertical cliffs you only see from a distance whereas others are a thundering, raging torrent of white water and mist. We see clumps of snow from the night before and give thanks we snagged
the last heated cabin when we booked months previously!
The cafeteria style restaurant is in a huge log and stone building and you can sit on the porch after dinner in a row of wooden rocking chairs. In winter fires are lit in cavernous stone fireplaces. We are enchanted with the beauty of Yosemite and briefly consider relocating to California. While Australia has many incredible landscapes, we do not have nothing to quite match the scale of Yosemite.
While we missed out on bears, we did have a raccoon attempt entry to our food safe, saw deer grazing in meadows and shameless squirrels ate the crumbs at our feet in the way of an animal in a national park who knows it is protected! Coming to the US and worrying you won't see a squirrel is like going to Rottnest and worrying you won't see a quokka! They are everywhere and it's only us tourists who find them cute and enchanting! Poor Katy was quite scared of them up close however often we told her that Maisy's friend Cyril is a squirrel and therefore they are not scary.
Well as we prepare to head home and start
to look forward to decent coffee (honestly the coffee really is completely awful) we reflect on some of the things we will miss- peanut butter as a flavour (seriously, peanut butter milkshakes are awesome!), Diet Dr Pepper (no judging, but we have become addicted!), really good bagels and basically eating like you are at a birthday party every day (only slightly kidding!) We have had an amazing adventure, seen some amazing things but most of all we have spent 5 weeks, or 35days, just the three of us together for 24-7 and that has really been the absolute best part. Best wishes to you all and see you soon!
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