River deep, mountain high
The 5th of December was our second day exploring Yosemite national park. And having done the valley floor the day before, we decided to go upwards! While many of the high-altitude roads in the park were closed for the winter, we still got up a couple of mountains, and saw some amazing things.
The road to Crane Flats climbs steeply up the mountain, through tunnels and past precipitous drops. All rugged up, we got out occasionally to admire the stunning views, giving us views of the most spectacular sites in the Yosemite Valley.
Once we reached Crane Flats, we were a little disappointed to find that, despite an altitude of almost 1900 metres and the freezing cold (we were all well and truly rugged up), there was no snow... a couple of bits and pieces by the side of the road, but nothing significant... Still, a very nice drive.
On the way back down from the flats, we noticed something strange in one of the tunnels... It looked like some type of side tunnel, at right angles towards the edge of the cliff. In the end, my curiosity got the better of me, and Dad, Pip and I went for a walk to check things out. I was stunned to see the sign at one end of the tunnel, reading 'Fallout Shelter'. This just kept getting more and more interesting. Eventually, we got to the small side tunnel, which punched right through the rock and out to the sheer cliff face, a drop of what must be several hundred metres.
It was an intriguing and mystifying sight indeed.
Our next drive took us through the valley and back up again, towards the Mariposa redwood grove. Another steep road took us up again to over 6000 feet, then dropped down as we approached the redwood grove. As we went along, we passed through a whole series of small fires, being lit for fire reduction and giving us some pretty stunning photos.
The redwood grove itself was a funny place. A trail guided us around to see these huge trees (Including the 5th biggest living thing in the world, Giant Sequoia Tree 'Grizzly Giant'), and we saw some impressive wildlife, but some of it was pretty ugly. Still, some very nice pines trees, and those sequoias really are mindblowing.
Once we were done, we went back to the house we were renting out, and I had a nap. What? I was tired.
The road to Crane Flats climbs steeply up the mountain, through tunnels and past precipitous drops. All rugged up, we got out occasionally to admire the stunning views, giving us views of the most spectacular sites in the Yosemite Valley.
Once we reached Crane Flats, we were a little disappointed to find that, despite an altitude of almost 1900 metres and the freezing cold (we were all well and truly rugged up), there was no snow... a couple of bits and pieces by the side of the road, but nothing significant... Still, a very nice drive.
On the way back down from the flats, we noticed something strange in one of the tunnels... It looked like some type of side tunnel, at right angles towards the edge of the cliff. In the end, my curiosity got the better of me, and Dad, Pip and I went for a walk to check things out. I was stunned to see the sign at one end of the tunnel, reading 'Fallout Shelter'. This just kept getting more and more interesting. Eventually, we got to the small side tunnel, which punched right through the rock and out to the sheer cliff face, a drop of what must be several hundred metres.
It was an intriguing and mystifying sight indeed.
Our next drive took us through the valley and back up again, towards the Mariposa redwood grove. Another steep road took us up again to over 6000 feet, then dropped down as we approached the redwood grove. As we went along, we passed through a whole series of small fires, being lit for fire reduction and giving us some pretty stunning photos.
The redwood grove itself was a funny place. A trail guided us around to see these huge trees (Including the 5th biggest living thing in the world, Giant Sequoia Tree 'Grizzly Giant'), and we saw some impressive wildlife, but some of it was pretty ugly. Still, some very nice pines trees, and those sequoias really are mindblowing.
Once we were done, we went back to the house we were renting out, and I had a nap. What? I was tired.
posted by Jono Russell at 11:35 am
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