Exploring Yosemite

Sequoia in Mariposa Grove

Our second day in Yosemite, we headed down to the Southern part of the park to see the Mariposa Sequoia Grove. These giant trees sure do stand out, their unique color and huge width make them distinctive. Many had fire damage on their lower trunks, but that is actually healthy for the trees, because it thins the forest, allowing their cones to sprout and take root. Their root system is fairly shallow, but very broad and when trees are close together, they actually can share a root system. Most impressive was the Grizzly Giant at 96 foot in circumference and the California tree, where a small car could pass through its man-created tunnel.

            The other highlight of the day was going up to Glacier Point. There were two viewpoints up there that opened the whole Yosemite valley to view. From Washburn Point you could see from Half Dome toward the South. There were Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls open to view from above – what a sight! At Glacier point itself, you could see most of the Yosemite valley from Yosemite falls (not flowing at this time of year) past Half Dome. We also stopped at Tunnel view, which probably is the most famous viewpoint of Yosemite valley, popular in many pictures, El Capitan and Half Dome framing the valley.