Y: Yosemite

 

Y is for Yosemite, which is not only the 3rd or 4th US National Park created, it is also the name of one of the most spectacular valleys anywhere, the Yosemite Valley.

And when I think of Yosemite, both Valley and mountains, I think of John Muir, and My First Summer in the Sierra.
     

I thought I'd share just a few of the many covers this one has, having been produced in about 50 editions since it was first published in 1911. Looking at them reminds me how long it's been since I last read the book, and that I need to dip back into it again. Based on the diaries Muir kept when he first entered the Yosemite Valley in 1869 as guide to a flock of sheep (the very things he himself called "hooved locusts), My First Summer records his reactions to the magnificent scenery he fell in love with an worked all his life to save. There is a bit of preaching in the book, and a bit of philosophy, some historical insights, and a touch of adventure. At times his prose waxes a bit too poetic for modern tastes, but it is always worth reading.

The Yosemite Valley--and the surrounding high country--is always worth visiting.

Yosemite Valley from the Yosemite Falls trail.

 There is a good reason I didn't include a photo of the falls from that hike: it was October, and there was no water going over the falls. None.

Half Dome from the Valley floor. Boys doing what small boys do in gorgeous places.

Vernal Falls. Note the water spots on lens--they don't call it the Mist Trail for nothing! This was in June, when run-off was at its peak. A week later, 3 hikers were swept over the falls after ignoring signs about not wading or swimming in the river above the falls. Believe those signs!

Nevada Fall and Liberty Cap.

Yosemite high country--looking back toward the Valley from the Tioga Pass road.

©Rebecca M. Douglass, 2015