Yosemite - Day 4
Half Dome from Sentinel Bridge around mid-morning
Friday, November 1
We drove down to the valley today for a few reason’s:
Sunrise shot of El Cap from the Merced River
Get our National Parks Passport (and stamps), thanks Ian!
Rent some bikes to scoot around and not walk/hike
See Bridalveil Fall
This morning was cold! Our first stop was the river and to watch the sun light up El Capitan. It was another cool sunrise and great way to start the day off. We then headed over to the visitor’s center but got pleasantly surprised with the light on the grove around Sentinel Bridge. It was one of the most beautiful sights I have seen. The light was great, the water was glassy, and Half Dome was towering in the background. Wins all around.
We then headed to the visitor’s center, and we marveled at the size and selection within the grocery store next door. This place was amazing and I wish we knew about it earlier in the trip. Most notably, they had a “hot now” section with a breakfast burrito and two Jimmy Dean’s sausage biscuits ready for grabs. Kelly took the burrito, I took the biscuits. Jimmy Dean never did me wrong.
Leaving the grocery, we headed over to the Ansel Adams exhibit. This was the first time I have seen his work in person and it was super cool. What’s even more impressive (to me) is how much equipment he carried around to get the shots.
We then hopped over to get our stamps and walk through the museum to learn a bit more about the park: wildlife, how the park was formed, and the people that made it what it is today.
Still early in the morning, we walked over to grab the bikes and start venturing around the valley. We rode over to see Mirror Lake first. This wasn’t much of a mirror today, or a lake at all. I think it would be a good sight during the spring but the winter leaves it high and dry. So, we turned around and headed back to just ride around and see what jumps out at us.
Right about this time, my stomach started feeling a little wonky. Jimmy, don’t do it to me, Jimmy. This kicked off a couple hours of feeling like death. Hot, cold, brain fog, weak. You name it, I was feeling it. I tried to keep up with the ride but somehow Kelly found her inner Lance and was cruising down the trails. We rode for what seemed like an eternity and then returned the bikes to try to squeeze in Bridalveil before having to go back to the lodge. Two down, one to go, and still feeling awful.
After parking at the trailhead for Bridalveil, we started the walk up and I could barely keep up even walking. I felt like a slug. We reached the falls and looked around for somewhere to try for a good picture. This was the most crowded sight we went to all week. It makes sense with how easy it was to get to, but timing was the worst with my current situation. I somehow managed to skip across some boulders and get away from the crowd to get something. It’s not my favorite, I’m not sure it’s even good, but I’ll take it considering the circumstances.
Out of time, we jumped back in the van and headed to the lodge. I kept sipping on water and think there was a salty bag of chips somewhere in there. Things started to turn around closer to the lodge (45min drive) and I was feeling much more positive about the rest of the day.
The rest of the night was full of good times, good food, and good people. We chatted with several people we knew and many that we met for the first time that night. It was really funny to see the two groups of people that were here for the wedding. You might be thinking the families of the bride and groom. But, you would be wrong. I am talking about the northerners and southerners. It’s the end of October, in Yosemite, so it’s a little chilly outside. Northerners were seen wondering around and mingling with everyone. Southerners, however, never strayed further than about a foot from the propane heaters. If a northerner got too hot and decided to leave the conversation, we just waited patiently by the heaters until the next person walked up and started chatting. This is by no means a complaint, because it was absolutely beautiful outside. Hilarious though.
Tomorrow is wedding day, and Greg and Cat had some very cool surprises in store for everyone.
