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The month of May is always a great time to see Yosemite. The falls and rivers are at their peek, the meadows are green, and the dogwood is in full bloom. However, it is also a busy time of the year. Lots of people come and lodging is at a premium. Sharon was busy playing tennis, so I took a chance and drove up in the "Z" hoping for a vacancy at the inn. I was lucky, and with some help from the manager, got a room at the Yosemite Lodge.




 


While I waited for my room conformation, I took a walk along the Merced River banks. It was peaceful and good to see this magnificent park again. A canoe drifted in the current. The fellow had a collapsible cart aboard and a bicycle down stream so he could tow the gear to his starting point. The current was too strong to paddle back.



 
 


My path wandered through a wooded section. Ferns and dogwood trees grew along the trail and some were draped above the water's edge. The only sounds were the lapping river, a lark in a tree above, and my footsteps on twigs below



 
 




 
 


Later in the afternoon I took the hike to Vernal Falls. This, of course, is a popular trail, and that day was no exception. From Camp Curry you can walk (or take the shuttle bus) to Happy Isles where the Merced River crashes down into the valley floor. It is the start of the John Muir Trail and our destination for now: Vernal Falls.



 

The trail starts to climb and soon we have our last view of Yosemite Falls. We enter the canyon of the Merced, heading east. A few hundred yards more and we cross a wooden bridge with our first glance of the falls ahead of us.



To get the best views of Vernal Falls we have to step off the trail onto some large boulders in the middle of the river. The spot is not well known, but here are some sample pictures. Notice the people to the right coming down from the Mist Trail.



 
 


I always learn something new. It was a warm night, so I decided to leave the door to the balcony open - after all I was on the second floor, no one was going to bother me; right? Wrong !! In the middle of my peaceful sleep I woke with the sound of a crash. Was it one of those noisy neighbors? Then I heard some more rustling further towards the bath-room. I stood up out off my bed, stark naked as always, just when a shadow rushed by me. It was the size of a dog, but faster. Out the open door it went . . . and then it dawned on me that it was a racoon. It had knocked over my waste-paper basket and found some leftovers there. I had goose bumps all over, closed the outside door and tried to go back to sleep.

The following morning I drove up to Glacier Point.



 
 

The overhanging rock above is more famous than any other of its size in the park. It has featured dancers, a model T Ford and even my father-in-law sitting on top. But not me, thank you. The drop to Camp Curry below is about three thousand feet.


However, don't go to Glacier Point early in the morning. The views to the east are hazy, Half Dome looks mediocre, and even Yosemite Falls is in the shade. Do Glacier Point in the afternoon; or better yet, at sunset. Now go back a couple miles to the parking lot of Sentinel Dome. If you like to walk, do the trail to Taft's Peak; if you like to hike, continue with the loop along the south rim of the canyon. That's about five miles.






 

 

In May you will find some snow on the ground and the trail can be wet. I noticed orange fungi on a tree and a Snow Flower poking its head through the soft ground.

 

Suddenly we are at the edge of the rim and look down and across to El Capitan, the giant rock of Yosemite.

We are standing at Taft Point, named after US President William Howard Taft. He came here in 1909 with John Muir who was trying to convince the President not to procede with the construction of the dam at Hetch Hetchy. Although the controversial dam was constructed anyway, Taft was honored with this view point.

There are a number of deep cracks or fissures in the ground and we have to be careful where we go. Some of these fissures in the granite walls and floor go down thousands of feet to the valley.

 








 

Taft Point is shown above. It has a tiny hand railing for those who are a bit faint of heart, like me. The view up here is spectacular. Notice that we are well above the top of the rim of El Capitan across the way. Yet most people who enter the valley will only have eyes for the big wall to the north and don't know about Taft Point to the south. We can also look down on Yosemite Falls barely visible further to our right.


We double back a ways and then take the South Rim Trail. It drops down and leads back to the edge with fantastic vistas. As we walk further east we can see Yosemite Falls a bit better. We cross Sentinel Creek just before it plunges over the edge to the valley below (too close to the edge for me to see). Although not spectacular because of little water flow, Sentinel Falls, with a drop of 1920 feet, is rated as the twelfth highest water fall in the world. Yosemite Falls is sixth at 2425 feet.



 
 



We are getting close to the end of the trail. After climbing back up and skirting around Sentinel Dome, we have a panoramic view of Half Dome and the Clark Range with its snow covered peaks. Then it is back to the car and home.



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