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Lake
Tahoe is a lovely lake, which has the borders of California
and Nevada down it's middle. It is most definitely "Beauty
and the Beast", the beast being the tackiness of Nevada! I
stopped in a town called "Stateline" which has California
on one side of the street, and Nevada on the other. I also passed
through Carson Valley, the
only fertile part of Nevada. It's
history is most interesting. |
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The
first part of Yosemite takes you to Tuolumne
Meadows. This picture is not strictly the Meadows, but is quite
beautiful. Next I went on to a view point which provided a wonderful
view of Yosemite, and
introduced me to the concept of trees
growing in what appears to be solid rock! And here
is close up evidence. |
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What
sets Yosemite apart is the strong Glacial activity here that gave
rise to Yosemite Valley, and a number of features, such as Glacial
Erratics. Half Dome was
created by glacial activity which ground away the side of a granite
dome. |
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Yosemite
falls are the tallest falls in North America at 2,425 feet from
top to bottom. They are split into the Upper
Falls at 1430 feet, a Cascade, at 675 feet, and the Lower
Falls at 320 feet. |
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The
Mariposa Grove is a grove of Giant
Sequoia trees. These are the largest organisms on earth. It
was a lovely morning walking through the grove of ancient trees,
where I saw a Mule Deer Stag,
a Squirrel trying to drag
this large cone along. There are all sorts of features in the trees,
including this tunnel through
the tree. I also managed to find a Sequoia
that is probably younger than me!!! They live up to 3,000 years.
Fire is an essential part
of the ecology of these forests, and is now done in a controlled
way by the National Park. |
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The next stop was up to Glacier Point where you
get a phenomenal view
of the valley. You can also look right down onto the Merced
River, and Yosemite Village. I then went for a walk up to the
top of Sentinel Dome, where you get a full 360 degree view of Yosemite.
It is breathtaking, both view and altitude at 8,122 feet. Here is
me with El Capitan and Half
Dome for company! |
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The
final day, I visited Mirror Lake, which is more of a pond at this
time of the year, but still took a nice picture. Then it was on
out of the valley, where I passed by Bridal
Veil Falls, again, not spectacular as the water dries up in
the summer, but still pretty. A final view along Yosemite
valley, then back , passed the Tenaya
Lake, which feeds into Tenaya Canyon and Mirror Lake, through
the Tuolumne Meadows then
out of the park, with one final beautiful
vista! |
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