BIRTHDAY #27 AT YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK!

Mirror Lake
Yosemite National Park

I had been trying to get to Yosemite ever since I moved to California, but always made one excuse or another not to go. I decided going would be my birthday present to myself. And boy did it deliver.

Yosemite is quite possibly the most beautiful place on Earth. Granted, I haven't seen a lot of it, but this place was loaded with endless meadows, granite cliff walls, waterfalls, trees, and wildlife. Jen and I stayed at the Marriott in Madera (discount courtesy of Randy), so we actually had to drive quite a ways to get to it. But once we were there, we lived it up.

Half Dome
Seen from Glacier Point
Yosemite National Park

Our first trip in was difficult. I took the Western entrance in because I heard there was construction on the Southern roue. This required going through the vast Sierra National Forest before entering Yosemite. However, once you're in the park, you're right in Yosemite Valley which is the main launching pad for almost everywhere. We parked, ate, and started our first hike to Mirror Lake, so named because when the light hits the lake just right, it makes a mirror of the breathtaking scenery above. I brought my camera.

Yosemite wasted no time pointing out how out of shape we had become. It took quite a while to get there, and we hardly noticed it because the lake was dry! They didn't mention it was seasonal at the trail head. Still, there was an impressive view once we got there.

The photos I took were on a variety of color film stocks. I'm still waiting on the Kodachrome roll to get back, which I had to send to Kansas to get processed (my last roll ever!), but I was very unhappy with what I took. This trip convinced me once and for all that I am meant to shoot black and white. Color just doesn't look good in my hands, with rare exceptions. Most of the photos on this entry were taken in color and changed to black and white.

On day 2, which was the last day we had, we decided to hike to Vernal Falls. We didn't even make it that far. The trail was listed as "moderate to strenous," but I found it life-threatening. By the end, we were stopping every 100 feet or so. It was just kicking our butts! We did manage to make it to the lower bridge, which afforded a spectacular view of the falls. Those are among the Kodachrome pictures I'm waiting for, so I'll post those when they come in.

We headed back, but I really wanted to see Glacier Point before I left. This is by far the most famous view from the park, but the sun was setting rapidly at it was a long way away on curvey, mountain roads. Had we left 10 mintues earlier, I would have had some stunning pictures, but we just didn't make it in time. The picture above of half-dome was taken there, and it's amazing it turned out at all. Although it looks like daytime, it was almost night when I shot it!

Bear!

Oh, and we saw a bear! We were on the shuttle bus when an Asian guy next to us yelled, "Behr!" I didn't have my camera assmbled, so I quickly threw on the longest lens I had and snapped it through a green window. Again, I'm truly amazed that the picture above came out at all, and it's really good considering the circumstances: almost no light, lots of movement, no prep time. Jen has a video of it somewhere as well.

And just like that... it was over. We drove back to LA and I've been in the grind ever since. The picture below is one of the few color pictures I'm really proud of.

"Screaming Trees"