Yosemite Rocks

We left Pesto resting at the tranquil waters of the marina in Richmond and went inland for a couple of days on a family tour.

It was the first time we left Pesto since the start of this Journey. We were anxious.

But the destination was well worth it – we visited the Yosemite National Park.

I had heard of Yosemite since we first lived in the US some 15 years ago. But distance, lack of time and money all conspired against and it ended up being an unfulfilled plan for both of us.

Not this time around, though.

The idea came by chance one day as I was browsing the internet and it occurred to me the park should not be too far from where we were. Indeed, it was just over 200 miles inland. That was a definite Go.

We left Pesto late afternoon and did most of the drive up there at night. So, when we went to bed at the Cedar Lodge, just 10 miles from the Park’s entrance, we didn’t know much what to expect the next day (I had purposefully downplayed their expectations a bit).

The next day broke as forecast – perfect blue sky, 0% chance of rain, mild temperature.

The Park is huge, and the area we focused our visit was the Yosemite Valley. This area is essentially a canyon 700-1,000 ft deep that was carved on solid granite rocks by a glacier approximately a million years ago. The valley is located at the very bottom of the canyon, and the Park’s access road goes right through it. As we drove in to the park, the scenery opened up before our eyes, first slowly, and all of a sudden we had all of it – the stunning views of the granite rock formations to each side of us.

We spent most of the day at the valley, hiking, biking and taking pictures. Afterwards we drove one hour via a winding road that took us to the top of the canyon, where we could see the sun set over the valley from a privileged position.

I think it is fair to say this was one of the most beautiful places we have ever seen. I will let the pictures tell the rest of the story: