Sunday, November 14, 2010

October 12. Glacier Point In Yosemite National Park.

The Hawthornes have seen a lot of spectacular scenery on our trip across America, but Glacier Point in Yosemite may just rate at the very top.
The panoramic view from Glacier Point is ... ... ... There are no words for it. Only feeling. Thank you, Mr. Hawthorne. That was the word/description I was looking for.
The view from Glacier Point, left to right: Tenaya Canyon, Half Dome, Liberty Cap.
Half Dome, Liberty Cap, Little Yosemite Valley.
Tenaya Canyon and Half Dome. I thought THIS information about Tenaya Canyon was rather interesting. Once again, the white man is trying to remove the Native Americans - the Ahwahneechees - from their land. One of Chief Tenaya's sons was killed duriing this altercation and the Chief placed a curse on the white man: 'Kill me, sir captain! Yes kill me, as you killed my son; as you would kill my people if they were to come to you! You would kill all my race if you had the power. You have made me sorrowful, my life dark; you killed the child of my heart, why not kill the father? You may kill me sir captain, but you shall not live in peace, I will follow in your footsteps, I will not leave my home but be with the spirits among the rocks, the waterfalls, in the rivers and in the wind; wheresoever you go I will be with you. You will not see me, but you will fear the spirit of the old chief, and grow cold.' Park Rangers refer to Tenaya Canyon as the "Bermuda Triangle of Yosemite."
Half Dome is the signature landmark of Yosemite National Park in California, rising 8842 feet above sea level. In 2009, a climber fell to his death on his descent from Half Dome. Click HERE to read about the perfect storm of circumstances.
I really liked this photograph. I walked around the corner and there he was, sitting on top of the world.
This is like being in an airplane, looking down.
As glaciers retreated from the valley, they left piles of rock and gravel debris, called moraines, in their path. Behind the moraines, the waters of the Merced River collected, creating ancient Lake Yosemite. The lake gradually filled with river-carried sediment leaving behind the flat valley floor. The moraine was dynamited out in 1890 to lower the water table. As the ground became less saturated, more trees grew and valley meadows began to shrink.
Ancient Yosemite Creek cascaded thousands of feet into a deep, V-shaped canyon carved by the Merced River. During the Ice Age, glaciers gouged out the canyon into an even steeper U-shape with vertical walls. Yosemite Creek was left hanging 2600 feet above the valley floor. The creek now plummets over the precipice as Yosemite Falls. When the winter's snowmelt disappears, usually by late summer, Yosemite Falls dwindle and often dry up completely.
As Mr. Hawthorne said, "There are no words to describe this. There's only feeling."

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