Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada

I was stationed at NAS Lemoore, California from June 1974 till I left the Navy for good in February 1978. It was a great tour. There always seemed to be something to do on your days off - like a road trip to San Francisco or San Diego or a drive to Sequoia or Kings Canyon National Parks - a day playing in the river, swimming and sliding down the granite chute at Hospital Rock, is probably as much fun as anyone could rightfully expect to have so close to home. The longer we stayed at Lemoore, the more entertainment options seemed to open up for us. I took flying lessons and we'd fly up to Oroville in the Sierra foothills and wander around in the old gold camps. Then we'd fly west, intercepting the coast just above the Redwood National Park, turn south and fly down the coast, a mile or so offshore, past the Golden Gate and San Francisco and land for lunch at the airport at Monterey. After lunch we'd hop back in the plane and continue down the coast to Pismo Beach or even Santa Barbara before turning away from the Pacific, back across the coastal range to the San Joaquin Valley and Lemoore.

For a little bit longer drive than the short trip to Sequoia, we'd take Hwy 41 up past Fresno and Merced and head for Yosemite National Park. As soon as we left the valley floor, the character of the road changed from straight arrow to exceptionally circuitous as the maze threaded its way farther into the Sierra Nevada. The changes alongside the road as we gained altitude were subtle. After the orange and lemon groves the low hills were studded with oak and, before long, you found yourself marveling at the size of the sugar pines to the right and left. The pictures above and below were taken on the west side of the Sierras approaching Yosemite from the south. As beautiful as the views were, nothing quite prepared you for the panorama that awaits at the east end of the Wawona Tunnel. Indeed, the first time we drove up, the tunnel itself was a surprise. No one back at the base had ever mentioned entering the valley through a tunnel.






Okay, get ready. . .






I have to believe that some farsighted soul with the National Park Service found this view of the Yosemite Valley - which is absolutely perfect, in case you hadn't noticed - and said to himself, then his boss, then his boss's boss, "We can't blindfold people, lead them into the valley and spring this view on them. We need to put them on an approach road that keeps them entertained - and distracted - then lead them into the valley through a tunnel, and knock them out with the VIEW." El Capitan dominates the left side of the valley, Cathedral Rocks and Bridal Veil Falls are to the right, leaving Half Dome perfectly framed.


Lucky for us, the Park Service salesman had his way and the Wawona Tunnel became an alternate entrance to the Yosemite Valley. I'm sure the shock and awe of this entrance caused its share of trouble. You simply don't want to take your eyes off the view to watch the road. So, now we come out of the tunnel and immediately encounter a large overlook with parking sufficient to allow us to recoup our composure. Both of these pictures of the valley were taken from the overlook while I recovered.


This last photograph, which appears to have nothing in common with the previous ones, is a view looking east from the Tioga Pass Road, Yosemite's back door. I believe that the large lake just below the horizon is Mono Lake. On my last trip to California, in the spring of 2008, I had intended to drive north through Death Valley and cross the Sierra Nevada through Tioga Pass. My friend Scotty, who I would visit in Hanford, warned me that he didn't think the Tioga Pass Road was open and clear of snow till sometime in June. Checking the California DOT website confirmed that the road had not yet opened for the year. That was all right - I wandered about Death Valley for a few more hours and crossed the Sierras around Lake Isabel.