With the Merced Crashing below us and the cliffs towering above us we continue up a paved trail.
About halfway to the bridge there is a nice view of Illilouette Falls. This, like most of the falls, will be just a trickle by mid-summer or dried up entirely.
After about .8mile we come to a bridge across the Merced where we can get a glimpse of Vernal Falls. Many folks stop here. At an elevation of about 5000' it is low enough to be quite hot in summer but high for those not used to the elevation.
Shortly after crossing the bridge we have a choice. We can go up the mist trail or we can take a longer but gentler trail. We're going to take the well named "Mist Trail". Here we encounter steps cut into the granite and we are beginning to see how it got its name. We start to encounter water running down the steps that has been blown from the thundering waterfall.
This is what I was looking for, the rainbow at the bottom of the fall. Beyond here the trail gets very steep. I can continue to the top or turn back here. I can make it but I am short and my joints are stiff. I don't want to have to come back down those steep, wet steps and it is getting too late to take the long route back down. We'll be back in the fall and hike to the top when we have more time and it is not so wet.
13 comments:
The rainbow in the falls is a great shot. The falls look very powerful in the spring. Looks like a wonderful hike.
All the photos are BEAUTIFUL and bring back memories of visiting this area with my father decades ago. The rainbow is icing on the cake!
Hugs and blessings,
What a fabulous photo series.
Absolutely beautiful Martha!!
Martha,these are special photos. What a fabulous hike. I can see why you love Yosemite so much.
That's an amazing hike, with rewards along the way, especially the rainbow.
Amazing photos and a great looking hike. I too, would not have enjoyed going down those steep steps! Did you find any pots of gold or leprechuauns?
I would love to se these lovely falls in person!
Now it's my turn to get nostalgic from your photos. Yosemite visits were part of my experience every time I managed to get back to the States while I was growing up. Every hike is a new experience, every vista worth a painting. Few people, however, seem to capture that phenomenon better than you have here--thanks for these. So I'll just pine away (no pun intended) for the rest of the day.
What a gorgeous place! The rainbow at the falls is a great pic.
Absolutely beautiful! And the rainbow scene is awesome.
Thanks for stopping by my site.
amazing waterfall!
I like this one, I love to hike too...and when reaching the top just to be able to see a hidden panorama which is more exciting.
Post a Comment