Sunday we took the afternoon off and went to recon Yosemite for some later hiking, biking, and camping trips. It was a beautiful day and we were only gone 6 hours from door to Yosemite and back to door. Also, it only took 1/2 tank of gas. Yeah! Here are a few pictures from our first trip as a family of 4:
First real view of the valley, Half Dome, and Bridalveil Falls. It was breathtaking! You come upon this view just as you exit a tunnel. There are parking areas on both sides of the road but it's a wonder there aren't multiple accidents exiting the tunnel every day.
John & Joshua using the "man" sling.
Mama & Maria using the "girly" sling.
Picnicking in the back of the truck. We were all hungry by the time we stopped for the first view of Half Dome. We decided picnicking in the back of the truck was just as easy as continuing on to a picnic area so..... we pulled out the blankets and the cooler and all piled in the back (beagles and all). We had a nice lunch of string cheese, herb roasted turkey and cheese sandwiches, homemade herbal tea and fruit cups.Once we finished lunch we headed on down to the valley floor where we took these pictures. Since we were on a recon mission and afternoon outing we didn't identify each of the falls but they were beautiful. We look forward to getting back to Yosemite many times this year and exploring.
Here are the beagles excitedly, albeit erroneously, anticipating being let loose on the valley floor.
I believe this is Bridalveil Falls.
No idea which fall this is but it was beautiful
Again, no idea which fall this is but it was beautiful too.
The giant rock on the right is El Capitan and I'm not sure about the name of the fall on the left.
Each time I visit a national parks or other wilderness areas I am am reminded of the power and beauty of nature.
