Independence to Yosemite and beyond.
Another gorgeous day for our ride over the mountains towards Yosemite. The views across from Impendence towards Mount Whitney had been astonishing all yesterday as we approached the town. I just knew the views at dawn would be astonishing and I was up early to get a picture of it; it was worth it. After a continental breakfast, which was included in the cost of the accommodation we made our way up the trail head road which leads up to Mount Whitney. Only a short ride but the views up into the actual cwms were superb. You just wanted to get out there and climb. It was another straight and wide road to Mono Lake but with views of the Sierra Nevada on our left all the way made the ride interesting. From Mono Lake we took the mountain road of Tioga Pass which leads into Tuolumne and down into the actual valley of Yosemite. On reaching Tuolumne we where at the base of the recent snow line and chilly again after having two days of warm weather below. I’d always remembered Tuolumne as being larger than we actually found it. Although the domes were magnificent they all seemed smaller than I recall. We saw a couple of climbers on one dome which soon brought the scale into perspective though. A gorgeous ride through the big red woods down into the actual valley was really enjoyable, but the amount of cars and bike on the road should have forewarned us that we were heading for a problem in the valley itself. As usual the entrance into Yosemite was spectacular ,there can’t be a valley with such a wonderful entrance. The ride below El Cap was just as incredible as it always is, but oh the amount of tourist in the park, it was packed! All the camp sites were completely full!
What a disappointment after looking forward to staying here for a day or two. There were spaces outside the park but once we visited them they were much too cold for us to spend another freezing night. Although late we decided to phone Doreen and Bill (my sister and her husband near Sacramento). It was dark by the time we got even half way there so arriving in Sacramento in the dark was an absolute nightmare. We finally manage to find the address after loads of telephone calls and missed turnings
We hope to return to Yosemite if we can arrange an overnight stay after which we will start a tour of the mountain roads around the Sierra Nevada and Reno.
Another gorgeous day for our ride over the mountains towards Yosemite. The views across from Impendence towards Mount Whitney had been astonishing all yesterday as we approached the town. I just knew the views at dawn would be astonishing and I was up early to get a picture of it; it was worth it. After a continental breakfast, which was included in the cost of the accommodation we made our way up the trail head road which leads up to Mount Whitney. Only a short ride but the views up into the actual cwms were superb. You just wanted to get out there and climb. It was another straight and wide road to Mono Lake but with views of the Sierra Nevada on our left all the way made the ride interesting. From Mono Lake we took the mountain road of Tioga Pass which leads into Tuolumne and down into the actual valley of Yosemite. On reaching Tuolumne we where at the base of the recent snow line and chilly again after having two days of warm weather below. I’d always remembered Tuolumne as being larger than we actually found it. Although the domes were magnificent they all seemed smaller than I recall. We saw a couple of climbers on one dome which soon brought the scale into perspective though. A gorgeous ride through the big red woods down into the actual valley was really enjoyable, but the amount of cars and bike on the road should have forewarned us that we were heading for a problem in the valley itself. As usual the entrance into Yosemite was spectacular ,there can’t be a valley with such a wonderful entrance. The ride below El Cap was just as incredible as it always is, but oh the amount of tourist in the park, it was packed! All the camp sites were completely full!
What a disappointment after looking forward to staying here for a day or two. There were spaces outside the park but once we visited them they were much too cold for us to spend another freezing night. Although late we decided to phone Doreen and Bill (my sister and her husband near Sacramento). It was dark by the time we got even half way there so arriving in Sacramento in the dark was an absolute nightmare. We finally manage to find the address after loads of telephone calls and missed turnings
We hope to return to Yosemite if we can arrange an overnight stay after which we will start a tour of the mountain roads around the Sierra Nevada and Reno.
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