Yosemite (part 3)

Our last trip into Yosemite took us 22 miles up Tioga Pass Road to the trail-head for North Dome, supposedly a fairly strenuous 10 mile hike (with the requisite side trips).  As it turned out, the information was right.  Much of the hike was through beautiful woods with occasional glimpses of what was to come.  The start was a bit slippery as the snow was on the trail.

After a couple of miles we stopped for some water and a snack (Pop-Tarts).  

As we sat on a log to rest, I noticed a round marker embedded in a large rock by the trail.  We got up to read the marker which was a geological survey marker from 1905.  

As we looked back, the remainder of our Pop-Tart had fallen off of the log.  Or so we thought.

This little fellow had evidently had been waiting to make his move.  He seemed to enjoy his prize.

We took a detour at about 3.5 miles to see Indian Rock Arch, a thirty story climb in a short distance.  It was well worth the effort.

As we hiked on, we got occasional glimpses of what we thought was North Dome.  But we were wrong, and when we arrived at a huge outcropping of rock we could see that we had a long hike down and back up to actually get to our destination. 

 It took some scrambling down a granite wall (thankfully with two huge spikes in the rock in case you needed them) and then a final climb up the dome to get the views we wanted of Half-Dome.

Notice the backward lean I have.  It gave us a strange feeling to look through the camera near the edge.

Looking down to the valley.

And a few parting shots from this hike.

Our stay in this area of California was one of our best.  We have seen so many wonderful parks in our travels and each one was special.  But we both agreed that Yosemite was the most strikingly beautiful of all of them.

We've now landed in southern California for a couple of weeks before heading to Arizona for November.  It was sad to leave Yosemite with its clear cool air.  It hit 94 today and it's smoggy here in Menifee.  Quite a change.