A Vast Ediface of Stone and Space

My family and I took a short, weekend trip to Yosemite this month to celebrate my dad's birthday and recharge our batteries. With all the craziness going on with school and work, it was much needed. There was no snow in the valley, and just a sprinkling in the higher elevations; which was bad for taking pictures, but good for hiking. So, I relaxed and decided to focus on the latter. It was nice to be able to drive up to Glacier Point and do some of the hikes we normally wouldn't be able to in the winter. The weather also kept the Tioga Pass open, so after a long day of hiking on Saturday, we decided to relax on Sunday and take the scenic route through the pass home. I've been yearning to go back ever since.

Inspiration Point at sunset


Hinking down from Inspiration Point, we noticed a full moon was rising behind El Capitan. I definitely wasn't in the right place at the right time, but I made it work the best I could (ala balancing my camera on a rock with my sweatshirt to steady it).

Half Dome as seen from Glacier Point

Near Olmstead Point in the Tioga Pass

"Yosemite Valley, to me, is always a sunrise, a glitter of green and golden wonder in a vast edifice of stone and space." --- Ansel Adams

Summer Road Trip Stop Three: Glacier National Park

Glacier was our final stop on this amazing road trip. Although most of the park was closed due to a heavy snow pack, we still managed to see some breathtaking scenery in the lower elevations. The east side of the park resembles the Alps with its glacial carved mountains, alpine lakes, and meadows scattered with wildflowers. The western side is equally beautiful with towering cedar forests, covered in mosses and lichens. Both sides of course had grizzly bears (we crossed paths with two!). You'll just have to take my work for it though, I was way too nervous to think about my camera.

Summer Road Trip Stop Two: Yellowstone National Park

Words cannot describe just how cool Yellowstone is, you have to see it with your own eyes. One minute you're driving through a grassy valley teeming with buffalo and elk, and the next you turn the corner to see a spectacular geyser basin bubbling and steaming with pools of the purest blues and brightest oranges. Unfortunately, we only had a few hours to spare while driving from the Grand Tetons to Glacier, so we only got to see a small chunk of the park, but I'm sure I'll be back again one day.

Don't mind him, he's just wandering on down the road, holding up traffic, without a care in the world.

This fellow, however, gave us quite a scare and came charging toward our car.

Summer Road Trip Stop One: Grand Teton National Park

My family and I went on an amazing road trip a few weeks ago which took us through Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier National Parks. Unfortunately, the heavy snowpack this winter cut our trip short and kept us from doing a lot of the hiking we planned on, but it was still wonderful to get away from home and see the incredibly beautiful scenery. Our first stop was the Grand Tetons, detailed below.

My attempt at recreating The Tetons and the Snake River by Ansel Adams.

I should be posting pictures from the rest of the trip over the next week so stay tuned!

A day with Marcus

Jamey