Not to be cliché. but the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” is really the most appropriate thing I can think of to sum up our time in Yosemite! So here are some photos, and the captions (longer than normal) should tell the story of our journey through one of the most spectacular national parks in the USA.
First of all, the trip from the Bay Area to Yosemite was ROUGH.This photo was taken when we took a 4-hour break in the shade. Yes, it was 103 degrees in the shade.
Sunny morning view as we made our way into Yosemite Valley. El Capitan, with its steep granite face, stands at more than 7,200 feet.
On the bike path through the Valley… with views of Half Dome behind. Beautiful!
Also in Valley, Dave pauses for a photo with Yosemite Falls cascading from the mountain behind.
Half Dome at dawn. We woke up at 4:00 a.m. so we could begin our climb out of the Valley before the sun baked us.
At Olmsted Point… we had climbed about 4,000 feet out of the Valley (which is itself at elevation 4,000 feet) by this time. That peak in the distance is Half Dome… just a different perspective!
The road wound past Tenaya Lake, nestled in the mountains, on our way up to Tuolumne Meadows.
A river running through the meadows at the top of the Sierra Nevada.
Finally we made it up to Tioga Pass! This is the higest pass in the Sierra Nevada mountanis (9,945 feet, 2900 meters), our highest altitude yet in the U.S., and our highest altitude since being in the Andes in South America.
One of the many vistas as we cruised down from the pass. Nice scenery and downhill: the perfect combination!
And as we descended out of the mountains, a lot changed around us. We came down to the dry side of the Sierra and headed to the desert of Nevada. More on that in the next post.
As an end note–and seemingly unrelated–I prepared this blog post today after receiving the news that the pastor of my hometown church (and still my parents’ church) passed away unexpectedly last night. Pastor Mike was only in his early 40s… father of four children. He was healthy and active–an unlikely candidate for the heart attack which so suddenly took his life.
He played such a meaningful role in the close-knit community of Abbeville, and I know that even in his death, many lives will be touched. I look with new light on the remainder of our journey… thankful to be living out a dream God gave us, reminded of the fleeting nature of life. I think about how important it is not to put our dreams on hold, thinking we will “get to that later” at a stage in our life when perhaps it is more “convenient.” We never know when our time will come! I know Brother Mike was living his life intentionally, doing what he loved, investing in people, serving God wholeheartedly. I am encouraged to live more purposefully, to take advantage of every opportunity, to share the love of Jesus more boldly–for none of us are promised another day.
This song keeps playing in my head, as in the midst of loss, I “take heart” because of what God has done on our behalf.
There is a light
It burns brighter than the sun
He steals the night
And casts no shadow
There is hope
Should oceans rise and mountains fall
He never fails
So take heart
Let His love lead us through the night
Hold on to hope
And take courage again
