Yosemite National Park
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Mist Trail to Nevada Fall Yosemite National Park |
June 19, 2022
When I first ascended Half Dome in 1961, I promised myself to get some friends to
help my geriatric body back up to Nevada Fall some fifty-one years later, on my
70th birthday. (Back then, age-70 was perceived
as old.) When that milestone proved a non-issue, the event was rescheduled
for Birthday #80, which is today!
Seven hiker friends from various locales near and far have volunteered to assist me in my quest. Doubtless we will be easily the oldest group on the Mist Trail.
Brenda, Paul, Cindy, Eileen, Dave, Gary and Sharon are ready
Approaching the trailhead
The Merced River will be the main attraction today
Yet another admonishment not to feed the beloved bears
In fact, any bear that becomes 'too friendly' has to be put down for safety reasons. Feeding one effectively kills it.
The world's most scenic hiking trail begins right here
I observe that the "S" from "VERNAL FALLS" has been blocked out on the signpost, and that sets my brain spinning. When and why did they do that? (See Addendum)
The first three-quarters of a mile are on asphalt
Gary, Brenda, Paul, Dave, Sharon
Cindy and Eileen are my tent-cabin roommates. What a deal
At the Vernal Fall Bridge are drinking fountains, potties, and almost a view of
the falls
This is why I go hiking
Pretty well-stocked for a trail stop
Paul speaks with David, a "preemptive" Search & Rescue volunteer
I wonder whether David admonishes the morons who are planning an assault of the upcoming
series of 700 wet granite steps wearing flip-flops.
The Mist Trail begins
Dave lets a bunch of hikers pass through
The encroaching spray from the falls means that it is time for the ritual stashing of my best camera in a protective bag. A waterproof unit will take over for a while.
This is exciting
Brenda resists any impulse to feed the panhandler
Because this is another 'drought year', the streamflow is less than half of historical
norms. One upshot of this, however, is that the spray from the falls is hardly
an issue at all. In fact, I don't see anyone wearing one of those full-length
yellow ponchos that can be rented at Camp Curry. This is sad in a way, but it
does enable a better-than-usual view of what just happens to be my most favorite
place in all the world.
It usually is quite breezy and cold in that tunnel, but not today
Beyond the spray now, I am able to unwrap my other camera just in time for the quintessential photo.
Vernal Fall, 317'
My 'rainbow' shots aren't working out well today
I had forewarned the group about the 'dreaded' wet stone steps, but I hadn't bothered to mention that the steepest part of the trail was yet ahead.
This section features the biggest steps on the route
Brenda marvels at the five-year-olds scampering right up
Paul and I take a breather
The final traverse across the cliff-side is but a formality for Dave
Success! It's time for a snack on the Dry-Out Slab
At the brink
The throngs are teeming on the Mist Trail, but something is amiss (see Addendum)
Paul and Sarah from Grand Rapids, Michigan, are in this region for the first time
Sarah's T-shirt entreats us to help the "Chubby Unicorns" — that is, the rhinoceri! In fact, the Indian version of the animal, having but one horn, carries the latin name, "Rhinoceros unicornis".
Western Azalea — the only flower type I have seen today
The signpost says not to swim in Emerald Pool
This early in the season, venturing into the water could indeed prove fatal, and has done so many times. Apparently, it is easy to underestimate the deceptive power of the current. What is quite strange, though, is that the explicit warning sign at the brink itself has been removed.
The group steels itself for Phase II
Ten minutes up the trail, we get a glimpse of the next attraction.
Looking upstream at Nevada Fall
Looking downstream along the Silver Apron
It is reported that those who have tried their luck on that inviting waterslide found their experiences to be less than rewarding.
Hanging out while I scramble for the best photo-op
Below is one of the scenes that grace my living room walls; however, my 2008 photo lacked that angled tree in the foreground.
Nevada Fall, 577'
The park brochure still lists the height of the falls as 594 feet, the measurement
made back in 1913. A competent modern estimate, however, has lopped
17 feet off the height; yet it seems to be standard practice for the Park
Service to tend to ignore modern updates to various measurements.
Starting up the 650 feet of switchbacks
This guy has sprained his ankle
Perhaps even worse, the man believes that the best option is to crawl and slide
back more than two miles, being loath to request help because, in his words,
"If I call 9-1-1, it will take them 5½ hours to get here". At the rate he
is going, it will take ten times that long; and as Brenda suggests, he will need a giant
bandage for his butt.
Interesting formation
Mountain Pride
The switchbacks take us to a junction with the Half Dome Trail, somewhat above the falls. The climbing is finished! From here, a short traverse gets us over to the good stuff.
The popular rest area at the brink of the falls
The best action, however, is at the unsigned fenced lookout area, where one can peer 594 577 feet straight down the thunderous cataract.
This also is why I go hiking
Where else can one do this? And this rainbow isn't too bad, either.
Gary at the brink overlook
Cindy and Eileen are delighted to be here
Looking over the brink toward Glacier Point
Four of us are ready to move on, but...
Half the gang still is busy snacking over there —
and they're not in any rush, either
The brink of Nevada Fall
The Merced River above the falls is quite lovely as well
Finally, the others finish their lunch, and we are ready for Phase III of the journey. Having inexplicably packed only a single water bottle, I fill it up here from a trailside runoff, which is cold and delicious.
Starting down the John Muir Trail
The walls are dripping
In past times one could expect to run a hundred-foot gauntlet of water shooting off the rock wall here, but not today.
Half Dome, Liberty Cap, and the falls
I climbed Liberty Cap (yes, I did) on
Hike #343, and on a day-trip from home at that.
Such a feat seems so potentially non-doable for me five years later.
This butterfly ran afoul of a spiderweb
Just past the trail water hazard is a great cliffside garden, special to me because these are essentially the only flowers to be found on the entire route. Although the other guys already are well ahead of me, it doesn't matter; for the group photographer must take whatever time is needed.
Crimson Columbine
Pearly Everlasting
Royal Penstemon
Miners Lettuce, I believe
The uniquely colored Pacific Stonecrop are perhaps the cutest flowers anywhere
The scene keeps changing, slightly
Close-up of the brink overlook, which I hope to visit again
Upper Yosemite Falls is barely visible in the distance
I finally catch up with the others, briefly. Everyone seems anxious not to tarry further.
Bypassing the spur route back to Vernal Fall
Despite my entreaty that a retracement of the Mist Trail is the fastest route,
nobody is interested in dealing with "all those stone steps". Not wanting to
break up the group, I will forgo a visit to my #1 favorite photo-op,
Clark Point.
Starting the big plunge
The virtually non-stop switchbacks, paved at one time, seem like a chore
Nearing the end
Dave prepares the celebratory margaritas at the cabins
§: Well, that was a wonderful outing! For me, though, the best part
was that everyone was up to the challenge; that has made my special quest all the
more rewarding. I must admit also that despite some minor apprehensions of
the upcoming rigors of the walk, for me it proved to be "just another day at the
office". It seems that I still have some mileage remaining.
A question that already has been asked is, "What will you plan for the group on
Birthday #90?" One option would be to return here and redo the Panorama
Trail from Glacier Point, thereby avoiding virtually all of the uphill grind.
One guarantee is that I never again will opt for that extra mile of hot, dusty,
non-scenic switchbacks on the John Muir Trail; I will take the Clark Point Spur
and revel in a retracement of the incomparable beauty and thrills of the Mist Trail.
| Scenery |  |
| Difficulty |  |
| Personality | |
| Flowers |  |
ADDENDUM
What was missing from the Mist Trail was the old tree that died several decades ago. Compare today's route with this 2017 scene:
And this one from 2008:
That tree was important to me, because now my late wife's ashes have no home
Also, compare a couple of other scenes from the high-water times of 2017:
Sublime, but I much prefer today's rendition of Nevada Fall
Zoom in on this overview of our lunch spot, shot from the top of
Liberty Cap ⇔
Finally, an overview of the entire venue, as seen from Washburn Point:
ABOUT THE SIGNPOST
Most historical placename choices of "Fall" or "Falls" derived from traditional local usage. Research after this hike, however, suggests that, at least in Yosemite's more prominent features, park officials have long opted for a more physically meaningful standard.
Although I can find no online information on the topic, I have concluded that the name "Fall" now applies only to those cataracts featuring sheer drops, and "Falls" is allocated to those with multiple sections. So now Vernal, Nevada, Bridalveil, and Ribbon qualify as "Fall", whereas Yosemite, Sentinel, Staircase, Wapama, and Chilnualna are categorized as "Falls".
This protocol makes perfect sense, but what is not clear is why it took me until now
to notice it. Shame. Moreover, it has taken me an entire evening to track down
and modernize numerous non-conforming web pages.
