CDTraveler

Yes, trees are pretty much everywhere.

But not everywhere will you find landslides, rockslides, people falling over waterfalls, floods, drownings, earthquakes, people falling off cliff faces, wild animals with attitude, hantavirus and the other assorted risks you find in national parks. Too many people equate "national park" with "amusement park". It's worth noting that even though Yosemite is somewhat (in)famous for bear problems, there aren't any officially recorded deaths associated with bears, but a person has been killed by a buck.

I love the national parks, I've visited many and camped in more than a few, but I am always disheartened by the way some people behave in them. Yes, you moron with a tripod, that bison will stomp you into the ground if you don't back off. and Bears can and will rip your car open if you leave the cooler in the backseat. are both things I have said to people in parks.

Very glad the OP had a good trip.

dhuey

I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw what a car looked like after a bear ripped it apart. We have always been extremely careful to avoid having even tiny bits of food left in our car when parked in Yosemite. In fact, we remove anything with a significant scent.

abmj-jr

Everything in the post above is correct. In regards to bears, the bears in Yosemite are all Black Bears, not the far more dangerous Grizzly Bear. The Black Bear is much less aggressive and, although he does have the ability to grate you like a piece of cheese, more likely to run away than attack a normally cautious human. The exception might be if the human attempts to protect or defend food which has been left unsecured. Once the bear has or thinks he has the food, he considers it "his" and will fight to protect it. I have had many back-country encounters with bears over the years with no real difficulties. You just have to take appropriate precautions.

During my years as a seasonal back-country ranger, I had occasion to interact with many hikers and found that most understood the simple precautions. It is the "front country" visitors who drive up for a day who tend to get into trouble.

Unfortunately, as the previous poster mentioned, many casual park visitors just don't pay attention to warnings or take the necessary precautions.

dhuey

I've heard from rangers that the most important precaution to take with black bears is to avoid coming between a mother and her cubs. Don't get anywhere near those cubs.

abmj-jr

Pretty universally good advice for dealing with any wild critters.

allset2travel

Boxo,
Thanks for the great photos from Yosemite. The falls are in full blast due to all that snow of late.
Stay safe!

CDTraveler

For a while, ~12 years ago, there was a bear in the valley who was supposedly very fond of Crest. Must have had the cleanest teeth in the park.

Phil Frank for years drew a wonderful comic stripe, Farley, and it often dealt with Yosemite and the bears. Look at http://www.farleycomicstrip.com/thef...favorites.html for a few favorites. At one point there was a sign in Yosemite drawn by Frank, near the mangled wreckage of a small car, showing a car labeled "Tin" and a bear's claws labeled "Tin Opener". I didn't see it last time I was in the park, but it did a great job of getting the message across.

boxo

The woman who died was a 20 year old contract employee from Ceres. The tree fell on her tent cabin around 10 am yesterday. http://www.kcra.com/article/tree-fal...l-park/9094449

boxo

Thank you. I'm in Sacramento now. Safe? I hope so.

boxo

Here's a recap of my 57 hours inside Yosemite last weekend.

My dad and I decided to cut our trip down from 4 days to 3 since I snoozed on booking a more affordable rate for the Thursday or Monday on either side of the weekend. In the end, we added a three night stay (with the help of hotel points) to Sacramento for the $200+ we would have spent for one extra night in Yosemite.

THURSDAY
We arrived into Merced 7:20 on the Amtrak San Joaquin. No problem getting Uber to Mi Casa Cafe, a solid family-run Mexican restaurant (closes 8 pm) recommended by a FTer. I had a salad, my dad had chile rellenos, and we took a $9 chile verde burrito to go to take to Yosemite. Next door was the Motel 6 I booked for $35 all in using my TMobile Tuesdays $30 off coupon. It was a perfectly fine place to sleep. Our room was near the front of the hotel. Didn't see anything shady or feel unsafe. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaura...alifornia.html

FRIDAY
I was on pins and needles waiting for an Uber car to show available on the app in time to get back to the Amtrak station for the 7:10 am YARTS bus. Nothing, nothing, nothing, then finally one car popped up and we got to the pick-up point with 5-10 minutes to spare. FYI, there's a lot of freight train activity around Merced, and at the station, early in the morning. Fun to watch and listen, if you like that sort of thing.

In total there were 15-20 passengers on the bus, but only a handful+ of us went the distance all the way to the park. Fares are $13 adults / $9 seniors, payable by cash, credit or debit with the driver. I chose not to pre-book our inbound YARTS tickets with our Amtrak tickets in case we overslept and didn't make the 7:10 am bus. Nice, smooth motorcoach ride... at least that was the case the few times I was awake. http://yarts.com/

We arrived on time 9:30 am at Half Dome Village (shuttle stop 13b). Off-season, they're open only Friday and Saturday nights. Since they had no Thursday night guests, the office doesn't open till 12 noon. I found an employee to ask if we took the shuttle to one of the other lodges, would they hold our bags for a few hours? Luckily, a manager was nearby and he called someone in the office to meet us at the side door to drop our stuff. Lovely sparse crowd in the park and on the shuttle buses. A sunny blue skies day.

As the sun set, my dad and I walked from Lower Falls (shuttle stop 6) to the Yosemite Valley Lodge (shuttle stop 8) to check out the food court. We weren't all that impressed with what they had on offer, but shared half a $10 chef's salad and took the rest to go. I had a cup of self-serve coffee since it was Peet's Major Dickison's and not gross brown water like at the Grand Canyon. We signed up for the one-hour $10 pp Starry Night Skies walking tour. Once in our room, we cut into the very delicious chile verde burrito (which actually lasted us three days it was so big).

At 8:30 pm, we were out at Cook's Meadow for the Starry Night Skies tour. Unfortunately, a high school? school group was added to the normally max 35 participants. Guide Zachary was great, knowledgeable, enthusiastic, but the larger group size IMO diminished our ability to hear everything said. If you're into astronomy, or are nervous about walking into the middle of darkness alone, do it. For us, it is a 'no regrets, but a been there, done that, don't need to do it again" experience. http://www.travelyosemite.com/things...ning-programs/

At check-in, I was told we were "upgraded" from Stoneman's Cottage to one of the cabins (actually two units in one structure). I have my doubts if that really was an upgrade, but we had a roof over our heads, a heater, a bathroom, and it was comfortable. http://www.travelyosemite.com/lodgin...-dome-village/

SATURDAY
I got my dad packed up and ready to meet the 6:45 am carpooler to the snowshoe hike meeting point. I lolled in bed a while because traveling with my dad is a full time job and I am always glad for any moments of mental and physical rest. Once up and at 'em, I took the shuttle to the Mirror Lake trail. I got 3/4 of the way up there, but had to turn back because the road inclined enough I knew I could get up, but not back down. FYI, for people like me with mobility issues, there are no benches on the trail to rest. I thought I could have a few minutes rest in the restroom, but it is a non-flush outhouse toilet. I couldn't wait to get out of there. From there, I took the shuttle to Cook's Meadow again to see where it was exactly we'd been in the dark the night before, then to the food court for a late lunch. When I stepped off the shuttle, an entire asian tour group filed into the food court, so I went to the Mountain Room Bar instead and spent too much ($14+) for the vegetarian southwest salad. Tasty, overpriced, but free wifi access. Ask your server for the password.

My dad returned from his first and only snowshoe hike 4:30-ish. He was disappointed he'd only lasted an hour before dropping out. He felt the pace was much faster than it should have been because the guide was afraid they'd be caught in the impending storm. My dad is 73 years old, but he's a former marathon runner who runs everyday. He's not a couch potato, and the hike to Dewey Point is supposed to be 'no experience required'. He felt some comfort knowing he wasn't the first guy to drop out, so there's that. https://www.yosemiteconservancy.org/outdoor-adventures

We had a decent pizza at Half Dome Village Pizza for dinner that night. The Pavillions restaurant is closed off-season, and we didn't feel like hopping on the bus for the YVL food court again. Free wifi for Half Dome Village guests in the restaurant and the lounge areas. Just enter your room number and last name. Same goes at the YVL, if you're a YVL guest.

SUNDAY
We woke at 6 am, peered through the windows to find it snowing, and everything covered in inches of magical snow. We made it to the front desk at 11 am for check-out. Again, we asked if they'd hold our bags till 5:30 because we were on the 5:45 YARTS bus back to Merced. No, they couldn't. Half Dome Village, and that side of the park, was in the process of being evacuated due to expected high winds. Even if there hadn't been a storm (or a tragedy), off-season, Half Dome Village doesn't accept Sunday night reservations and therefore the office closes at Sunday noon. They advised we could leave our bags at YVL and pick up our bus at 6 pm there. Later, we learned the woman was killed in her tent by the fallen tree about an hour before we checked out. In hindsight, I don't remember hearing any big cracks or thud, hearing or seeing sirens.

It was my dad's decision to have the YVL Mountain Room Restaurant Sunday Brunch. Maybe better worth it if you go earlier? We went just before 12 noon (closes at 1 pm) and some of the dishes, like the chicken and the pancakes, were a little dried out. Neither of us went for a second helping of any specific item. Worth $28+, I don't think so, but no regrets for trying it. The dining room was half filled, maybe due to everyone bugging out before the storm. Surprisingly, there were several families with school age or younger children there. http://www.travelyosemite.com/lodgin...-valley-lodge/

We made it to the Majestic/Awahnee Hotel for their free 2 pm hotel tour. The guide was the same Zachary who led the Starry Night tour. He's either a human encyclopedia, or really good at memorization. I thought the tour was very interesting, especially the architectural history part. Well worth the hour, and free no-password-required wifi throughout the lobby. The common areas are so vast, I believe many people BYOFood picnicking, playing board games, using laptops, etc may not have been actual Majestic guests. http://www.travelyosemite.com/things...ture-programs/

To get there from YVL, we took the first bus that came along, the Majestic shuttle, a smaller loop which hits every stop on the lateral line between YVL and the Majestic/Awahnee. The Yosemite Valley Loop shuttles cover every shuttle stop in the park. https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvis...leyshuttle.pdf

On our way back to YVL, we stopped at the Visitor's Center, the Ansel Adams Gallery, and the Yosemite Museum. I thought the Ansel Adams Gallery was going to be a museum, but in reality it's more like a gift shop. At the very small Yosemite Museum, I met and took a photo with Park Ranger Shelton Johnson who I'd seen in a few NPS youtube videos while researching for this trip. https://www.youtube.com/user/yosemit...nalpark/videos

At 5:30, we were back at YVL to pick up our bags, use the restroom, fill our water bottles, and YARTS pulled up right at 6 pm. Despite chain controls in place for the first 20 miles, we made it to Amtrak Merced pretty much on time. The last hour+, my dad and I were the only passengers (out of a dozen?) left on the bus. By coincidence, our driver Bob, spent his childhood and high school years in Monterey, so we had lots to chat about. I pre-booked the return YARTS bus on the Amtrak website in conjunction with our San Joaquin tickets to Sacramento in case the storm turned out to be greater than expected, we missed our connection, and I was still outside of TMobile coverage to re-book us before train departure time, nullifying our tickets.

Lastly, the few times I checked at random times and points, I never had TMobile service once while in Yosemite Valley. But I did see people, even in more remote spots like the Mirror Lake Trail bus stop, using their phones without issues. And I can't say if my dad's Verizon phone worked out there because he forgot it at home.

Being a Monterey County resident, where it does not snow, I was unsure if visiting Yosemite in winter was a good idea. What drove my decision to do this before mid-March was lodging rates rise from then till December. I am so glad we did it. Snowfall is magical.

Thank you to everyone who answered my questions prepping for this trip. ^

CDTraveler

Very nice trip report, thanks for sharing.

One crucial question: did you see any animals? Yosemite has some of the boldest squirrels on Planet Earth and even in winter they accost the visitors for a "tourist tax", i.e. all the snacks you will give them.

Still trying to figure out the Sacramento piece...

How did the guide handle those who needed to drop out? How long was the trip supposed to be?

They're called "homeschoolers". I should know.

There are only two places I've ever gotten frostbite in my many adventures. Yosemite and Pebble Beach, because once in a long while it does snow in Monterey County!

boxo

We saw a few animals here and there - mule deer, always from the shuttle bus; boring old brown squirrels; and fat fluffy (beautiful, really) gray squirrels. None had any interest in the humans.

There was a mountain lion warning flyer taped on the Happy Isles trail bathrooms. Of course, after reading that, on day one, every fallen tree branch or tree stump out of the corner of my eye looked like a very large cat.

My original plan for this trip was 3 nights/4 days in Yosemite. Since I screwed up by waiting too long to decide whether to add Thursday night or Monday night, the rates for Yosemite Valley Lodge went up. Remember, Half Dome/Curry Village this time of year is only open Friday and Saturday nights. I didn't want to spend $200 for a single extra night of lodging.

My dad was interested in the Japanese ceramics exhibits at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento and we planned to go at some point before it ends in May. Since we were going to be halfway there, I booked us on Amtrak to SAC. With the help of some hotel points, we were able to stay for three nights. Downtown Sacramento hotel rates were outrageous (Embassy Suites was $899+ for Monday) or sold out. I spent 10k IHG points + $76 for one night at Holiday Inn Downtown, then 2 x 10k for two nights at Residence Inn Cal Expo... vs one extra $200 night at Yosemite.

I don't know what the other snowshoe hike dropouts did, but my dad plopped down for a rest, eventually headed back down to the (Badger Pass) ski lodge, and had a nice nap in the sun. I believe it was supposed to be an 8 hour day. That may have included the time prepping everyone (fitting people who didn't bring their own equipment) at the start point. He enjoyed his time on the drive with the person who volunteered to carpool him to/from the start point, so it wasn't so bad.

What year did you get frostbite in MoCo?

CDTraveler

The grey squirrels are the natives. Usually they are quite determined in their requests for food. While camping in the park I've lost more food to sneaky squirrels than bears.

I've only seen 3 mountain lions in California (in the wild). I'd consider it a blessing to see one in Yosemite.

Detouring to see a good ceramics exhibit makes perfect sense to me. I collect Chinese pottery.

January 1974, watching the Crosby. My golf spikes were NOT waterproof!

Doc Savage

Hey boxo...

I've been thinking about chile rellenos all afternoon!

boxo

A MEL FT friend flew into MRY this weekend for the first time. Unfortunately, a really really bad cold snuck up on me and I've slept a majority of the last 96+ hours. I hope I didn't uncontrollably cough my cooties on him. I wish chile rellenos sounded the least bit appealing. (reaches for the NyQuil tabs)

On topic, I wished I could have seen some frazil ice while in Yosemite. https://youtu.be/9V9p4mFEYXc