When nearing the Valley, you drive through a rather long tunnel. When you emerge on the other side, Yosemite Valley is in full view in all its glory (Tunnel View). Jarrett and I both got chills when we saw it. The view is nothing less than stunning. You can see Bridal Veil Falls, Sentinel Rock, Glacier Point, and the infamous Half Dome, among many other faces of granite I cannot at the moment remember to name. Like the drive into Kings Canyon, it was almost too much, and on an even grander scale.
Our campsite is not quite as prime as I thought it might be when I frantically reserved it online in the 30-or-so seconds before they were all snatched up, but all in all, it is still a decent one. It turns out the two sites right across the street from us are probably the best here in the Upper Pines Campground, but I purposefully avoided those at the time because they are along Tenaya Creek. However, one of those two is really not too close to the water at all, and there is a lot of extra space Elsa could have used to run around in. So now we know which site to get when we make our way back here someday. As it is, we basically have what almost seems a communal campsite with two other sites. We have met everyone, though, and they all seem nice. They will probably have it the worst anyway with all of Elsa's whining and crying.
Which brings me to my latest concern, our dear Elsa. She felt really hot after her nap this afternoon, but at first we just thought it was because she napped in the back of the van and it was in the high 80s here today. Upon further review, though, it seems she has a fever. Jarrett is on his way now to the store to see if they have a better thermometer than the little flexible forehead one that is in our first aid kit. That one said she has a temperature of 102 degrees. She woke up very early this morning, and I ended up having to move down with her and get her back to sleep, so I wonder if something was beginning to bother her then. I think she might be getting her next set of molars, but it is difficult for me to really see inside the back of her mouth, and she wants to bite our fingers off if we try to stick them back there. I also feel like I have been suspecting teething for some time now, so who knows. She is not eating much, and she fell asleep quickly in my arms as I sang her goodnight songs, which is fairly rare these days. We have given her a fever reducer, and are hoping she feels better in the morning. There is a good medical facility here, if it comes to us needing to see a doctor, so that is good.
To say there are more people here than in Seki is a definite understatement. It is unbelievable how many people are really here. We rode the shuttle buses today to go into Yosemite Village, and it was difficult to find a bus with space, both coming and going. While in the Village, walked a fairly short distance up to the lower section of Yosemite Falls, the tallest waterfall in the United States. It is flowing very strong and beautiful right now. That is one benefit of all of the melting snow -- all of the waterfalls are amazing.
The good news is that the big hike we are planning to do is open -- the Four-Mile Trail (which is actually more like 4.6 miles in each direction). Assuming we think Elsa is up to it in the morning, we will begin bright and early. We will hike up to the top, ending at Glacier Point, where they sell ice cream. I have been looking forward to this hike for a long time (including the ice cream, of course) so I hope we are able to do it. Here is a view of Glacier Point.
And here is a view of Half Dome, which Jarrett has a permit to hike this coming Sunday, our last day in the park (because also in talking to the ranger, it is clear that Tuolumne Meadows is indeed flooded) and Father's Day. The cables are scheduled to go up tomorrow, and after talking to a ranger today, it seems most -- if not all -- of the remaining snow has melted off of the subdome, so it should be good to go.
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