Day Fourteen Yosemite Continued

We took our time in the cabin this morning enjoying coffee and breakfast before heading out to the Mariposa Grove of sequoia trees. We had all seen the sequoias in the Redwood Forest, but we weren’t prepared for the grandeur of this grove of trees.  We learned a lot of history about the trees, the park and the ecological significance of these trees. If you want more information, google the Mariposa Grove and you will see what we learned.  Many of the trees are 2,000-3,000 years old. One of the most interesting trees was the only dead sequoia still standing.  Normally, the dead trees will succumb to weather and fall. Sequoias use up to 100 gallons of water a day, yet they think this one drowned from too much water. 

 

While early settlers logged many of the sequoias, they found the tree to be almost useless except for pencils and fence posts. Today, they are protected and studied for their extreme longevity.  Who knows, they may find an answer to extend human longevity by studying these trees.  

 

 

Over thousands of years, forest fires have contributed to the health of the trees and the propagation, as the pinecones need the heat from the fire to germinate.  We saw many fire-scarred trees hundreds of feet tall.  The tallest being nearly 300 feet. 

 

In the midst of the grove, it felt like a cathedral as you could hear the wind whispering through the tree tops.  John Muir once said that “ no human hands could build a temple as splendid as Yosemite.”

 

We left the Grove about noon, grabbed some sandwiches at the market and headed for Glacier Point. We ate beside this lovely meadow.

 

                 

 

This climb to 7,000 feet gives the viewer a spectacular look at the Yosemite Valley below.  We saw 3 waterfalls, none with very much water flowing.

     

 

 

After a long day, we enjoyed dinner at the Narrow Gauge Inn, close to our cabin.