Yosemite Valley Floor Tour

We got on a flatbed truck (my term, they call it a tram) and saw the sights from the valley floor and learned from a park ranger a little about the geology and history of YNP. As we were preparing to load, an older gentleman asked the kids how they liked Yosemite. They told him they loved it. He gave them each a dollar coin and they smiled big. Papa (my Dad) gives them dollar coins a lot, so they knew exactly what it was. We took their picture with the man and I got his email address and promised I'd send him the picture. People are nice.

One of the stops was a restroom break, but there was only one hole (literally, a hole in the ground with a toilet placed over it, for the ladies' convenience, I suppose). The ranger said that because of how many people there were in our group, the girls could stay in line, but the boys would have to go elsewhere. So, Bill and Mitch peed behind a tree in Yosemite. I'm pretty sure she shouldn't have allowed that. Anyway, on their way back from the woods, Mitch was carrying a huge pine cone. Well, the girls would not be outdone, so they went and found big cones, too.

The ranger pointed out climbers as we passed several points along the way. They looked like tiny specks on El Capitan. The average climber takes 3-5 days to scale its face. They sleep on the ropes, they eat, pee, and poop up there suspended. They also have to pack in all the gear they'll need (150lbs worth, typically) and pack out all of that plus whatever wastes (biological and otherwise) that create during their climb. She said climbing is one of the safest activities to do in Yosemite - they only lose 1-3 per year. They lose far more to accidents on the roads, water incidents, and other random accidents. And, anyone can climb at any time - no permit is required, and no demonstration of skill or ability is required. I'm surprised they don't at least make people check in and give their intended location and length of stay. The last picture below, of El Capitan, has several tiny climbers and a red cot platform near 2/3 of the way to the top where someone will sleep. She said the climbers were easier to spot at night, when they have their headlamps on.

The kids impressed the ranger with their questions, so after the tour, she made them junior rangers. :)