The park was absolutely stunning. It was a bit of a challenge to enjoy as most of the roads were closed and the open ones were somewhat congested as some of the vehicles were not equipped for the snowy conditions. Despite that, there were still amazing views of the sheer cliffs on almost all sides, El Capitan and Half Dome and small waterfalls (they won’t swell until the melt). The closed roads, chaotic parking areas, and most of the trails being closed (several feet of snow) offset the benefit of going to the park in the off-season. The park was so great that I decided that I would like to visit it again, hopefully when I can spend a couple of days, camp, bring a mountain bike, and perhaps a friend or two.
Transit: There is a $20 admission fee to get into Yosemite, to get a seven day pass. I spoke with the ranger collecting the money and asked if the roads were all open – she said they were but there were chain restrictions in place on some of them. Well, perhaps she meant to say that all the roads they intended to open were open – many of the secondary roads were closed as well as Tioga Road – the road I meant to use to pass over the mountain range and into Nevada.
Unfortunately, the Sonora Pass was also closed, so I had to backtrack all the way to Angels Camp (this time I stopped at Twain’s Cabin) and then go North to Rte 88 to cut through. The mountain pass was in great condition, but I came across a snow/rock slide just as CHP and DOT did. The slide was pretty small, but big enough to block most of the Westbound lane so I was glad I got through when I did; after cars were slowing down, but before a traffic jam ensued.
Fallon, NV: I only stopped in Carson City long enough to get the oil changed in the beast, then put a few miles in the rear-view before full night set in. I didn’t elaborate on my dinner at the Model T Diner in Winnemucca, NV a couple weeks ago because it was remarkably unremarkable. But today, I felt like I should have remembered it because I had the exact same experience at Stockman’s in Fallon tonight. It is brightly lit, diner set-up, part of a casino with open air where the smell of smoke comes in easily, the menu is 24 hours, there is a single cashier, and it was recommended as the best meal in town by the hotel staff. I must admit, the food was tasty, albeit undermined by the ambiance.
I took the time after dinner to walk along route 50. Fallon is like a series of strip mall lined against each other with payday loans, discount stores, and lots of beat parking lots and a vacant Wal-Mart store smack dab on the strip. The town does have one thing pulling for it; it is the home of the US Navy’s TOPGUN School, since Miramar went to the Marines in 1996. Good thing Maverick met Charlie before they left romantic San Diego.
pics: a) yosemite falls; b) big ole trees; c) that snowman has gas!; d) stanislaus national forrest
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From the notepad:
Day Miles: 322; Trip Miles: 5,902
Fuel consumed 2/7: 15.997 gal
Fuel economy: 20.13 mpg (best on trip!?)
Year Abraham Lincoln originally set the land aside from development: 6/30/1864
Year John Muir, Robert Underwood Johnson successfully lobbied congress for further protection: 10/1/1890
Year Yosemite officially named as a united parcel: 1903
Year Yosemite Sam introduced by Warner Brothers: 1945
Estimated number of visitors to Yosemite 2006: 3.5M
Most popular baby name (male / female) ranks for 2006: Samuel = 25; Samantha = 10*
Number of ‘Yosemite Sam’ jokes to visit the park this year: 21,334**
Elevation (per Roadsign) at Carson Spur pass (Rte 88 in CA): 7,990 ft
*http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/ (thanks, lance)
**assume visitor statistics are unique visitors, 50/50 distribution male/female, 2006 names representative of all names for all living persons, other derivative ‘sam’ names not statistically relevant, all visitors are American, visitor population names normally distributed in accordance with name distribution and all other assumptions
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