Yosemite National Park

Before breakfast this morning Gavin and I went for a run to Mirror Lake - I found it very difficult running at this high altitude so on the way back Gavin went ahead and I was going to jog slowly back. However, the thought of bears lurking in the woods had me almost sprinting back! Bears are very common here, the rangers say they are harmless but they are the largest carnivores in these mountains so I was not convinced.... We had to remove every bit of food from the car, even empty water bottles as they have been known to break into cars at night if they smell or recognise food. Thankfully I did not encounter any bears!

After breakfast we hired bikes and set off to see El Capitan and Bridal Veil Falls. The bikes are very basic, they have no gears and no hand brakes, only the type of brake where you pedal backwards, so it was tough going at times. Oddly enough we found the signage in the park to be quite poor, and at times we got 'lost' or went a very long way around. When we got to El Capitan it is located opposite Cathedral Rocks and to be honest we did not know which mountain was which! There are no signs giving this information. Unfortunately in summer there is hardly any water in the park - Mirror Lake is no longer a lake but almost a meadow, and Bridal Veil Falls was not worth the strenuous hike as it was a mere whisp of water blowing over the cliff. The weather here is perfect, hot and sunny and yet all the wonderful trees give plenty of shade so one does not get too hot. However, we did get very hot on our long cycle as we covered 22 miles today ( 35km), and with my run and all the walking I have achieved 28600 steps on my fitbit, so I think I have earned my supper tonight!

Yosemite is exceptionally beautiful, and although it is very busy in the summer we did find trails which were very quiet where we hardly saw other people. We are not using the car to get around as at every four way junction there are long queues of traffic backed up, and the rangers are being kept busy managing the traffic. You do better to walk or cycle around here in the summer.

This is a view of Yosemite Falls with families enjoying the cool water of the river. There were people in steams everywhere, which I think is typical in summer. The extra shot is of Half Dome with some of the summer wild flowers in the meadow, and the other one is of some lovely light this morning.