Yosemite: On Top of Glacier Point

(Continued from Yosemite: Wawona Hotel)

Featured Photo: “Portrait with Half Dome from Glacier Point” Yosemite National Park, California—2023

You may recall, from one of my earlier posts, that back when I was planning the itinerary for our trip to Yosemite, I came across a travel blog site with a post describing “17 Breathtaking Things to Do”. Within that post, there was one photograph in particular—an amazing image taken at Glacier Point…

…that instantly had me thinking, “I would love to recreate that picture!” Because it was claimed the overlook was “world-renowned”, and since I was intrigued by the possibility of reenacting that “breathtaking” photo, my sister and I were en route to Glacier Point, having finished our memorable lunch at the Wawona Hotel.

The drive took about an hour, and along the way, there were several scenic overlooks, but—anticipating what was in store for us at Glacier Point—I only stopped once to take a picture…

…which provided a far-away glimpse of what we would see later. It wasn’t until we reached a hairpin curve along Glacier Point Road, however, that we had our breath taken away, astonished by the nearness of Half Dome. I was well into the turn—awe-struck by the view—before I thought to stop the car and get a photo; by then, there didn’t seem to be a safe place to pull over. So, to augment my story, I found a beautiful image online that gives a sense of the panorama. I wish I’d taken the photograph below, but for now, it will remain another of those snapshots I’d like to recreate, someday.

When my sister and I reached the parking lot at Glacier Point and started walking toward the throng of visitors taking in the view, we discovered three things about that other photo—the “breathtaking” image from the localadventurer.com blog site—which I hoped to reprise.

First, and most obviously, the photograph one gets is totally dependent on the prevailing conditions when one happens to be there—the season of the year, the time of day, the angle of the sun, the color of the sky, the presence or absence of clouds and crowds. I would experience the impact of these factors—especially the effect of light—on the photographer’s end product, time and again throughout our visit to Yosemite.

Second, and most surprisingly, the “posing rock”—on which the photo’s subject stands—is not some amazing zenith; it is not situated terrifyingly close to the edge of the abyss; and it does not require a death-defying act to reach the pinnacle. In fact, the rock is only about 10-15 feet high, and safely located on a patch of flat ground, approximately 20 feet behind the low retaining wall at the edge of the viewing area. Also, the rock is not just a short jump away from Half Dome; rather, this is merely the optical illusion caused by tele-photo/zoom lens compression, making it appear that the subject standing on the rock is tantalizingly close to Half Dome (which is actually quite a distance away). All these discoveries allayed my fear of scaling the rock to have my photo taken.

But third, and perhaps most significantly, we learned that the “posing rock” was a very popular place for a photograph; there must have been 10 or 15 people in line, each waiting patiently for their opportunity to climb the rock and get their picture taken. It was this discovery that ultimately kept me from fulfilling my dream of pretending to be an intrepid Yosemite explorer, posing triumphantly atop that “perilous” rock.

Neither my sister nor I was willing to wait our turn for that perfect photo, so we moved away from the other sightseers and followed our own path along the viewing wall, enjoying the grand vistas as we walked…

…seeing the famous Half Dome, first from a side-on view…

…then, from other angles and locations, with different scenery framing it.

There were other domes and waterfalls to see…

…but I kept returning to the commanding presence of Half Dome, taking a close-up…

…and then, zooming out to a wider view, showing the Yosemite Valley spreading out between the walls of the granite cliffs.

By this time, we had walked all the way to a precipice—but safely situated behind a guard rail—which had been fashioned so visitors could look down upon the Yosemite Valley below. I turned away from Half Dome to gaze in the opposite direction and overheard someone near me remark that the view of the waterfall was nice. So, I looked where they were looking and quickly snapped a photo…

…barely able to discern the thin trickle of water flowing over the fall; an afternoon haze seemed to have settled over the valley. I zoomed out again for a wider view of the valley floor, capturing the shadow of the granite on which we stood, along with the far-away visitors’ lodgings at Curry Village and the Ahwahnee—Yosemite’s historic, upscale hotel, and our destination for dinner on Monday evening.

I mentioned the anticipated meal to my sister, and the glowing reviews I had read about the food, the service, the décor, and the stunning views from the floor-to-ceiling windows in the Ahwahnee dining room. The park visitor who had pointed out the waterfall, now overheard our conversation. She was an older woman—somewhere around my sister’s age—standing alone but nearby, and she politely interrupted, “It’s not as good now as it has been.” We looked at her with curiosity and she continued, “The Ahwahnee is undergoing renovations right now, and the restaurant is not even using their own kitchen to prepare the food. They’re catering it in and offering a buffet, instead of their normal menu. The food’s not bad—perhaps a bit dry—it’s just not up to their usual high standards.” My sister thanked her for the information; I tried to dismiss her comments, hoping she had not been there recently to dine, or perhaps was just wrong. But her words would return to us when my sister and I stood looking at the dinner menu posted in the Ahwahnee hotel lobby a few days later.

As we walked back toward the parking lot, I paused to take another photo…

…and noticed the spot was isolated, with no other tourists around, and seemed promising for an “almost-breathtaking” photo at Glacier Point. It offered my very own “posing rock”, only three feet high and at least five feet away from a drop-off, with a great view of Half Dome in the background. I called my sister over to take my photo, then carefully stepped onto the rock—staying low and kneeling somewhat unsteadily—as it felt safer and more comfortable than standing for the picture. I have to give my sister credit for capturing a great image—today’s Featured Photo—that conveys some sense of danger, even though there really wasn’t any.

We got back on the road, driving another hour, first retracing our route along Glacier Point Road, then heading north toward the Wawona Tunnel. As we emerged from the tunnel, the scenic valley we had viewed earlier in the day unfolded before us. We pulled into the same parking lot, recalling the image I had photographed in the morning…

…and crossed the road to witness the panorama in the golden sunlight of the afternoon. As expected, the earlier, gentle mist that floated just above the valley floor was long gone, but we were surprised to see it had been replaced by billowing white smoke.

We realized that what we had seen from Glacier Point, when we looked down into the valley, had not been haze at all. Now, as we gazed out from Tunnel View, we saw the smoke rising high into the sky from a fire beside El Capitan, obscuring much of the Yosemite Valley. And now, Half Dome—which I had photographed just an hour before from Glacier Point—was completely hidden in the distance.

(To be continued…)