Yosemite 6/1--6/2/2023  [Back to Photo Page]

Yosemite National Park embraces a great tract of scenic wildlands set aside in 1890 to preserve a portion of the Sierra Nevada that stretches along California's eastern flank. Ranging from 2,000 feet to more than 13,000 feet, the park encompasses alpine wilderness, groves of giant sequoia trees, and Yosemite Valley, which may be the world's best known example of a glacier-carved canyon. The dramatic scale of its waterfalls, rounded domes, massive monoliths, and towering cliffs has inspired painters, poets, photographers, and millions of visitors.

Getting there ...

We decided to make a quick trip to Yosemite because during the full moon days in April/May/June, moonbow (rainbow illuminated by the moon) will appear around Yosemite Falls for certain periods of time if the conditions are right (clear sky, plenty of water mist, the moon is at the proper angle, and the sky is dark enough, etc.).  My previous moonbow experience was back in 2006 for Upper Yosemite Falls.  This time we will try to capture the moonbow at the Lower Yosemite Falls.  We started our journey at about noon (after my meetings and Woanyu's Zumba class), and got to the hotel to check in just before 4PM.

• Yosemite Valley
  After an early dinner, we drove into the Yosemite Valley after 6:30PM.  Due the heavy snow in the past winter and snowmelt from the warm summer days, Yosemite Valley has been flooded in the last few weeks.  It also created many beautiful reflection spots around the flooded meadows in the valley.
  

• Moonbow at Lower Yosemite Falls
  The foot bridge at the Lower Yosemite Falls trail was crowded with people (and tripods) when we got there at about 9PM.  It was so difficult to focus in the dark (auto focus will not work at all) and it's impossible to keep the lens clean because of the constant water spray during 10-20 seconds of exposure.  The moonbow phenomenon is getting famous and popular that people come to "see" it during full moon days in April to June.  But with naked eyes, you could only see a white bow instead of a colorful rainbow.  Yosemitemoonbow.com has very good Yosemite Moonbow info and prediction for months of April/May/June.

Day 2 ...

• Yosemite Valley
  I drove to the Yosemite Valley in the early morning to enjoy the early morning reflection around the valley.

Going Home ...

After a quick breakfast back in the hotel room, we started to drive back home at 8:30AM (since I had a meeting at 2PM).  It might sound crazy that we made another quick trip to Yosemite (for moonbow), but I was glad we did it and enjoyed the moments we had in such a beautiful place. 

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