Monday, January 02, 2012

Snow blast from the past

Back in 1990 (if memory serves), Ken and I went to Yosemite National Park, not for the first time, but it was the first time we spent the night in the park, I think. We went with our friends Cheryl and her husband John, and our friend Sue (Cheryl's cousin) and her kids. We rented three cabins at Yosemite Lodge and planned to spend an early spring weekend (it was March) in the park.

This is me walking through the virgin snow in Yosemite, camera in hand.

It was great getting there, getting settled into our cabins, and partying with food and wine the first night. We all got a little tipsy and retired for the night. We woke up the next morning to the most amazing surprise: well over two feet of snow! Sue and I immediately grabbed our cameras and went out to take pictures before the plows and people could make marks in the snow. It was incredible.

Sue took this photo of me as we wandered around the valley floor that morning. I think it's very cool, and have had it in a frame in the house since then. I don't remember if this path had been cleared or whether there wasn't that much snow under the trees, but I'm obviously not knee-deep in snow in the picture.

I remember that second night (I think) was the night of the Academy Awards broadcast. Cheryl was really looking forward to seeing it. The restaurant at the cabin village had advertised that they were going to show it on their big-screen t.v. But during the storm, the satellite dish had filled with snow and couldn't receive a signal. No Academy Awards.

Still, we had fun wandering around the park in the snow, seeing it like most of us had never seen it and are unlikely to see it again. Since then, those particular cabins have been torn down. I think there's a new lodge/hotel at that site now.

16 comments:

  1. Wow! Fab picture. We certainly don't get snow like that here!

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  2. That trip was in late March. I remember that the only shoes I had were sneakers (des baskets) and they were not at all insulated or waterproof. I couldn't really go walking in the snow.

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  3. Snow is wonderous stuff. It makes everything so beautiful to look at.

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  4. Great memory Walt... and you are lucky to have a shot of you... dwarfed by the landscape... gives a sense of the scale. And i agree with you, Susan, about the snow... there is a clean, crisp look to a landscape. And not to forget the silence... snow is a wonderful insulator and softens all sounds even where it cannot drown them in silence.

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  5. What a wonderful photo! I love snow--it makes the landscape magical.
    Lucky you to get to see Yosemite in 'winter dress'.

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  6. Sometimes I feel like ripping this house down and putting up a Day's Inn. Just what the world needs.
    Beautiful Photo!
    m.

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  7. What an amazing photo. Would love to have that blown up for display but then I'd feel the need to wear a hat and mittens in the house.

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  8. Good photo, Sue- it captures the grandeur of Yosemite. We once went to Yellowstone in the winter on snowmobiles and experienced something like you did. Those memories are keepers.

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  9. I've never been to Yosemite! What a great story and photo :)

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  10. Love snow when it's all pristine and undisturbed. Not so much love for it later in the day.

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  11. I do remember it well. I'm not a snow fan, but I do remember the beauty and quiet and making angels in the snow. Great memory!


    VW: zinedrof: the stupor you are in after drinking too much zin.

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  12. I love winter snow; I miss it. I appreciate your postings with snow in them.

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  13. That's a really lovely shot, even for someone who lives with New Hampshire's blizzards.

    Best wishes to you and Ken for a really great 2012!

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  14. We got to do the same thing last February. We ended up staying an extra day because it was so pretty and sooooo quiet.

    I don't know of a new lodge in Yosemite since 1990. There's the Ahwahnee, Yosemite Lodge, and Wawona. Maybe the cabins you stayed in were washed away in the flood of 1997. Those cabins, and the campsites that were washed away at the same time, were not replaced.

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  15. ladyjustine, and I think I'm thankful for that.

    susan, I agree. But I don't enjoy having to deal with it (removal, driving, etc.).

    tim, I do remember how amazingly quiet that morning was.

    n&a, very lucky. It certainly wasn't planned!

    mark, hehehe. As long as you get the housekeeping service that comes with it.

    mitch, it's a good memory. And the photo isn't big enough to make me shiver.

    evelyn, wow! They allow snowmobiles in the park?

    judy, if you're ever in California, it's worth a trip!

    starman, I'm with 'ya there.

    cheryl, too much zin? ;)

    michael, we haven't had a single flake so far this season. It's been so warm (relatively).

    will, thanks! And the same to you and Fritz.

    chris, you may be right about the flooding taking out some of the cabins. I didn't recognize the Yosemite Lodge when I saw it again in 2005 and I assumed they had built a new section. Maybe they just reconfigured the pathways and parking.

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  16. Hmmm, maybe the two-story sections of the Lodge are newer than 1990. Could be.

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