It’s been raining for over a month now,so i thought some shots of some other place might be in order. This is El Capitan. A huge granitic monolith in Yosemite.Well known all over the world as one of the best climbs! At night I could see the faint lights of the climbers in their tents. They bivouac on the cliffs face. Better them than me I say!
Half Dome is a solid mass of very hard granite! It was sheared in half by the last glaciation more than 2 to 3 thousand years ago! This area has had at least three major glacial events.
When I went to Yosemite,I took along my neoprene chestwaders! I put them on so as to be able to take some shots while standing in the freezing water of the Merced river! ( a different perspective?)
Because I had them on,I was able to cross the river & wander about. In that little adventure I found this great spot! The reflection was fantastic! I came back to this spot for several days at different times of the day to see how the light played?
I’m in a “Yosemite” moment,so I’ll be posting a few more. Couldn’t get out today! Too much cloud & the wind was up! It also was very cold,so I’m kind of glad I couldn’t go out. I have no windshield on my boat,so I get the full force of the cold wind!
El Capitan is a very large mass of vertical granite! It is known as one of the premier climbing spots of the world!
During a days shoot down in the valley,I would glass the wall to see who was climbing? The thing I thought was interesting was seeing all the lights in the tents at night! They bivouac on the cliff. Basically a hammock. They anchor themselves to the face & live in their tents.
(I wonder what they do for a “nature call”?)
Those guys are very brave in my book! I wouldn’t have the guts to do it myself!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Capitan
I originally shot this in 09. I’ve been there twice and could easily live there for a winter! It evokes it’s own unique feeling to everyone that gazes upon it’s magnificent natural wonders!
If you’ve never been there,think of a very large rock quarry! (7 miles by 1 mile…..roughly)
Yosemite has very steep granite walls. The bottom of the valley is not flooded like a quarry,but it does has the Merced river running through the valley floor.
In this pano,the Merced river is in the foreground ,with the world famous climbing wall “EL Capitan” in the background.
I wanted to get close to the water so I wore a pair of neoprene chestwaders with wading boots. The wading boots have a layer of thick felt fabric on the bottom of the boots. This ensures a more secure footing on slippery rocks! I could feel the intense cold of the river through my suit! I can safely tell you that I didn’t kneel down for very long taking a shot.
It is a remarkable place to photograph!
Tofino Photography 