What a good response, Moose. The only thing I would add is that the
range is the result of a rift with it being pushed up over the
substrata of the valley to the east. The approach from the west is
gradual and the first view of the Yosemite is almost shocking with
its glacially eroded vertical walls and half tube side valleys. The
eastern slope of the range is steep and precipitous. It has Mt.
Whitney which was the tallest peak in the US before Alaska and Denali
were added. When I was was hiking there were some glacial remnants in
the more shaded parts of upper peaks, Palisade Glacier for one. I am
not sure if it is still there. Probably melted away.
My first view of the Rocky Mountains were a disappointment to me. The
peaks all seemed so far away. I was used to mountains being up close
and "in your face" like the Sierras.
There was some volcanic activity accompanying the upward push which
produced the basaltic columns of the Devil's Postpile as well as some
of the piles of volcanic "bombs" in Owens Valley which have not yet
been covered by eroded material from the mountains. There are still
large hot springs not far from Mammoth Lakes and off course there are
the frequent flurries of earthquakes that come dozens a day for weeks
at a time and cause panic in the throngs of real estate speculators
at the resort.
Yosemite Valley is a beautiful place from almost any viewpoint, but
is almost loved to death by the crowds of visitors people who visit
every summer. Other seasons and higher elevations have become much
nicer.
Interestingly the elevation of the Yosemite Valley floor is about the
same elevation as Joshua Tree National Park which is a desert to the
south.
Winsor
Long Beach, California, USA
On Feb 18, 2006, at 2:21 AM, Moose wrote:
> Brian Swale wrote:
>
>> Classic Adams sites such as Half Dome, El Capitan etc are placed in
>> perspective in relation to the surrounding landscape, and
>> surprise, surprise,
>> with the slight exception of Half Dome, they hardly poke above the
>> general
>> level.
>>
>>
> No surprise here. Yosemite Valley is just that, a gorge cut into
> higher
> ground. From below, the often sheer sides are very impressive. From
> above and far enough back to not see the drop into the valley,
> features
> like El Capitan just look like the upper part of one of the many dome
> shaped structures in the area. It's easy enough to get to the South
> rim
> except in the winter. The North rim is an easy hike from the road,
> again
> when there isn't too much snow. In either case, the landscape isn't
> particularly remarkable, for this area - until the valley comes into
> view. Then the drop is if anything more impressive from above.
>
> If you take the Tioga pass road around to the North of the valley,
> there
> are places where you look down on the upper valley, including Half
> Dome.
> It's still an impressive shape, but not nearly as imposing from above
> and away. Anyway, most of the valley features are not all that
> impressive individually, compared to other, nearby things, It's their
> close proximity to each other in one beautiful valley that is
> astonishing.
>
> Some flights East out of SFO and Oakland fly right over the valley
> - and
> you can't see a thing. Others pass just to one side and if you are on
> the correct side of the plane, give wonderful views that are still
> impressive, but put the valley into perspective, where it seems rather
> small.
>
>> The huge landscape above is characterised by extreme barren-ness.
>> Smooth
>> rock surfaces and no soil..
>>
> This is characteristic of much of the Southern Sierra Nevada range,
> starting about at the North end of Yosemite Park and ending at Mt.
> Whitney. The wide open vistas with no real trees are one of the
> reasons
> Muir called it the "Range of Light". It gets more and more that way as
> you go South and the elevations increase.
>
>> I do not know the geological background, or the
>> rock types, but I'd take a guess at the rock being something very
>> hard such
>> as granite, (but some columnar rock sites give the lie to that
>> assertion) so
>> that an extremely long time is needed for soil to form through
>> normal erosion
>> processes.
>>
> Yes, the area is mostly granite, a lot of it in dome formations. It
> breaks down through exfoliaton of layers. Those rather large pieces
> slowly break down into sand. Because the whole area gets a deep snow
> cover in winter and is mostly hard, nonporous rock, once most of the
> potential new soil constituents get small and light enough, they get
> washed away in the spring thaw. There are certainly some columnar rock
> formations in the range, although I don't remember any near Yosemite
> Valley. The most impressive are at the Devil's Postpile some way
> South,
> where you can both see tall exposed portions and walk around on the
> top,
> which is like a floor of large, hexagonal tiles.
>
> Funny thing, to get into the DP park, you actually drive over the
> crest
> at a very low, easy point. This was never a travel route because one
> soon comes to the precipitous valley of the middle fork of the San
> Joaquin River, which is impassable.
>
>> Secondly, if looks as though the area was covered by a moving
>> ice sheet within maybe the last 50,000 years, and anything not
>> araldited into
>> place was shifted a long way..
>>
>>
> The whole landscape was formed by glacial action. There are glacial
> cirques and moraines all over the place.
>
>> A hostile environment up there, most times, I'd guess.
>>
>>
> Well, really rather nice from late spring to early fall. Not much
> rain,
> some thundershowers, but nothing lengthy, and reasonable temperatures,
> not much wind except on the peaks or exposed passes. I used to
> backpack
> into this country every year. Mostly into the Southern Sierra,
> which are
> higher, with passes to hike over that are higher than the peaks around
> Y. Valley. I spent the US bicentennial on the Sierra crest a bit North
> of the valley.
>
> Here's a place where I've been a couple of times
> <http://www.moosemystic.net/Gallery/MPhotos/PioneerL.htm>. Absolutely
> stunning. Google Earth doesn't have the resolution I would like over
> this area, but gives an aerial view. there is even a bit of 3D
> effect in
> Y. Valley and some other parts, like around Mt. Morrison. The area
> where
> the above was taken is 37° 28' 51.07" N, 118° 50' 11.28" W, looking
> South across Pioneer Lakes Basin into Third and Fourth Recesses..
>
> Moose
>
>
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