“I like the big yellow ones, Mommy!”
Of all the things to love about a weekend jaunt to Yosemite National Park, fallen yellow leaves seemed to reign supreme with our six-year-old.
And you couldn’t really blame her. Everywhere we looked, Fall had announced its arrival with a multitude of warm tones — golden leaves, amber trees, ocher meadows.
But her focus was the collection of bright yellow leaves, specifically, the big maple ones on the ground. There were literally thousands of contenders but none was deemed “perfect.” Most had some flaw that was cause for disqualification — too many brown spots, not bright enough, too small.
The entire day became a quest for the perfect big yellow leaf. As we walked to Bridal Veil Falls, I spotted a beauty: big, bright yellow, unmarred by spots. And it was perfect, until we insisted that our daughter drop the leaf in order to more safely scale the boulders to get a closer look at the falls. Alas, when we descended the perfect leaf was gone (most likely another six-year-old snagged it to claim it as her own). The disappointment was evident so we enlisted the help of her ten-year-old sister.
“How about this one?” one of us would ask. “Look at this big leaf!” another would excitedly exclaim. Though all of these paled in comparison to the original I had found — and subsequently caused to disappear — our daughter amassed a few leaves as placeholders.
Next we moved on Yosemite Village, stopping along the way to walk along a boardwalk that snaked through a river-adjacent meadow. A meadow that happened to contain lots of big yellow leaves. Score.
This might be a good time to mention our daughters’ preconceived notions of what Yosemite was all about. For our six-year-old, Yosemite should have been an area with a large play structure (“It’s a park, right, Mommy?”). For our ten-year-old, who knows a thing of two about forests, Yosemite (or “YO-sem-might,” as she uttered repeatedly throughout the day) should have been rife with living creatures — mountain lions, deer and bears, oh my! In fact, as older siblings are sometimes known to do our eldest had our youngest convinced that we’d be on a drive-through safari of sorts, fleeing from bears gone wild.
So it will come as no surprise to you that the girls were, let’s say, a bit disappointed at first in this supposed magical land know as Yosemite. Fortunately, that didn’t last very long.
Once we finally arrived (just a $20 day pass fee, which we found out was good for in-and-out privileges for up to a week), the sight of Half Dome got their little minds working overtime. They asked if we could drive to the top — no, we said, but people do hike to the top, though we wouldn’t be doing that today.
Instead we continued our journey, the girls now wide-eyed with Yosemite's rustic beauty. Next stop: Bridal Veil Falls. When we reached the parking lot I had the crew hit the port-a potties. (Much to our eldest daughter's dismay, they smelled of "beef jerky," though her younger sister disagreed.) I point this out because by the time you've reached this point, chances are at least one of your family members will have to use the facilities. Hedge your bets and take the whole crew.
After our pit stop we took the short walk along the river up to the viewing station for Bridal Veil Falls. It is during this walk that the aforementioned big yellow leaf was discovered. And when we reached the boulders at the foot of the falls, said leaf was set down (begrudgingly) in order to facilitate safer boulder maneuvering. Truth be told, there were tiny tots scaling those rocks, despite posted sign warnings advising the contrary. Call me crazy, but I was a little nervous about having our six- and ten-year-old climbing those rocks. Fortunately, there were no injuries, we had happy little climbers, and great pics to prove it. Until we discovered the prized leaf was missing.
Now back to our original thread. We did find some substitute leaves, all of which were made even better by heading back to the car for a snack. It's amazing how cheese sticks and grapes can change the mood of a disgruntled kid.
We disposed of our garbage in the specially modified garbage cans (to deter bear dumpster diving) and with a swipe of our hand wipes we were on our way.
Next up was Tuolumne Meadows. Here we learned the difference between a field (typically home to a single type of plant) and a meadow (home to numerous types of plants). The meadows in Yosemite are in the process of being restored to their former glory, due to the (let's hope) unintentional trampling by human feet. There were fantastic wooden boardwalks constructed to guide us through the lovely meadows ensuring we could take in the sights without disturbing the seedling and grasses. These boardwalks also serves as leaf catches for some slightly-smaller-than-maple-but-still-bright-yellow aspen leaves. The girls delighted in running along the boardwalks, capturing dozens of fallen leaves.
Following our meadow experience we made our way to Yosemite Village in search of lunch, parking in a lot and walking a short distance to the village. If I had a gripe about our trip it would only be that the Yosemite Grill was closed, probably because of the season. Still, there were other food options, namely Degnan's Deli for sandwiches and the Village Store. Seeing the long line in the former we opted for the latter, we created a do-it-yourself picnic from store provisions. We settled into one of the numerous picnic tables for an al fresco lunch on a lovely afternoon.
Tummies full, we made another pit stop (always try!) and started to walk back to the car. Along the way the girls veered off the path to delight in an impromptu dance among the leaves that rained down after a strong wind.
Next it was on to our final stop: Yosemite Falls. By this time of day everyone was getting tired but we knew they'd love this site. Parking was a bit challenging though we managed to find a spot and start the trek to falls. Much to the delight of our girls, enormous boulders and fallen tree trunks (read: more things to climb on) abounded at the start of the trail. We managed to snap some great pics of the girls and all their joy.
The short walk to the lower falls was easy and pretty. We noted that at different times of year the dry bed of stones bordering the path actually contained water and could, in fact, flood. This seem to blow the girls' minds.
When we reached the vista the falls were a beautiful site to see. Despite it being the tail end of Fall the falls were gushing, casting a heathery spray of water and mist across its granite face. We paused here for a moment to take in the fabulous view of the falls and the calm pool of water at its base, marveling at nature's glory.
When we got back to the car and were on our way home we asked the girls their favorite thing about Yosemite. Answer? Everything. And leaves. The not-completely-perfect-but-she-loves-them-anyway big yellow leaves.
Date of trip:
First Saturday of November, 2010
Yosemite National Park Information:
Best Bets:
Bridal Veil and Yosemite Falls. Both provided gorgeous scenery and a chance for our kids to climb rocks, mug for photos and stretch their legs.
Bust:
The Yosemite Grill was closed during our visit (probably for the season). We made due by purchasing fixings at the Village Store for a DIY picnic on one of the numerous picnic tables.
Don’t forget:
- Your camera. With so much natural beauty you'll be snapping away.
- A cooler with drinks and snacks. We brought waters, cheese sticks, grapes and crackers. This came in handy as a mechanism
- Hand sanitizing wipes. It can get dirty in nature (and in Yosemite's porta-potties) and these saved the day for us.
- Sunscreen. Even on non-Summer days, you and your loved ones are exposed to the elements. Be sure to protect everyone with a little sunscreen and lip balm.
- A small first aid kit. Kids. Rocks. 'Nuf said.
- To remind kids to use the restroom. At every opportunity I made sure to bring the girls (and my husband!) to the restroom. It's funny how one can think they don't really need to go when you have a restroom near, yet the urge strikes just as your out of range from a port-a-potty. Make sure everyone tries, every time. Trust me on this.
- To have patience. Presumably you're visiting this spectacular natural wonder to slow down and take in its beauty. So are thousand of others. Remember that and build in extra time so you're not stressed out.
Bonus en route tip:
If you’re approaching Yosemite from the northern (Tioga Pass) entrance on Highway 120, be sure to make a quick stop for lattes and muffins at Mountain Sage in the small town of Groveland. The folks here were very friendly and their pooch, Roshi, actually played “soccer” with the girls by kicking a tennis ball back and forth with his paw. We took our goodies to go but they have indoor seating, a small gift shop and visitor information.
