Majestic and crowded Yosemite

We headed into Yosemite National Park on a Friday night. More specifically, the first weekend the campgrounds reopened after winter, and the last weekend the ski area was open. Unfortunately it was a little crowded. Nevertheless, I was extremely happy to be back in the magically beautiful Yosemite. I wish, however, that Colin could have had the relatively people-less experience I had two years ago when I visited in early spring.

A happy skier!

We camped in Wawona our first night and headed to Badger Pass for some cross-country skiing in the morning. Considering it was our second real xc-ski in the woods, I think it went pretty well! We went on an out-and-back trail that brought us to a gorgeous view of the valley, which was Colin's first glimpse of the mighty rocks. We spent our second day hiking/scrambling around the valley, trying to avoid the Sunday crowds of boy scouts and high school outdoor trips. We ended our day by journeying to the base of El Capitan and getting some incredible views of melting snow getting whipped off the top of the rock by wind. Yosemite is a very beautiful place indeed.

Stretching at the half-way point