Latest weather in Yosemite

[Robert Langham]

In general, in the summer, the sun rises over the right shoulder of Half Dome and sets over the downstream end of the Merced, shining up the valley, which runs mostly East and West. Places like Upper Yosemite Fall get sun early and mid-day and then drop into shadow in the afternoon. Mist Trail in open shade early, sunlit through the daytime and back in shade later. I'd carry a polarizer and a light yellow but not a red.

Don't drink the water without running it through a filter. Beaver and Guardia. Big crowds in the summer but once you get 50 yards off trail you'll be alone. Crowds are all in the valley, Glacier Point and Tioga Road turnouts.

They have let the valley absolutely grow up solid with trees. The indians used to burn it out every decade or so to keep it clear.

It's an absolutely fabulous place. You'll go a little nutty.

[Drew Wiley]

Actually, the bristlecones are at least a six hour drive from Yosemite Valley, and the iconic upper grove is a quite a long drive
on a slow dirt road. And no, you're not likely to get there, over even over Tioga Pass, in May, though it might be possible in
an exceptionally dry year. In any event, you need plenty of supplies with you. I'd avoid Yos Valley in midsummer. Sometimes
there's so much smoke from campfires, control burns, and general smog that you can't even see the rim of the Valley. May
is much nicer.

[joselsgil]

From the latest water and snow pack reports. This has been the driest winter in California history, so don't expect too much water flowing.

[NickyLai]

My last month (April) trip up there saw, from the valley floor, good flow of the falls. But feel the dry winter when hiked up to see the Vernal Fall because it didn't fill up the much broader flow-apron. See the 1st photo (65mm Super Angulon and Sinar Handy shot under my raincoat for the camera and BetterLight scan-back, not me ).

Beware of the falls - they are spectacular BUT dangerous, as posted by the park. Just this Sunday, 5th May, they released news searching for missing person on top of the Vernal Fall. See this link http://www.nps.gov/yose/stensbysar.htm. (Note: According to info available on the web, more accident on the top of the Vernal Fall than others. It is because the top has much broader space, many spots looks good and easy, it attracts visitor to go off trail which is not allow by the rules of the park.)

I cancelled plan yesterday to hike up to Nevada Fall due to unfavorable weather, for me anyway. But will try to go between 24th to 26th this month when there is a chance to see the MOONBOW. I wonder if anybody here had captured the Yosemite moonbow in LF with color negative can give some advise?

For those like falls and short of time, here's my two cents tip to shot three different falls in one SUNNY day, from experience of my last two trips in April (my favorite month to visit the valley).

1. In the morning, the sun lights on Yosemite Fall so take it first from the valley floor either go near it or far from the Cook's Meadow.
2. Then drive out (shuttle don't go there)to the Northside Dr untill almost near the park exit there are two parking places to see the Merced River and Bridalveil Fall (GPS:37°43'19" N 119°38'60" W). The sunlight is on top and moving to light up the Bridalveil Fall. Mid day is the good time to capture it because the sun on top doesn't produce glare on the water. See the 2nd photo shot (240mm Fujinon A).
3. Then drive back via the Southside Drive back to the Happy Isle parking lot (GPS 37°44'7" N 119°33'59" W) to hike up the Vernal Fall. The sunlight is on it during the afternoon time, I got my rainbow shot at around 5:30 p.m. on April 18th, and the sunlight went out soon after that, plan your time. I didn't hike up the top because the light was going out, my backpack was heavy. If the parking lot is full, park on the visitor center lot and take the free shuttle to the trail head. (Trail info from the park: 3 miles/4.8 km round-trip; 3 hours with 1,000 feet/366 m elevation gain (via Mist Trail)
   Begin at Happy Isles (shuttle stop #16)

Happy trip to whom going up there.

[Drew Wiley]

It might have been a relatively dry Spring per 2013 statistics per se, but there was quite a bit of winter snowpack earlier. And any year, regardless, is going to have risky streams this early on. Don't confuse SoCal weather with the Sierras, which are more complicated with reference to storm systems. The good news is that the
mosquitoes might be gone from the high country by midsummer, and they'll be much lighter than in the past two years, no doubt. There are two curses to mountain
travel - the mosquito and the motorhome. One makes you move faster than you'd wish, the other, slower.

[Kodachrome25]

I was going to head up there tonight, but I am waiting until Tioga opens for more high country opportunity. Instead I am going to go up to the Redwoods Near Eureka and do some light painting. But that moonbow...on the day my wife and I met, we ended up shooting it at 3 AM, what wonderful memories..:-)

[Ray Fenio]

Tioga Pass is scheduled to open today, May 11, 2013. I'm headed for Tuolumne tomorrow.

[Leszek Vogt]

If you have a long lens (say equiv of 300mm in 35mm) the view under certain light from T. Meadows can be incredible. True, less iconic, but there is always a possibility of returning home with your own view of the Half Dome. I was there last Summer and prefer mine to AA version.

Les

[KenM]

I wouldn't miss the White Mountains and the Bristlecones, Just a couple hours drive over Tioga, past Lee Vining and across Owens Valley. I'd spend the night in the car. It's high, over 10,000, and you will walk around like a zombie but incredible trees.

I agree. It's a very unusual place; it feels like you're on the moon, except with the odd tree here and there :-)

To touch something that old and alive, was....moving.

And, as a bonus, if you've got a friend with a jeep, you can make a quick exit off the mountain. Straight down the mountain. Really.

[NickyLai]

If you have a long lens (say equiv of 300mm in 35mm) the view under certain light from T. Meadows can be incredible. True, less iconic, but there is always a possibility of returning home with your own view of the Half Dome. I was there last Summer and prefer mine to AA version.

Les

Did you mean to shot Half Dome from "Olmsted Point"? Or, something else? The Olmsted Point (GPS 37°48'39" N 119°29'5" W) is about 10 miles down (or before) Tuolumne Meadow visitor center (GPS 37°52'24" N 119°21'34" W).

I was at Olmsted Point last year on May the 20th, a sunny day, and got a big surprise. A Park Ranger was serving out solar glasses to watch the solar eclipse. At about the same time, I also got the incredible so called "hound-dog-glow" of the Half Dome with the 500mm TED Nikkor lens from Olmsted Point. See the attached photo, it had a crop factor of about 1.2 down the 500mm.

All these was not quite planned, drove up there from Wawona campsite at the flow of my flexible schedule by estimate the direction of the sun light. I will try to go again later this month.