The Valley floor is about 4,000 ASL, which is enough to increase UV radiation. The moisture and morning smoke (some mornings there are worse than LA) will add a cast as well. Ye ole Ektachrome also has that blue cast. A warming filter with any color would be an advantage. Personally, I like the darker skies if only to make the snowy peaks standout. I used a polarizer most of the time.
Regards
Marty
I have also been in the Valley a few times when there have been large fires going above it. Talk about being under a huge warming filter! One advantage is that people left the campground in droves due to afternoon down-canyon winds filling the Valley with very thick smoke, but the early morning up-canyon winds made for clear air in the Valley for the first part of the day.
From the YNP website:
In Yosemite Valley, campfires are permitted only between 5 pm and 10 pm from May through September. At other times of the year and in out-of-Valley campgrounds, fires are permitted at any time.
So that will help with a lot of the morning smoke issues. As long as there are no wildfires happening down canyon, then the Valley should have good mornings during the summers. I have been camping in the Valley this past Feb and then just last week or so. No problem with smoke. Air was still for most of the time. I'll be there again the second week-end of May, so I will see what the air quality situation is!
"Landscapes exist in the material world yet soar in the realms of the spirit..." Tsung Ping, 5th Century China
Yosemite Valley lies at a relatively low elevation, where there is always some intrusion of ordinary summer smog and pollen haze. Allowing campfires in summer seems
downright idiotic, but that's what visitors want. Control burns or wildfires also tend to channel a certain amt of smoke into the Valley. If you don't like that, just head uphill. After all, the road tops out clear up at Tioga Pass, and it's not that bad a drive at all. The air is nearly always clear at that altitude, and there's plenty of classic Park photo subjects all around. If you're expecting one of those fluffy winter shots of the Valley, go in the winter!
Yes, I don't see why people don't use one of the convenient isopropane stoves, which are safer in terms of ability to start a forest fire, and are easier to cook with anyway.
they don't crackle, give off much light, and sure as shit don't smell like campfire!Originally Posted by NancyP
And in Yosemite Valley, mostly likely 80% or more of the campfires are not made to cook with (not counting marshmellows).
"Landscapes exist in the material world yet soar in the realms of the spirit..." Tsung Ping, 5th Century China
Why I almost never camp in public campgrounds. There's just nothing quite like being in the "great outdoors" along with 30,000 other people on
a hot summer nite, wheezing and coughing with fires all around, staying awake with boom boxes and loud drunken laughter everywhere. At least
when the deer hunters are out camping in fall color, it gradually quiets down once they are inebriated enough to either pass out or accidentally shoot themselves or one another. The deer are generally safe.
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