Best Day Ever - Part 1
- May 29, 2016
- 4 min read
Day 3 started a little late. My goal was to view the stars in Yosemite, so I left in the afternoon. That allowed me to have enough time to take pictures with some sunlight.
I knew what to expect on the first leg of this drive and that left me with no choice but to freestyle all the way to Yosemite. Yup. You read it right! I freestyle rapped/sang for about two hours before I drove myself crazy and told myself to SHUT-UP!! I covered a little country music as well.
I should have recorded it…eh…
My plan was to head to Yosemite Valley to meet up with a Star Gazing group, but it started raining once I passed the park gates. There was a bit of traffic, so I headed for Tenaya Lake a little early. The rain was still falling down, but it was awesome to witness! It looked as if the drops were falling in slow motion! After leaving Yosemite Valley, I had about an hour before I arrived at Tenaya Lake. As soon as I got on Tioga Road, I was speechless.
Tioga Pass Road is very scenic, scary and high in elevation.
-it’s 4:58 PM and I just heard a rooster crow-
Anyway, this road has everything from steep clips, falling rocks, slick roads, bear crossings, snow piles, burned areas, narrow roads and more! I was scared taking this drive, especially because it’s hard not to try to take a peek at the scenery. I continued making my ways towards Tenaya Lake…and then…
…I SAW IT!!
A full rainbow appeared over the mountains of Yosemite! Of course, I had to pull over to take a picture. Here I am, a mile high enjoying a full rainbow right after a fresh rain. It was wonderful!
I made a few more stops and snapped some photos of the sunset and a low hanging cloud (or fog). Pulling over on the side of the road next to a steep drop-off is VERY SCARY! I passed a few of them because I just didn’t have time for it.
Tenaya Lake
The sun was setting behind the tall mountains that surrounded the Tioga Pass Road. Anthony had driven for hours, his legs cramped and tired in his compact rental car, and he needed to stretch. As the night would go on, he would come to embrace the comfort and protection from his rental car.
And there it was.
“Oh my goodness”, he said while trying not to veer off the road and into the lake. He saw a potential spot he wanted to set up his tripod and camera. He took a mental note and drove further down the road to the parking lot. He pulled in, one car was parked and in the distance, he spotted a bathroom.
He looked at the bathroom and scanned his surroundings. In the corner, he noticed a sign that marked the area, ‘Bear Territory’. He did a quick u-turn and made his way toward the exit. He thought, waited and he looked back. The sun had set behind the mountain and the parking lot was blanketed by the shadows. The bathroom was surrounded by darkness. The tall trees seemed to lean towards Anthony daring him to come closer. He took a deep breath and turned around. He parked close to the bathroom, turned off the car and tried to focus his eyes on the darkness in the forest.
He opened the door. Stepped out slowly. Focused his ears on the sounds and walked as fast as he could to the bathroom. His heart pounding with every step he took. Faster, with strides of a giraffe. He made it!
He opened the door and went inside and there was no light. The door had a small window and the little light that lingered from the setting sun was enough for him. As he was relieving himself, he heard a noise. He paused. It must have been the wind he thought. What if the trees were moving him deeper into the forest while he was inside? What if his car was gone when he left? What if…
Footsteps? From who? From what? Something was close by and Anthony only had two options:
Stay and find out
Get to the car as fast as possible
He walked up to the door. Took another deep breath and made his way to the car as fast as his thin legs could take him. He felt the trees getting closer. The wind seemed to be grabbing his limbs so he couldn’t escape. He took his keys out his pocket, unlocked the doors and hopped in. Put the keys in the ignition and started the car up. He put the car in reverse, put his seat-belt on and turned on the lights.
2 eyes stared at him.
It was Anthony. The eyes were his own as he looked in the rear-view mirror. He had heard his own footsteps. He was paranoid for no reason. There was nothing to be worried about. He drove out of the parking lot and pulled over on the side of the road.
Now all he had to do was wait for the clouds to pass. Of course, that took two hours but it was WORTH every second he waited.
I found taking photos of the stars to be very difficult and it is something I have to try again. I am not pleased with the photos, but I enjoyed seeing all of the stars without the light pollution Chicago has.
It was very refreshing and relaxing to be able to look up and see other stars that might have other planets. Some of those planets might contain some type of lifeforms. Even if they don’t have life, and we are the only living creatures in the universe it’s a shame we can’t enjoy this experience together. We’d appreciate Earth more if we realized how much better it would be if we all got along. A man can only dream…
I will finish Part Two of this blog tomorrow...
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