Drifts of sand blowing across the road, reflecting off my headlights in the dark night of Death Valley. That’s when it hit me… Heyokah. The card I’d pulled several times in the past few weeks had said it best: “Some days you are the fireplug and some days you are the dog.” I was letting getting pooped on get me down. It hasn’t been easy on the road these last few days.

Of course, I didn’t make it easy on myself by some of the choices I made that got me to the middle of Death Valley in the dark on one of the coldest nights on record for that desert. Add to that the wind gusts up to 50 mph. I was being stubborn and impatient, and I needed to start balancing the sacredness with irreverence. But again, I get ahead of myself.

After my session with Cindy and later a session with Bruce, I started to regain my energy and began to get itchy to get on the road. Thursday another snowstorm hit Truckee. Nothing serious, but enough to make the sun in the valley below beckon. I said my goodbyes and headed back to Elk Grove. I spent the next two days making the final preparations for the road trip and spending time at the Daehling Ranch.

I’d been tracking the weather to plan my trip. I wanted to beat another cold front that was predicted to move in Sunday evening. That was my first mistake. The second was that I ignored the tickle at the back of my throat, sensing that a cold was poised to take hold. But seeing an opportunity for sun in Yosemite on Saturday, I decided to take off for the park that day. I figured by Sunday evening I could make it through Sequoia and on to Death Valley, where it was predicted to be in the upper 70s. I thought that would make a nice temperature for my first night of camping.

Meantime, I had a spectacular drive through the foothills of the Sierras east of Sacramento on my way to Yosemite. Winding roads through lush green meadows sometimes dotted, sometimes filled with oak trees, wild flowers blooming in oranges, whites, and purples. The hillsides were carpeted with life. Streams ran along the road, and towns that had been there since the gold rush recalled their past with historic buildings in their downtowns.

As I climbed in altitude I started to see more purple trees in the layers of green that began to fill in the landscape. I drove for miles seeing only local traffic. Even closer to Yosemite there still were not many vehicles.

And then, unexpectedly, I tasted what all of the excitement of Yosemite was about: a view of Half-Dome towering above Yosemite Canyon, then the Yosemite River Falls pouring down, filling the river banks with spring runoff. They were breathtaking sights. And that was just the start of a wondrous day in the park.

The canyon is only about 5 miles in length, but the scenes in all directions are some of the most stunning I’ve ever seen, similar to the Columbia River Gorge, but much more substantial in size and grandeur. I finally got a hike, making the trip to Bridal Veil Falls from the road, about a half-mile distance. I also hiked to Yosemite River Falls on the other side of the canyon.

Just as I started to drive back toward the entrance of the park at sundown, the sun broke through the clouds, shining golden rays down on the granite monolith of Half-Dome. I pulled over to a riverside turnout as the blue skies peeked out, red-orange highlights on the stone reflecting the sunset in the west. I was grateful to witness a stunning palette of nature’s colors, in one of the most beautiful places in the world.

I smiled as I headed for the tunnel leading out of the park. As I came around the corner, yet another view awaited, even more stunning than the last, a panoramic view of the entire valley, Half-Dome and Bridal Veil Falls framing the picture, sunlight sparkling above low-hanging clouds. It was a perfect way to end a perfect day.

Here’s a video of some of the sights I saw. Enjoy!