Miscellaneous videos from my time in Yosemite National Park.
Tag: landscape
Yosemite National Park
My next destination was one of my bucket-list parks, Yosemite NP. When I first arrived, it was early in the day, so I went in the south gate, got some information, and looked around at the Pioneer Yosemite History Center. I found out from the visitor center employees that I could drop my trailer at the Wawona hotel overflow parking lot whenever I made the long drive to the valley. This was extremely helpful as I did not feel my trailer would be secure where I was camping outside the south entrance. I really appreciated that.
At first, I dispersed-camped outside the south gate. ‘Had a scary experience with some aggressive locals so I later moved to another spot in the national forest. I kept trying to get a reservation down in the valley and, after a while, finally snagged one for a couple nights. (In this case, some spots had opened up because of receding flood waters!)
The first time I headed to the valley, what was supposed to be a one-hour trip turned into two because they were doing tree-work along the road. That’s a tough job for the workers with all the traffic.
The valley was just stunning. There’s a one-way perimeter road through the valley to accommodate all the humanity. I found parking pretty easily despite all the people. It was amazing to be in a place I had wanted to see my whole life.
Bodega Head and Stump Beach, CA
I had forgotten to pull images from my phone, so I’ve included a few more here from Bodega Head, but the majority are from a really nice hike in the Stump Beach area. I highly recommend a visit here–especially in April of the year. Although I didn’t include many photos of them (long story), the wildflowers here were amazing.
I decided to try something different for this post and make a video instead of creating a regular gallery. I’m interested in feedback on video vs still photos. Thanks!
One NV stop / three CA stops on the way to Bodega Bay & Point Reyes NS
I went to meet a friend in California to travel to Bodega Bay. These are sights and adventures along the way (as always, more info in photo captions). (EDIT: forgot I made a short video of what I think were brittlebush blooms. It is at the bottom of this post, below the gallery).
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More images from Arizona & California
Miscellaneous Arizona and California images – mostly from their skies.
Alamo Lake, Arizona
I can’t remember who first told me about Alamo Lake but I’m glad they did. I know sunsets are “old hat” to some nomads, but I never tire of them; the sunsets and overall light here at this location & time was, in my opinion, extraordinary. I saw some of the prettiest sunsets ever for me. I did my best to capture them but there is nothing like being there.
Dispersed camping is plentiful here but waterside spots are scarce. With a few exceptions, most places anywhere close to the water are far above water level and yet have nice views. As for amenities, there is a small, informal RV park nearby that has a restaurant, water (for only 10cents/gal), fuel (one pump; no diesel, I think), propane, laundromat, & showers. There is also a state park campground nearby for those who need hookups.
Despite the amenities available, I recommend coming fully supplied to Alamo Lake, as it is quite remote and the small park I mentioned is…uh…rustic.
Misc Travel in NV, AZ, & CA
A few miscellaneous images from Lovell Canyon, Nevada; Lake Havasu City (LHC), Arizona; and Havasu Lake, California.
That is not a typo – On the east side of Lake Havasu, a wide place in the Colorado River, is “Lake Havasu City” in Arizona, population 60,000. By contrast, on the California side of the lake, is the 5000-strong community of “Havasu Lake” which is part of a Native American reservation.
Anyway, both of these places, along with Lovell Canyon, sport many dispersed camping opportunities.
White Mountains & Ashurst Lake of Arizona/Lovell Canyon of Nevada
After meeting my appointment, I drove up to the Arizona White Mountains where I had camped before. This is a beautiful area closest to the town of Springerville, AZ, that has many dispersed camping opportunities. Next, I went back to visit my friend at Ashurst Lake for a few days. Finally, I moved on to Nevada, because I had to attend an event hosted by the non-profit for which I was working at the time. I camped with several friends at Lovell Canyon between Vegas and Pahrump.
Travel South through Idaho & Utah / Capitol Reef NP
My travels took me from the West Yellowstone area southwards through Idaho and Utah on the way to meeting some good friends for a short visit in a Utah National Forest. After that, I drove through Capitol Reef National Park which I briefly explored.
After my hard-learned lesson never to return to camp after dark on a weekend, I learned yet another lesson: Never take Interstate 15 through Ogden, Salt Lake City, & Provo. (My preference since I began nomading has been the more interesting two-lane highways, secondary roads, & rabbit trails–anything but interstates, especially through large cities. True they are sometimes unavoidable but I still try to use them only in small bites). These Utah cities have “grown together” resulting in a very long stretch of very busy traffic. I guess one way to look at it is that I appreciate the quiet, out-of-the-way roads and places even more after these kinds of driving experiences.
As usual, this post includes interesting “sights along the way”–from an area through which I had never before driven–in addition to several images from beautiful Capitol Reef NP.
My Side of the Adventure 