It’s hard to believe that only 7 days ago I was experiencing the last winter storm (most likely) of the season in Yosemite.  Last Sunday morning my wife and I awoke to a few inches of slushy snow at 3000 feet in the Sierra Nevedas.  We were staying at the Groveland Hotel (gorgeous historic hotel, highly recommended — and pet friendly) in Groveland California, on the Highway 120 entrance to Yosemite.  As we drove into Yosemite the the clouds started to build and the snow started to gently  fall in intermittent waves, starting with small round ice crystal flakes and eventually settling into a torrent of huge fluffy flakes.

I only hope that everyone gets the chance to expierence a winter snow fall like that in Yosemite at least once in their life.  It is quite magical.

The next day, it was all over.  The storm had passed, the sun was shinning and the snow encrusting the trees and cliffs was starting to melt.  During the morning, there was still enough snow left to make for gorgeous photo taking opportunities, though it was melting fast.  As the sun melted the snow, localized clouds started to form on the cliffs and hillsides.  As the day wore on, the valley floor was stripped of most of the snow from the previous day and all the moisture in the air had created it’s own weather system, shrouding all of Yosemite in clouds once again.  It is truly a bizarre experience to be driving out of Yosemite under the cover of clouds and then reach Big Oak Flats and have all the clouds disappear.  As my wife and I headed back to the Bay Area and descended the Sierra Nevada Foothills there was one hill crest where we could see all the way across a clear central valley, even making out the Diablo Range of hills on the other side of the valley, and yet see the cloudy Yosemite area in our rear view mirror.

Over the next week you will see more photos trickle into the Yosemite portfolio and appear here on the blog.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I did making them.  And don’t forget, you art prints are available for purchase by clicking through on the photo or visiting the portiflio — just look for the buy button.  🙂