Page
Coyote

Coyotes of Yosemite are beautiful animals, not the somewhat mangy character you see down at lower elevations. They are also probably a bit overabundant.

… —» go to main page for Coyote —»

Black Bear (Ursus americanus)

Everybody's favorite animals. I give a 1.5-hour program on bears in the summer, so this could get long, but I'll just throw out a bit of bear trivia.

… —» go to main page for Black Bear (Ursus americanus) —»

Belding Ground Squirrel

The Belding Ground Squirrel is also known as the Picket Pin for its habit of standing erect to survey its surroundings and bark at intruders.

… —» go to main page for Belding Ground Squirrel —»

Acorn Woodpecker

The Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) packs acorns (and sometimes walnuts and almonds, though not in Yosemite) so tightly into holes in trees that squirrels can't pry them out.

… —» go to main page for Acorn Woodpecker —»

American Dipper aka Water Ouzel (Cinclus mexicanus), With Vdeo

The American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus) is commonly known as the Water Ouzel and was John Muir's favorite bird. Indeed, few birds are as fun to watch as ouzels.

… —» go to main page for American Dipper aka Water Ouzel (Cinclus mexicanus), With Vdeo —»

The Evil Genius Behind Yosemite Explorer

Surprisingly, it has come to my attention that people I don't know are finding this site and are starting to wonder who is actually putting these materials on the web.

… —» go to main page for The Evil Genius Behind Yosemite Explorer —»

Rickey Gates Sets New Half Dome Running Record - 2:28:18

… —» go to main page for Rickey Gates Sets New Half Dome Running Record - 2:28:18 —»

Foresta Fire Photos

Well, it's been an exciting week in Yosemite. First the fire, then the rock fall, then the earthquake. It's been pretty impressive to look at, but frightening too.

… —» go to main page for Foresta Fire Photos —»

Flowers Starting to Bloom in Yosemite Valley (23 Apr 2009)

Starting to see the first flowers come out in the Valley. Of course, El Portal and Hite Cove have been excellent for a while. I haven't seen much in the Valley until yesterday.

… —» go to main page for Flowers Starting to Bloom in Yosemite Valley (23 Apr 2009) —»

Climbing Guides to Yosemite and the High Sierra

In recent years, Erik Sloan has come out with a pair of sumptuous new guidebooks, one for bigwalls and one for free climbing. These are the best Yosemite climbine guides currently available.

… —» go to main page for Climbing Guides to Yosemite and the High Sierra —»

Wildflower Field Guides

Yosemite is home to over 1300 species of flowering plants and over 1400 "taxa". Only a handful of these are non-native and most of those are found only below 6,000 feet.

… —» go to main page for Wildflower Field Guides —»

Photographer's Guides to Yosemite

Michael Frye, Photographer's Guide to Yosemite

… —» go to main page for Photographer's Guides to Yosemite —»

Maps for Hikers

… —» go to main page for Maps for Hikers —»

My Top Two Picks: Laws and Medley

… —» go to main page for My Top Two Picks: Laws and Medley —»

Trail Guides

There is no shortage of hiking guidebooks to Yosemite, that's for certain. Again, picking one is somewhat a matter of taste.

… —» go to main page for Trail Guides —»

Recommended Books on Yosemite

I've picked some of my favorite books.

… —» go to main page for Recommended Books on Yosemite —»

New Record on the Nose

It took me a while to get around to this, but Hans and Yuji did it! I usually find watching climbing to be incredibly boring, especially from a distance, but it was incredibly exciting as they appeared to be on pace, then behind, then ahead but by just a little bit. In the end, they broke the record by about two minutes.
Bill Wright and Hans give the pitch-by-pitch account on speedclimb.com.

… —» go to main page for New Record on the Nose —»

New Half Dome Running Record (2:30:50 ROUND TRIP by Ryan Ghelfi)

… —» go to main page for New Half Dome Running Record (2:30:50 ROUND TRIP by Ryan Ghelfi) —»

Royal Arches On Fire (May 7, 2008)

Well, I'm guessing that some genius climbers who were moving slow got benighted and decided to stay warm with a fire. Someone said they saw a fire up there on Monday night.

… —» go to main page for Royal Arches On Fire (May 7, 2008) —»

The Two Most Important Skills for Staying Alive
This note got started by some comments that Charles made on my page on the Four Mi

… —» go to main page for The Two Most Important Skills for Staying Alive —»

Valley Snows (25 January 2008)

We've been getting a lot of snow lately and I finally have done my weekly update to the photo journal after seven months. Seven months, seven days, what's the difference?

… —» go to main page for Valley Snows (25 January 2008) —»

Yosemite Triple Crown (and other foolish projects for hikers and climbers)

I was poking around recently and found that somebody has just started a website devoted to what he calls the Yosemite Triple Crown.

… —» go to main page for Yosemite Triple Crown (and other foolish projects for hikers and climbers) —»

How to Bag a Yosemite Bear without Firing a Shot

[This page is about how to protect Yosemite's bears.

… —» go to main page for How to Bag a Yosemite Bear without Firing a Shot —»

More Half Dome Deaths and the Death in Yosemite Book (Off the Wall by Ghiglieri & Farabee)

… —» go to main page for More Half Dome Deaths and the Death in Yosemite Book (Off the Wall by Ghiglieri & Farabee) —»

Great Horned Owl at Lower Yosemite Falls (April, 2006)

Several people have recently noticed some Great Horned Owls in the Black Oak trees near the eastern trailhead for the Lower Yosemite Fa

… —» go to main page for Great Horned Owl at Lower Yosemite Falls (April, 2006) —»

Pages