Thank you, I've edited the page with this info. I found out about this on my last trip to Yosemite this year. I actually read about it in a new book that has been published in the last year.
It's a sad event, but a natural one that reminds all of us that we need to enjoy every minute and every thing in its time as change is the only constant.
In the winter, access becomes more challenging. The Glacier Point Road is closed at Badger Pass Ski Resort in the winter (November-May on most years), roughly eight miles from Glacier Point. This approach is ideal for beginner/intermediate cross country skiers, as the road has ski tracks all the way to Glacier Point. This option is probably the "standard route" during the winter. It climbs less than 1000 feet and it is (hopefully) impossible to get lost.
(At least) two options are feasible from Yosemite Valley to Glacier POint/Sentinel Dome. Option 1: The Four Mile Trail climbs the 3200 feet from the Valley to Glacier Point. The trail is officially "closed" at some point, but it is hard to know exactly what this means. In November, I hiked the Four Mile Trail and hit some "interesting" ice. I'd stop short of saying that you'd need crampons; more useful would be the little traction devices which are sold at REI (among other places). Trailhead for this trail is marked from the southern Yosemite Valley road. Option 2: From Happy Isles, you can take the Mist Trail past Vernal and Nevada Falls, then go onto the Panorama Trail, which doubles back to the west, across Illiloutte Creek, and up to Glacier Point/Sentinel Dome. This is definitely the longer of the two, although a loop (up Panorama/down Four Mile, or vice versa) can be very satisfying if you use the YARTS shuttle or can hitch a ride.
Famous Jeffrey Pine Falls on Sentinel Dome-Yosemite National Park
Carleton Watkins photographed it in 1867. Ansel Adams photographed it. It is among the most photographed trees in the park--the subject of numerous postcards over the years-- and a beloved icon to millions of visitors to Yosemite.
Sometime in the last week, it fell to the ground. The Jeffrey pine, perched on the summit of Sentinel Dome, was a dramatic image of which few could not stop and snap a picture.
The pine died in the severe drought of 1976-77, although people attempted to save it by bringing buckets of water to it.
The National Park Service does not know what final stress caused the tree to fall, but severe storms in the Sierra Nevada in early August may have contributed.
The tree's life, death, and fall are part of a natural process. However, many will miss the Jeffrey pine that stood and welcomed them to the summit of Sentinel Dome.
Thank you, I've edited the page with this info. I found out about this on my last trip to Yosemite this year. I actually read about it in a new book that has been published in the last year.
It's a sad event, but a natural one that reminds all of us that we need to enjoy every minute and every thing in its time as change is the only constant.
Shawn - Oct 24, 2004 1:56 am - Hasn't voted
Untitled CommentThank you, I've edited the page with this info. I found out about this on my last trip to Yosemite this year. I actually read about it in a new book that has been published in the last year.
It's a sad event, but a natural one that reminds all of us that we need to enjoy every minute and every thing in its time as change is the only constant.
mpbro - Feb 12, 2002 8:37 pm - Voted 10/10
Untitled CommentIn the winter, access becomes more challenging. The Glacier Point Road is closed at Badger Pass Ski Resort in the winter (November-May on most years), roughly eight miles from Glacier Point. This approach is ideal for beginner/intermediate cross country skiers, as the road has ski tracks all the way to Glacier Point. This option is probably the "standard route" during the winter. It climbs less than 1000 feet and it is (hopefully) impossible to get lost.
(At least) two options are feasible from Yosemite Valley to Glacier POint/Sentinel Dome. Option 1: The Four Mile Trail climbs the 3200 feet from the Valley to Glacier Point. The trail is officially "closed" at some point, but it is hard to know exactly what this means. In November, I hiked the Four Mile Trail and hit some "interesting" ice. I'd stop short of saying that you'd need crampons; more useful would be the little traction devices which are sold at REI (among other places). Trailhead for this trail is marked from the southern Yosemite Valley road. Option 2: From Happy Isles, you can take the Mist Trail past Vernal and Nevada Falls, then go onto the Panorama Trail, which doubles back to the west, across Illiloutte Creek, and up to Glacier Point/Sentinel Dome. This is definitely the longer of the two, although a loop (up Panorama/down Four Mile, or vice versa) can be very satisfying if you use the YARTS shuttle or can hitch a ride.
Reiksgib - Feb 12, 2004 12:29 am - Hasn't voted
Untitled Commenthttp://www.nps.gov/yose/news/2003/tree0818.htm
Yosemite National Park News Release
August 18, 2003
For Immediate Release
Famous Jeffrey Pine Falls on Sentinel Dome-Yosemite National Park
Carleton Watkins photographed it in 1867. Ansel Adams photographed it. It is among the most photographed trees in the park--the subject of numerous postcards over the years-- and a beloved icon to millions of visitors to Yosemite.
Sometime in the last week, it fell to the ground. The Jeffrey pine, perched on the summit of Sentinel Dome, was a dramatic image of which few could not stop and snap a picture.
The pine died in the severe drought of 1976-77, although people attempted to save it by bringing buckets of water to it.
The National Park Service does not know what final stress caused the tree to fall, but severe storms in the Sierra Nevada in early August may have contributed.
The tree's life, death, and fall are part of a natural process. However, many will miss the Jeffrey pine that stood and welcomed them to the summit of Sentinel Dome.
Reiksgib - Feb 12, 2004 12:31 am - Hasn't voted
Untitled CommentFamous Jeffery Pine
Shawn - Oct 24, 2004 1:56 am - Hasn't voted
Untitled CommentThank you, I've edited the page with this info. I found out about this on my last trip to Yosemite this year. I actually read about it in a new book that has been published in the last year.
It's a sad event, but a natural one that reminds all of us that we need to enjoy every minute and every thing in its time as change is the only constant.