Dr. Ron Virmani, M.D. - Personal Experience - HIKING AT YOSEMITE - Day 3

Day 3: June 21, Tuesday:  We had to move into two four-person tents in the morning, as if the two-person tents were too luxurious.  YNP has three groves of Sequoia trees, Mariposa grove, Merced grove and Tuolumne grove (Tuolumne river is the other river in YNP).  We drove to the largest, Mariposa Grove Park, in the Wawona area, which has a collection of 600 Sequoia trees.  American Indians called the giant sequoias “wawona” meaning the sound of the call of the owl (the guardian spirit of the Big Trees).  Some of these cinnamon colored trees are 40 foot in diameter.  These trees have been given interesting names to match their appearance.  The Grizzly Giant is the oldest tree on record, it is 2700 years old.  It has a base diameter of 31 feet and height of 210 feet.  We saw the wawona tunnel tree, the telescope, the clothespin and many others.  We dined at Mountain Room restaurant at Yosemite lodge.  This place has a striking glass atrium affording a picture-postcard view of Yosemite falls.