In my opinion when you go to Yosemite there are just some things that you have to do. My backcountry permit allowed me a day early entry into the park, so I took advantage of that time to stop at all the must see spots. 

My first stop was Glacier Point. When I visited Yosemite years earlier for a backpacking trip I set out from Glacier Point. I immediately had a feeling of nostalgia when I drove through the parking lot. I remember being parked in the second level of the parking area, unpacking and repacking my pack before my week out in the wilderness. I remember just setting out on the trail and taking a panorama of the valley. I tried to find the spot I shot from before and recreate the panorama of the valley.

I knew I had framed Half Dome between the trees, but looks like I was a little to the left…

I also thought I’d take the now famous picture of Half Dome from the road. It’s not original, but it is a cool view of Half Dome and I was there so might as well…

From Glacier Point I meandered my way into the Valley, scouting sunset spots as I went. There’s really no way to describe what it’s like looking up at the giant rock that surrounds you once you’ve made it into the valley, and photos never do it justice. 

Still having a few hours of daylight I claimed a spot in the backpacker’s campground and set up my tent. It was a good thing I decided to do it in the daylight, I was a little out of practice and put the pole in backwards. 

After finally figuring out what was wrong (which took an embarrassing amount of time) I ventured back out to decide where I wanted to sit and watch sunset. I’m thinking that roadside turnoffs might be the best places for sunset, because, like only a few days prior, I backed my car up to the view opened the hatchback and  watched the light as it cut through the valley.

If you look close you can see that cloud pass by.

It was then off to get some sleep ahead of my 3 day solo backpacking trip.