Yosemite Overflight
As we set out there's a lot of haze - and there's a reason...
A few seasonal wildfires have been burning in the foothills since yesterday
Here's a large scorched area but it looks like they've got it under control
We abandon our planned stop at Columbia in order not to pester the busy CDF Air Tankers there with our presence
So we continue on our Yosemite overfly mission
Here we are climbing through 8500 feet as the Sierra steadily rise ahead of us
We are getting close to the Eastern end of Yosemite Valley now
Just to put it in perspective - our altitude at this point is 11,500 ft
Here's the first view of the eastern end of the valley and Half Dome
Another view of Half dome and the valley floor
If this were 1950 we could fly along the face but alas, we must remain 2000 ft above the rim
From this height it's hard to realize the enormity of it all so if you've never been to Yosemite,
to put things in perspective it is 4,900 feet from the valley floor to the top of the dome
The upper sheer vertical face of the dome measures approximately 1,500 feet
Heading west now we reach the mouth of Yosemite Valley as we pass over El Capitan
That's El Capitan, the largest rock monolith in North America
Again, for perspective, that vertical face from top to bottom measures 3,000 feet
My brother had never been to Pine Mountain Lake so we stop in for a visit
We get to tour the Blankenburg Hangars and eat breakfast at the Cafe
Next we head up to another foothill airport - Placerville
Things were pretty quiet at Placerville so we headed back across the valley to Angwin, by Lake Berryessa
Man if you think Placerville was quiet you should have seen this place!
I think everyone is burnt out after the Oshkosh weekend
So we decide to head back home over the delta at a leisurly 80 kts with the windows open and our arms hanging out
Ahh yes, many a time me and my buddies raced our jetskis up and down this winding slough to nowhere
There were some powerboat waterski races happening on the river
Those guys were cooking! I swear they were doing at least 70 mph and towing a skier!
So that was it - here's the requisite crew shot
another successful Maule Mission