Yosemite in a Dry Year [pp. 99-108]

EL CAPITAN
But after all, the way to get the full
measure of these wonderful rocks and falls
is to live with them. I do not suppose that
even Mr. Hutchings, "Father of the Valley,"
or Mr. Galen Clark, for twenty years Guardian, would be presumptuous enough to say
he has] seen Yosemite. Not John Muir,
who has charmed the world with his vivid
tales of adventure in exploring the nooks
of the Valley walls, would claim that.
:~ jti.is.something to have camped for
th i datz.7 a~ I: once did, at the foot of the
Bridal Veil, just outside of the reach of its
100
misty folds as Pohono, the "Spirit of the
Evil Wind," sways it to right and left. In
the morning the face of the fall is in the
shadow, and only the little wreath of mist
that the wind gathers from its brow and
carries back up the channel is turned to a
golden crown by the sunlight. Gradually,
all the day long, the sun creeps toward the
West, ever touching a little more of the
beautiful veil and making it shine and sparkle with countless diamonds. By four
o'clock the whole face is lighted, and as
the sun grows level more and more the