My First Week at Yosemite NP

Half  Dome with cloud cover 

The week started off with me being stuck in a plane for what felt like a year but in reality was 8 hours. Then after that loaded all my stuff into a car and was in the car for another 2 hours which made for a very long day of traveling. Let me tell you something though, all the traveling that I did and all the stuff that had happened that frustrated me soon left my mind. I came out of tunnel view and saw the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life. Something that I thought I was ready for after the months of research I had done on the park and all the views this place has to offer. The view that filled the windshield of the car set me back and made me stop what I was doing and just stare in awe that there was something this beautiful in the world and that thanks to the ProRanger program I was now working at this location. The view of the valley and the waterfalls and the river running down put a smile on my face that I still get every time I leave my housing to go to work or to explore the surrounding area. The next thing that hit me was the feeling of exhaustion because even though it was only 8pm in pacific time to me it felt like 11pm so my first day in Yosemite I fell asleep at 8:30pm…

My second day in the park I was lucky enough to get a seat in the new employee orientation where I got to meet all the division chiefs and learn about the large amounts of positions this park has to fill in order to keep it running. After that we got to ride on the valley tours truck, which is nicknamed the green dragon due to the color and look of the vehicle. This took us all over the valley while teaching us about the historical and natural aspects of the park. After the orientation my supervisor gave me my way of traveling around the valley this summer, a green beach cruiser bike with a basket on the front.

Learning how to tie patient in

The lunch location during day 2

My final two days of the work week I was in the basic ropes rescue course put on by the search and rescue for the park. This class taught me a lot about how the SAR group rescues visitors who have been hurt while climbing and need to be rescued. They showed us how to find proper anchors and how to properly set up the ropes for the rescue. They also showed us the proper amount of pulleys and the proper set up we would need in order to keep the attendant and the subject you are saving from falling the rest of the way to the bottom. The second day of the training we got to spend it in the field and to put what we learn to the test. Luckily for us we all paid attention and passed with flying colors.  

View from Nevada Falls 

With my free time I was able to try bouldering and I was also able to go hiking on one of the many trails that the park has. I was able to explore a little and also set up my hammock and relax. Overall the first week has been a lot and I have meant a lot of new people but it has been a great week.