I had been checking weather.com daily for two weeks, keeping an eye on the forecast for Yosemite over the Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend. It felt like I was playing she-loves-me-she-loves-me-not, each day plucking a petal from a flower. One day it would say partly sunny and the next it would say snow showers. Partly sunny. Snow showers. By Friday, it had settled on rain that night, followed by snow showers and rain on Saturday. I had been apparently plucking the wrong flower.

The original plan had been to leave early on Saturday to give us enough time to negotiate any poor road conditions and heavy traffic due to the storm. But with the rain coming overnight, the original plan went out the window¹. Friday evening, I called the park, moved our arrival date up by a day and then hurriedly packed so we could get on the road as soon as possible.

We didn't encounter any rain or snow along the way, so we didn't have to stop and put on the tire chains. We arrived at Curry Village around 1:30 in the morning. The rain and snow came only after we were safely tucked away in our tent cabin. By the way, heated tent cabins are pricier, but worth it if wearing nine layers of clothing or freezing to death isn't something you enjoy.

By Saturday morning, everything was covered in snow. Clumps of it weighed on every tree branch and sheets of it adorned every rooftop and field. We spent the day wandering around the valley, visiting familiar places to see how different they looked. It was incredible to see the majestic granite walls of Glacier Point and North Dome and Half Dome dusted and streaked with snow.

Everything seemed so magical. Walking along the trail to Lower Yosemite Fall was like walking through a black and white photo. The sheer amount of snow made any hint of color - where one could find it - stand out with brilliance.

This was especially true when we reached the little red chapel. In the photos, the church almost looks unreal, as though it's set against a green screen. I think the sharp rooflines contrasting with the blurred trees in the background enhance the effect.

Later in the afternoon, after we had satisfied our curiosity and were soaked and chilly, we returned to the Curry lounge to warm up, dry off and recharge for Sunday's big snowshoe adventure to Dewey Point above Badger Pass.

¹ And landed softly on the grass, where a patrolling neighborhood crow promptly swooped down and ate it.