Over the Labor Day weekend, M and I headed to Yosemite for a four-day getaway. It was a trip that almost didn't happen. We had been looking for a place to stay in the valley for several months without luck. I would have been happy taking our chances with a walk-in site, but I doubted M would be keen on the idea, so I kept checking daily (sometimes hourly). With only a few days to go before the impending weekend, a spot in Curry Village opened. As soon as I saw it, I booked it.

The drive that Friday morning was surprisingly smooth. The new Highway 152/156 interchange was open and bottleneck-free. The new Highway 140 by-pass bridges, with their improved angles to allow longer vehicles, were also open and we reached them just as the 15-minute stoplight turned green.

We arrived in the valley just before noon. If the temperature hadn't been in the nineties, I would have grabbed my pack and gone for a quick afternoon hike, but the heat tempered my desire to the hit trail. Instead, we cooled our heels in valley.

We visited the Ansel Adams Gallery (they have a blog) and I discovered two very funny children's books. Both involved a character named Scaredy Squirrel, a squirrel so scared of everything, he never leaves his nut tree. The tales focus on the adventures he has when he strays from the safety of his tree (and routine).The artwork and stories cracked me up. I felt so guilty for standing in the middle of the store, reading and laughing, I bought the books. Now that I have them, everybody who visits will be forced to read them, too.

Also in the gallery were the paintings of Penny Otwell, an artist who lives in Yosemite. If I'm not mistaken, I mentioned her a couple months ago. It was nice to see her work in person.

Afterward, we took a quick peek at the Ahwahnee to see how the other half dealt with the heat. (They deal with it in lavish style as far as we could see.)

As evening came and the temperature dropped, we walked from Curry to Sentinel Bridge to watch a Half Dome sunset. It was a splendid, short-lived sight.

After the sun had set, we retreated to the village to get an early start on sleep since we would be waking early on Saturday to visit neighboring Mono Lake (a ninety-minute drive from the valley). I drifted off with visions of the evening's sky.

It isn't a bad way to fall asleep.