The Flood Of 1997

In Yosemite, I'm usually so captive with the beauty of the place that I don't even notice the most obvious things.  I must have stopped at this scenic spot along the Merced River in the valley just where the road splits into one going to Fresno and one going to Mariposa.  January 1997 was a good year and a half before Sam was born and he is shown here yesterday at age 13.  He's now 5'6" tall but this sign along the river back easily indicates the water level was once around 10 feet!  The kids have been to Yosemite about 5 times since 2005 and this is the first I've noticed this sign.  If there is ever a bad place to get stuck in a flood, it's in Yosemite Valley.  There is no easy way out and if the natural landscape isn't enough to make you feel small, a flood certainly will put you over the edge.  But then again, if there is a where I want to spend my last moments on earth, Yosemite is the place.  Reading about the flood today, they called it the 100-Year Flood and it left over 200o people stranded in the valley which thankfully, had zero fatalities.  You just don't mess around with Mother Nature.