Yosemite Nature Notes - 10 - Rock Fall

[soyounoat]

What makes this man's video special is the full stereo surround sound of those rocks falling.

[Smithschannel]

Oh my gosh! The sound of those boulders falling and listening to the thunderous roar of those collapsing rocks is quite spectacular!

[taylorhill]

Was in Yosemite for the Happy Isles rock slide, such an insane and profound memory for me. Such pandemonium throughout the park, the dust, animals and people running around, sirens going off. Wild!

[than]

The rockfall I heard while on Challenger Point in Colorado on Aug 1, 2012 was incredible sounding. I didn't see anything because there was a ridge obscuring my view but the sound echoed through the whole Willow Lake valley. The sound alone was awe inspiring. 3:06 on this video reminded me of that sound.

[ruthhand]

Amen. Life, and every facet of it, ALWAYS comes down to the choices we make.

[jimmacintosh]

This is amazing! In October 30, 2001, just after 9/11 I was sleeping next to my girl " my 2000 Honda 1100 Aero Motorcycle" when at 04:54 I was woken for the second time that night. 1st by raccoons eating my dinner that I left on my bike. The next was what I just learned was a rock fall! I stood straight up in my sleeping bag for I her this freight train rolling through the Park. It was so Amazing . I described this to many friends over the years. In my dark warm dry in a light rain. This train was rolling through. I herd the break and all. Never knew what it was. I was mystified to now saw a video on one of many that take place! Thx so much Jim McIntosh Nantucket. My cycle journey across the country. Because of the rain the pass was closed that day & I could not get to Mono Lake. But many other adventures awaited that day all great. I met a mechanic in a local town just outside that park night of Halloween in a bar. He never went out but the kids were in town with the mrs and we struck up a conversation. After sometime he invited me back too his house for the night. A warm bed great. The next day he asked me to breakfast and go to work. I said sure, He had to fly to work everyday as an airplane mechanic. He took me up over Yosemite which was covered in snow from the previous night. What an experience I had!! You never know who you'll meet on the road. The nicest people. Thx Mr.

[contentdeleted]

The booming sound just gives me chills

[theoriginalchefboyoboy]

when mountains crumble to the sea,
there will still be you,
and me...

[joshuabennett]

January 2020 was the first time I got to see Yosemite national. Flew my mom out there for her 70th birthday. We also went to Alcatraz, Muir woods and Lake Tahoe. California state railroad museum in Sacramento was very interesting as well. Plus Stetson beach, just north of Muir woods is worth checking out.

[jcsimonassi]

For sure, one of the most spectacular place that a have chance to know. Such a wonderful natural landscape ever❤️

[pamtnman]

Our family arrived and walked this area days before and then after the 2008 rockfall at Yosemite. It was incredible how much material collapsed.

[Sheety]

You can really get an idea of how tall the valley walls are by how slow the falling rocks are falling. Great footage!

[clinthymes]

When the mountains crumble to the sea, there will only be you and me.

[JohnnyAngel]

Thank you for the video. Fascinating. Sorry so many comments are nasty. Ignore them.
Since I was a kid, I've always wanted to visit our national parks, especially Grand Canyon, Yosemite, and Yellowstone. Now that I'm nearing retirement, maybe I can visit. Hopefully, I will find someone to share it with.

[merrickx]

Witnessed what might very well be one of the most impressive rock falls a few years ago. Boulder was massive, and must have picked up some good momentum in its tumbling. When it finally became visible, it tumbled and launched so far away and violently from the cliff face, and so high up, and I don't think it contacted the cliff again before slamming into the ground. A SMALL piece broke off from it when it jutted out away from the face, and it must have been the size of a VW bug. Again, that was a small piece that broke off.


We seemed to be directly under it. Pretty close to its landing zone. Started running after catching that glimpse, and all we could hear when it hit was the sound of twigs snapping, amplified by hundreds of times.


Another rock fall I saw the next year was a really nice sight. It was a far away rock face clear in the open, and the massive rock fell right at the edge where the rock face meets the sky. So it was skylined/silhouetted, and when it disappeared behind the trees and hit the ground, I could feel it in my feet despite being maybe up to two miles away.


I've only been there three times, for only two days each time, so it impressed on me the idea that this stuff happens frequent enough that one might be able to make it a sort of pasttime to try to spot rock falls.

[roberte.andrews]

I've enjoyed visiting Yosemite NP for 67 years now and am still curious as to why Camp Curry was sited many years ago amongst very large boulders that have fallen from Glacial Point directly above. Didn't the early developers realize that it might be hazardous to put a number of tent cabins in harm's way? A few years back, I sat at a picnic table in Happy Isles resting from a trek to the falls. When I got home a few weeks later (was it?), the news told of part of Glacier Point falling and wiping out part of Happy Isles. In fact the picnic table where I sat was crushed under tons of debris. Makes you think. On one of our trips I was taking photos from Glacier Point at about ten o'clock at night and the metal railing against which my tripod rested was rattling and shaking. At first, I thought some kids were climbing on the railing but it was late and no one could be seen. I realized it was an earthquake rumbling through. Makes you think. Periodic assessment of potential falls, as they do in Norway, should be done, in my opinion. In Norway, they use helicopters and a large metal ball on massive cables to loosen likely-looking pieces of cliff faces before they let go without warning and take lives. Frost expanding in cracks behind the rock faces loosen sections of the mountain walls. Seismic events contribute, too.

[soularddave]

I didn't read the whole book on rock falls, but I did read the Cliff Notes.

[arklat]

When I was young, I loved bouldering at Yosemite Falls. When climbing the big walls, especially on Royal Arches, there are huge gaps in the exfoliating granite slabs, between the slabs and the wall. It can really shake your confidence, because what if you set your protection on a huge slab, and that slab pops loose, with you on it? It would be your last ride.

[BatNestor]

5:34 This guy looks pretty confident wearing a helmet while sitting under the cliff :D

[lawrencemullins]

Yosemite is a living thing. Constantly changing. How I love it.