Page 28 - AMA Summer 2023

EXPEDITIONNEWS
WATERFALLS, BEARS AND GRANITE CLIFFS
David Chadwick
Dodging bears and mighty waterfalls, 32 Signal Regiment tackle some of the finest trails that Yosemite has to offer whilst David Chadwick paints a beautiful picture of the magnificence that awaits the avid adventurer
Nestled within the grandeur of the Sierra Nevada mountains in California, the Yosemite National Park emerges as a captivating tapestry of awe-inspiring natural wonders. With its iconic granite cliffs, glacial valleys, thunderous waterfalls, and ecological diversity, the national park and its majestic Yosemite Valley offered the perfect setting for Exercise Northern Saltire Yosemite. In mid-May a team made up of Regular and Reserve officers and soldiers from 32 Signal Regiment deployed, trekked, and explored the treasures of the region, conducting summer mountain activities in this challenging and beautiful environment.
Trekking in the footsteps of the great Scot, John Muir “Father of the National Parks”, (a pivotal figure in the conserva- tion movement’s establishment and pres- ervation of national parks in the USA), the expedition team deployed on 9 May 23. This presented an ideal window to experience the waterfalls at full force as the temperature across the park began to rise and melt the unprecedented amount of snow (230% above average) that lay in the glaciers and mountains that towered above. Residents and regular visitors of the region often initiated conversations with the team, opening with statements such as “the best waterfalls in 25 years” which became a comically repeated expression shared within the group.
In the deployment window, the expedition team completed 5 full days of trekking, covering 108km and a total climb of 3862m. This was followed by a visit to the
Nevada Falls Trail
Mariposa Grove to explore the 3000-year- old Sequoia trees, and a day on the grade 3/4 white waters of the Merced River, using San Francisco as a commuting stop off on the outbound and inbound journeys from the UK. As a result of these activities, 6 members of the expedition achieved SMF competence, 2x MLTs gained invaluable experience from the lead SML, and other qualified SMF competent personnel managed to bag some quality overseas mountain days to add to their portfolios.
On arrival in California, the team travelled up from San Francisco to Wawona, a small settlement close to the entry of the national park and established a base utilising a
furnished Redwood lodge; an ideal setting for facilitating the expedition needs, from training delivery to feeding and sleeping arrangements. An early evening brief, with Team 1 stepping up to cook the first meal of the expedition whilst the remainder settled into the accommodation, setting the conditions for the days that lay ahead.
THE YOSEMITE VALLEY LOOP
One thing that can be said about prior preparation and planning is the unpredict- ability of the weather within the Yosemite Valley, rising from minus 4°C the week prior, to 20°C upwards on day one. Trek 1 provided the ideal opportunity for the
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