California -- After The Rock Fall: Yosemite Still Jammed

So a 25,000-ton piece of granite fell in the Yosemite Valley, knocking over 2,500 trees and spraying a chalky dust sediment over 50 acres.

Don't let it ruin your vacation plans.

Except for the closure of the picturesque and popular Happy Isles area, where the deadly rock slide crashed down July 10, Yosemite has been open for business and unhampered by the disaster.

Yosemite is one of the country's most popular vacation destinations. On a normal summer day, 20,000 tourists arrive for the scenery, the camping and the outdoor activities.

Happy Isles, so named because a park guardian in the 1800s believed it would be impossible to be there and not be happy, was the hub of activity for the eastern part of the valley. It's the trail head for the enormously popular Mist Trail hike to the top of Vernal and Nevada falls and an entrance to the valley for the John Muir Trail.

The July 10 rock slide hit at 6:46 p.m., after the Happy Isles nature center and snack shop had closed for the day. Most of the day hikers had come off the Mist Trail, mindful that the last shuttle from the Happy Isles terminus leaves at 7 p.m. But one person was killed by the blast resulting from the slide, and about 20 people were injured. Dust spread over much of the nearby Upper Pines campground, sending campers scurrying from the park.

Regular rock slides

Rock slides are regular occurrences in Yosemite, which was carved out of granite by glacial flows thousands of years ago. But rarely do they kill or injure. Before last month, the last time anyone was injured by such a slippage was in 1980, when three tourists were killed in a similar slide near Yosemite Falls, on the other side of the valley from Happy Isles.

"Visitors are asking if it's something they should be concerned about. We tell them it's a natural occurrence; there are rock slides every day," Ranger Scott Gediman said this week.

"Rock slides come down, and we don't even hear about them. This one was rare in the fact that it impacted a heavily visited area."

Tourists entering the park in the days after the the latest slide were not told of the disaster nor warned to stay away from rock-laden cliffs.

The only manifestation of the calamity, aside from the invasion of TV crews, was the closure of Happy Isles. The Mist Trail remains closed and will be closed for an indefinite time while work crews clear debris at the trail head in Happy Isles.

OK, so if you can't visit Happy Isles and hike up Mist Trail to Vernal Falls, what then?

Here are two suggestions:

Glacier Point

Take the drive up to Glacier Point on the southern rim of the valley. It takes about 45 minutes from the valley floor, but the view is incredible. From one spot you get an eagle's eye view of Vernal and Nevada falls, Half Dome and Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls.

On the way back from Glacier Point, stop and take the 40-minute stroll to the top of Sentinel Dome and see the Jeffrey Pine, a knotty solitary soldier at the peak of the dome.

After a vigorous final quarter-mile to the top, it feels like you're standing above the clouds. On the left, there's El Capitan. Straight ahead, Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls. On the right, Half Dome.

When you return to the valley, stop the car at the overlook just past the Inspiration Point tunnel and enjoy the view of Bridal Veil Falls and El Capitan.

Rafting

Take an afternoon to rent a raft at Curry Village and flow down through the middle of Yosemite Valley in the ice-cold Merced River.

The pace is dreamy, and you see the heart of the park from ground level. Don't feel you have to race along the route. Pack a sack lunch, take your time, pull your raft over and chill out.

We beached our raft last week and took a 50-yard hike up a sandy trail, where we met an unbelievably friendly deer munching grass in a meadow. We got to within 15 feet of the doe, and she did not bolt.

The raft ride costs $12.50 per adult, 10.50 per child.

More information

- For lodging information and reservations, call (209) 252-4848. For campgrounds, call (800) 436-7275. - For general park information, call (209) 372-0200.