One of the things that always strikes me about being in Yosemite Valley is the enormousness of El Capitan. I mean, everything there is spectacular. The walls of every side of the valley tower above, but El Capitan is just plain huge, and what makes it even more pronounced is that you can walk right up to the side of it and stare straight up.

I’ve tried multiple times to convey this sense in a photograph and i’ve never been quite satisfied with the results. Not that I’ve given up but i think this is really one of those things where you have to stand there at the foot of this beastly wall of granite yourself to really understand what i’m talking about.

This most recent attempt is another way of looking at this monolith. Those trees in the background are a few hundred yards in the distance and by themselves are gigantic. I really need to spot some climbers. A human element may be what i need to get this across. I don’t think there were any out that day. It was freezing cold and windy – jason and i had driven past the climbers campsite earlier that morning and it was totally deserted.