Rainbow Falls, and the Devil's Postpile

Two places with two names that couldnt be more diametrically opposed: Rainbow Falls, and the Devil’s Postpile.
I confess that I had never heard of either, but thanks to my friends Tessa Roker and Rolf Knutson, I have now been to both. And I am in awe of nature once again. In fact, my respect for the ways of the earth and the way that beauty can be found in rocks and trees is growing with each passing moment.
Rainbow Falls lies high up in the Sierra Mountains, nestled inside a stone crevasse but accessible by foot and eye if one is careful. The angle of the falls and the coincidental(?) positioning of the sun at a certain time of the day result in a beautiful and vivid rainbow that crosses the small gorge in front of it. The National Parks Service gone one better though and created trails that lead down to the bottom of the falls, at river level, and while the rainbow effect is not visible there, the cool mist and cooler breeze from the tumbling waters make it a very…damp and exhilarating experience.
The Devil’s Postpile is another beast altogether. As a sign states, there are shapes in nature that are more than just nice to look at. Some of them are functional. Such as it is with this amazing display of the ways of the natural world. The hexagonal shape that is seen in the Devil’s Postpile is a result of various forces that caused the rock to split into perfectly formed hexagonal shapes as a way to relieve stress and make space for movement. I might not be explain it well, but there are other places in nature where this is seen: beehives, salt flats, soap bubbles and turtle shells.
So, the Devils Postpile looks like a massive wall of stony posts emerging from the ground. As time goes by they break off and fall in pieces down the hill, leaving an exposed wall of, well, posts. When you take the trail to the top, you are on a rounded dome, looking like a mosaic. And it is not a good idea to go too much toward the edge because one slip and……
It was beautiful. As was Rainbow Falls, in different ways, and both highlights of this walk.
On the bus ride down from the mountain (shuttle buses only for most of the day is the rule) I got a little surprise. Tess knew the driver, a woman named Chyna, (not the wrestler) a cool young lady with a good sense of timing. Over her PA system, she began telling us all that there was someone on the bus was walking across the US. Well, heck. It was a nice surprise, and then she gave me the opportunity to tell the full busload of folks about WhyHunger and Harry Chapin and I gave out the website address, not once but twice, and she repeated it later as well. It brought forth a lot of questions and good wishes and hopefully a few donations.
One of the better days I have had on this trip, and with Mono Lake and Yosemite still ahead of me, as well as the entire width of the state of California and San Francisco, I am renewed again.