Sunshine swept across Yosemite National Park on Sunday as floodwaters drained from the Yosemite Valley, allowing park staff to assess conditions around the iconic setting with plans to reopen it later in the day. At the height of the flooding Saturday, water covered Cooks Meadow and flowed over the Swinging Bridge that spanned the Merced River.
At one point Saturday the river went nearly 4 feet above flood stage, and heavy equipment had to be used to clear log jams piling up against road bridges in the valley. Campgrounds and lodgings in the valley had been closed Friday evening, forcing visitors to leave the valley before the brunt of the storm. Housekeeping Camp was inundated by floodwaters, which flowed through its three-sided concrete units.
At times Saturday, dozens of small, spontaeous waterfalls coursed like wispy tendrils down the granite walls that frame the 7-mile-long, mile-wide valley.
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