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| East View - Vernal and Nevada Falls | |
  ooking east you can see Nevada Fall, dropping nearly 600 feet, and Vernal Fall, dropping over 300 feet, both on the Merced River. The mighty Merced river crashes over these falls with enormous force, but eventually ends up moving gracefully through calm pools on the valley floor. Under the right conditions winter storms can cause unusually high flow in the Merced River, this combined with high flow from other drainages into the Valley, especially Tenaya Canyon, can result in serious flooding. In January 1997 such a flood occurred, where flood waters reached up to 7 feet in some buildings on the Valley floor. The NPS is taking the opportunity of the 1997 flood to relocate or remove buildings from inside the flood plain to higher ground; in some cases moving structures, such as employee housing, out of the valley.
Moving housing and other structures from the Valley helps restore the river ecosystem and also removes air pollution sources used for heating, lighting and cooling those buildings. Employees moving from the Valley are being relocated in El Portal. An employee shuttle service will be provided for relocated employees, and will eliminate the need for those employees to drive and park in the valley.
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