Half Dome is in the background. Half Dome rises an elevation of 8,842 feet. The Dome is stated to be 87 million years old. The legend goes like this: At one time, many birds, animals, and people lived in Yosemite Valley. One of them went to Mono Lake and wed Tesaiyac, a Native American woman, and decided to return with her to Yosemite. They began their journey, he carrying the deerskins and she holding the baby in her arms with the cradle on her back. When they reached the site of the present day Mirror Lake, they began to quarrel. She wanted to go back to Mono Lake, but he refused, saying that no oaks or other trees grew there. He would not listen to her when she said she would plant seeds. In despair, Tesaiyac began to cry and ran back toward Mono Lake. Her husband grew angry and ran after her. Tesiayac threw the basket at him, and it became Basket Dome. She continued running and threw the baby cradle at her husband. Today, we see it as the Royal Arches. Because they had brought anger into Yosemite, the two were turned into stone. He became North Dome, and she became Half Dome. Tesaiyac regretted the quarrel and began to cry, thus forming Mirror Lake. Today, you can still see the marks of those tears as they run down her face. And if you look very carefully at Half Dome, you can see it is fashioned after the way the Mono tribe looked - with hair bobbed and cut in bangs.
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