Exploring Merced and Off to Yosemite

Karlee imagined cows on the streets of Merced and she would not even consider applying for admission at UC Merced. I promised to visit her often on my way to Yosemite National Park if she goes to UC Merced for college. 
I didn't see any cows roaming the streets of Merced.  Instead, I came upon an artsy underpass which didn't surprise me at all. Merced is a typical university town where instead of graffiti, one would find murals.
One section  of the mural reminds me of a fund raising project when Karlee was in 3rd grade. One tile was about $10 and a student could draw, paint and sign his or her name on the tile and the tile would be part of a collage glued for life on a wall. 
Another section of the mural is composed of some artwork probably done by older students, maybe high school. 
My Google search on the artwork revealed that the mural is titled "The Many Faces of Merced". The mural is the output from a glazed tile art workshop conducted at the library of UC Merced. Local artists and residents ages 5 and above took part in the completion of the mural.
With Merced being the gateway to the Yosemite National Park, the Yosemite Area Regional Transit System (YARTS) bus provides the view deck from the plains all the way to valley.
Merced owes its name from the river that flows from the Yosemite Valley on its way to meet up with the San Joaquin River. San Joaquin snakes north into San Francisco Bay thru the Grizzly Bay  and San Pablo Bay.
I am seeing Yosemite as a watershed for the first time. The snow when it melts would soon feed the Merced and Toulomme Rivers and end the drought that dried up reservoirs that feed the California aqueduct system.
Many people came to see the waterfalls that came back to life.
The highest waterfall in the valley that completely dried up last Autumn transformed into the Yosemite Majestic Waterfall to borrow the proposed name of the Ahwahnee Hotel. 
The inches of snow looks promising as I thought of the book The Big Thirst  by Charles Fishman. The book brought my attention to water as life. 











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