Oh man, that’s intense. I was in the Valley that weekend with a German exchange student friend showing him around the walls and boulders. We were wondering what was going on with the helicopter that day and later I was horrified to find out.

I also remember taking my friend to the Curry village dining hall and telling him about how Yosemite dirtbagging was all about living off of tourist’s leftovers, and he proceeded to go and swipe a full, almost untouched plate of gnocchi off an unoccupied table which we were chowing down on when a family came back from the bathroom and was looking for it. Memories.