Merced River

In thunderous delight, daybreak.

Yosemite Valley, meadows and the Merced wakes up gradually, waits in a dream.

Half-dome rocks like a lead guitarist.

Pluck strings, plays frets of the grand castle.

He was last seen wearing a blue shirt and gray or blue pants.

His last known location was in the Yosemite backcountry about 15 miles from the popular trailhead junction at Happy Isle on the Merced River.

Anyone with any information is urged to call or text the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch Tip Line at 653-0009.

Yosemite National Park averaged between 16 and 17 fatalities per year from 2014 to 2019, according to Park Service statistics.

Figured I'd mention it to the ranger once we got up to Little Yosemite Valley, but they happened to be out when we came through the camp, so we were halfway through LYV before most people had broken camp.

Winding our way through the approach that takes us to the other side of the Merced River, a guy comes up to our group from behind, and he's making for a good pace.

But he's got a bottle of Aquafina in his hand, a bedroll over his shoulder, and nothing else.

Tennis shoes, jeans, very out of place.

He was last seen wearing a blue shirt and gray or blue pants.

His last known location was in the Yosemite backcountry, about 15 miles from the popular trailhead junction at Happy Isle on the Merced River.

Anyone with any information is urged to call or text the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch Tip Line at 653-0009.

Yosemite National Park averaged between 16 and 17 fatalities per year from 2014 to 2019, according to Park Service statistics.

Yeah.

And the Merced River, uh, is part of it.

So that's our concern.

It's not what we're gonna get.

The gold miners are long gone.

The gold is, uh, very scarce in the Merced River and the, uh, and the other rivers of, of, of, of California.

Uh, but the ones who made the money were the guys who sold the picks and the shovels and the Levi's and the sleeping bags and the tents and all this and that, the lanterns and whatnot." And I said, "It's the same thing going on.

There, there is another boom going on, mostly centered in that Silicon Valley area, San Francisco area.

The fish women, a Miwok folktale.

It is said that thousands of years ago when the Ahwahnechee were still a young nation, the Merced River was the home of the fish women, or mermaids.

The mermaids were beautiful creatures, having the tails of fish complete with scales and fins, and the upper bodies of gorgeous women.

They were unable to leave the water but would often sit upon the rocks in the shallows watching, combing their long black hair with knowing hands, chanting their most alluring of songs to the warriors of Ahwahnee.

Even so, the area he went missing in wasn't nearly as dangerous as some other areas of the park.

Park superintendent at that time, Frank Kittredge, said the group were alarmed when Emerson didn't return and the search began immediately.

He also said that he and other park officials were puzzled because the Merced River where Emerson rested is shallow and not swift and there were no cliffs or deep pools of water for several hundred yards.

How did Emerson disappear without a trace so close to his destination with so many people around? On August 6th, 1943, the search was getting more intense and was still well underway as reported by the Desert Sun newspaper.