Plein air watercolor painting of the Merced River in Yosemite by Catherine Twomey, 2011. Sat almost too closely on the banks to paint this. The river's pounding torrent was deafening. The hiking path had actually been washed out. This was the year of overflow snow and subsequent water in Yosemite, when over 14 people lost their lives trying to cross the river and falls like this one. Bear was in the air.