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The engine of the van cuts off, and I am suddenly
consumed by the fear that we have run out of gas and I
will be trapped in this position until help arrives.

I remove my sweatshirt and swivel in the direction
that the rest of my class is staring to see that a coyote has
paused in the middle of the road and is staring quizzically
at the van. Coastal Highway has given way to a
mountainous two-lane road. In the darkness, we can make
out flecks of snow glimmering in the background.

We sit, transfixed, staring at the coyote.

Jenny breaks the silence by popping in a Grateful
Dead cassette and revving up the engine, scaring away the
coyote.

"Well, you guys," she says, "welcome to Yosemite."

Upon cresting the mountain, we receive the keys to
our three cabins in Curry Village. One of eight lodging
options located within Yosemite Valley, it was erected in
1899 by Jenny and David Curry, who wanted to provide
an inexpensive lodging where campers could enjoy the
majesty of Yosemite for only $2 a night. The area has
modernized with time, and today Curry Village features
its own dual grocery store and ski shop, a communal
lounge featuring rocking chairs on the outside and a cozy
fireplace on the inside, and a giant dining hall with a
pizza parlor and dance floor where couples shed their
layers after a long day of hiking and mountain climbing
to sway to the tunes of a local cover band.

Curry Village, with its inexpensive cabins, offers a
middle ground between the backpackers who trek to Half

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