At Yosemite, we spent time away from the craziness of the Valley, camping at Tuolumne Meadows and Crane Flat. Although the campground was crowded, there were convenient hiker shuttles from the campground to trailheads that get you away from maddening crowd. While there, we did two nice hikes, one to Tuolumne Falls and another to Cloud’s Rest. Since this is a 15-mile hike, I was a little intimated by the thought, especially since one section had a 800 feet elevation gain in one mile. But, we caught the very first shuttle to the trailhead, and took our time. The trail was beautiful, but the best was at the end. Cloud’s Rest is a rock outcropping that gives a spectacular view of the Valley. I didn’t go all the way out to the end point, as it involved walking (some crawl) over a rocky section no more than five feet wide with sheer drops on each side. Of course, Jim went all the way out, and got some great pictures. Although I had great views from my perch, I did regret later that I didn’t just grit my teeth and do it anyway.
On July 13 headed for a 2 night stay at Upper Pines Campground in Yosemite Valley, a place I'd rather avoid due to the crowds and amusement park-like atmosphere. However, it does offer access to some nice trails, including one highly recommended, Four mile/Panorama Trail. This too is a 15 miler, but I was feeling more confident after the Cloud’s Rest Trail. I was soon to find out just how far my confidence would take me. The first part of the trail takes you up to Glacier Point and then connects to the Panorama Trail. The trail offers spectacular views of the Valley and waterfalls. Along the way are stops at several water falls. It was at the second falls, (Nevada Falls) where I fell and sprained my ankle. I tried to get up and hobble the shortest way down, the Mist Trail, but there was just no way. The trail basically goes over rock and boulder fall. As slow as I was going, there was no way we would get down before dark, or even that night. And we weren’t prepared to spend the night out. So, nothing else to do but call 911 (thank goodness for cell phones).
The response was good. In about an hour, a Search and Rescue guy came up the trail with a medical kit. He taped my ankle, gave me some Ibuprofen, and said I shouldn’t try to go down the Mist Trail. The alternative was to go back up and catch the easier, but longer, John Muir trail. Since I was able to walk, it didn’t warrant a medi-vac out (I agreed.) So, Jim and I started out at about 6:00 for the slow, 4 mile trek out. The last mile and half was in the dark. We had just a small penlight, which didn’t do a lot for visibility. About a mile from the end, we encountered a group who had a bigger head lamp and they stayed with us until we got to our campground., which was at 9:30. Never so glad to see the old Honey.
King’s Canyon has the giant Sequoias, which are truly magnificent. I was able to hobble around Grant’s Grove, which has the General Grant tree, the world’s second largest Sequoia (267.4 feet high and 107.6 feet circumference at base). What’s sad is that a lot of these trees were logged in the late 1800s, and you can see groves of these giant stumps. Turns out the wood is not really good for much anyone. The trees are so massive that when they fall, they splinter, rendering the wood useless for commercial purposes. While looking for the Chicago Stump, we found an nice secluded camp spot on a back Forest Service Road surrounded by massive pine trees. The Chicago Stump is from a massive tree cut down in late 1893, and parts sent to the Chicago World’s Fair. However, the crowds didn’t believe it was real as “no tree could ever be that big.” So it was called the California Hoax.
Our tree journey now took us along the Redwood Highway along the California coast. While these trees soar over 300 feet (taller than Sequoias), their bases are not as massive. But still just as impressive. A trail we took this morning, called Cathedral Trees, was indeed like being in a massive cathedral, with sunlight filtering through the trees onto the forest floor covered with giant ferns.
Now, it’s on to Crater Lake National Park in Oregon, where I hope by then my ankle is healed enough to get in some hikes. More later.
View of Yosemite Valley from Cloud's Rest
View of Half Dome from Panorama Trail
Giant Sequoias
Jim on Sequoia Stump
Chicago Stump(sorry for poor picture quality but shows size of stump)
Jim and Connie with Sugar Pine Cone (it's not a Sequoia Pine Cone!)
Jim and Lacey on Beach (on California Coastal Highway)
Jim among Redwoods
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