Yosemite National Park – Honeymoon Adventure Part 2
Weds May 27th – While we were packing up our site in Buckeye Flat, I can’t say that I was happy to be leaving Sequoia National Park. The site and park were so perfect. I know that this mentality was something that I have always struggled with. I resist change once I am comfortable. I knew that it was time to let go of that old way of thinking. I reminded myself of all the exciting places we had yet to see and focused on directing us back to Fresno to resupply. Once we had what we needed from the store we took off for Yosemite National Park.
We drove thru what seemed to be desert ranches on California Rt. 99. The drive was easy and we were blessed with distant views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains on our right. This stretch was where we really started to feel relaxed and the road trip feeling kicked in.
We arrived at Yosemite Lakes in the early afternoon. Thinking that we would need a break from being in a tent, we opted for a cabin. We checked in to cabin 24. The bunkhouse cabins were quant and separated from the rest of the campground. The cabin didn’t afford us much more than a bed and a table but it gave us room to store our food and a covered porch. Once we unloaded, we headed for Yosemite. The campground we were staying at was 6 miles outside of the western gate of Yosemite.
The drive does take a good amount of time to get to the valley. It is an additional 25 miles into the valley of the park past the entrance station.
Around the midway point, we came around a turn and caught our first glimpse of half dome. It was so exciting to see this amazing landmark in person for the first time. The moment you know that you are actually checking off items from your bucket list is a glorious feeling.
Sure we got closer to Half Dome. And we stood above it and had a much clearer vantage point of this massive granite formation. That’s not the point. The first moment I laid eyes on it will always strike a feeling of a pure happiness. Can a punch in the gut feel good? Because this sure felt like it. Those butterflies in my stomach were on a mission – fluttering to the high heavens. It’s the feeling when your stomach flips out of sheer excitement. I knew this feeling, I’d felt it before. I was in love. You pinch yourself and don’t even realize your speaking out loud asking “Is this real??”
We opted to explore the valley the following day, and kept driving on to Glacier Point. The drive took over an hour and had many vistas along the way. Below us stood forests full of towering pine trees and expansive views of the granite cliffs.
We stopped at Washburn Point to look out. This view of Clark Mountain Range and Half Dome was spectacular. You look down over so much of the breathtaking features of the Yosemite Valley. And, we knew we still had further to go up. It had both of us choked up. It’s truly unreal.
We continued up Glacier Point Road until we reached the parking lot and we walked the short distance to the viewing area.
Once standing at Glacier Point we could not believe the view. From this vantage point, you could see wider and further than your eyes could take in. There was a slight haze left over from the afternoon, and it made the whole scene feel surreal. I could sit up here and imagine stories about all of the land and mountains in my view. It’s an odd thing to feel a sense of security in yourself standing so high above the valley below, but a sense of calmness and quiet takes over.
We stayed up there for some time just enjoying the view. Taking photos that accurately captured what we saw was impossible. Everyone should see this in their lifetime.
We traveled back down to the Valley and stopped below El Capitan just before sunset.
The difference in the color of the rock was spectacular as the sun was setting. Off in the field below us stood many artists painting the scene. I could sit and watch the changes that the sun made on the broad face of the formations all day.
Back at the cabin, we started a small fire and enjoyed some wine while we planned the next days adventures. This portion of the trip has so many options for hikes and views that it was overwhelming. We decided to plan a couple hikes and leave the rest up to being spontaneous.
Thurs May 28th – We finally slept well and had a shower!!! Taking a shower after camping for the last 4 days was a wonderful moment. After our breakfast, we headed into the park around 9 for our first day of hiking.
We drove into the valley with views of El Cap, Half Dome and Three Brothers towering over us. It’s truly a wonderful way to put life into perspective to be surrounded by such natural beauty.
We stopped at The Swinging Bridge to take a view of Yosemite Falls. The river was calm and clear below us and the meadows surrounding the area were inviting and peaceful.
We headed to curry village and we were lucky enough to find parking so that we could walk to the start of Mist Trail. Just before the trailhead, a large cat meandered across our path. I was a little bit startled by this and couldn’t fumble for my camera quickly enough. We just saw a bobcat. It wandered off into the woods, undetected by the rangers nearby.
Everything that I read referred to Mist Trail as the quintessential falls trail of the Yosemite Valley.
The trail was described as moderate. I would say that it was more than moderate because the trail was mostly uphill; there was little time not spent on an incline. Add in the crowd factor – imagine a line of ants chugging along towards a common destination – and it was far from enjoyable.
We made it to the first fall – Vernal Falls – and decided we had enough of the crowds and headed back down.
Needing lunch, we stopped at Curry Village Pizza to grab a bite. After almost a week of dehydrated meals, pizza was fabulous! It was such wonderful people watching, too. Yosemite draws people from all over the world and it was fascinating to hear others’ stories.
We drove through the valley a bit and decided we would explore an easy trail called Lower Yosemite Falls Trail. This was a paved path that led to a close up view of Lower Yosemite Falls. It was misty and cooler through here. Beautiful but again, too crowded for our taste.
Finally, we drove to Tunnel View to park. we planned to take Pohono Trail to Artist’s Point to enjoy Tunnel View privately. Somewhere along the way, we took a wrong turn and went up a different trail which was much rockier and steeper. Fortunately, there were cairns all along this alternate trail that led us the whole way.
It was a fun hike and free of crowds. It led us to a private opening with views of El Capitan, Half Dome and Bridalveil Fall. No words or photos can describe what we were seeing. It was breath taking and truly the most magnificent thing that I have ever seen.
I almost had to look away to really see it. I noticed myself sitting in front of the most amazing scenery, staring at the small tree in front of me. I’d stare at the rocks – nothing different or spectacular about them. But I still felt the enormity of the quiet. I still knew I was there. It was as if I was able to see it even when I wasn’t actually looking at it. And for once I didn’t feel like I was wasting the little time I had there. I was doing exactly what I needed to do. I felt at peace.
With the sun closing in on the peaks of the surrounding mountains, we headed back to our cabin. It was time to do laundry at the campground facilities and have dinner.
Friday May 29th – I woke with the pain of a nasty blister on my left foot. I was not surprised by this little monster after hiking more than 9 miles the day before. We rose early knowing that we had specific hikes in mind. We packed up breakfast and headed north on Tioga Pass towards Taft Point. We easily found parking at 9am and started out on the trail. We headed for Taft Point first. This trail was stunning – well marked and relatively easy. Through the woods and then the stone facing we traveled. We walked over the fissures until we reached the metal handrail of Taft Point.
The drop off from this point was enough to make anyone queasy. But the views were oh so worth it.
We walked the mile and change back to the lot and continued on to Sentinel Point Trail. At this point my blister was driving me nuts with pain but I was not about to let it stop me.
We continued on the trail up and over the rocks, my foot throbbing with each incline. We reached the base of Sentinel Dome and I rested as Tom scouted out the rest of the route. I knew that I could not come this far, only to stay at the base of the dome.
I continued on the very steep rocks up to the top of Sentinel Dome and was truly in awe of the view from the top. It was the top of the world and we stood there together.
The views were once again magnificent and we couldn’t possibly take enough photos to show the views we experienced. We stayed for a bit. I was learning to slow down and take it all in before rushing off to the next thing.
Heading back down was tough as I was in a lot of pain at this point. I re-wrapped my toe in moleskin and descended the dome. We arrived back at the car and I quickly switched to my sandals. AHHH relief. We were so pleased with the hikes we took that we were in heaven. There was very little in the way of crowds at this time of day and we were excited to have had some solo time on the trails in Yosemite.
We headed to Curry Village for lunch again as I was in desperate need of fresh food at this point. The food was expensive but I really wanted a salad! After lunch, we meandered through the village and decided to put our name in for a camp site in the Valley. We waited patiently until 3pm for the drawing. The park ranger at the office was so nice that we had a bit of hope going into the drawing. The odds were totally against us; we were # 32 on the wait list of 15 sites. But, stranger things have happened. Unfortunately, most of the wait list was piled up at the station waiting for their sites and we did not get a site in Curry Village. We headed back to our cabin a bit defeated.
We decided we wanted to be a part of the activity and switched to a tent site at the base of the river running through the campgrounds. We picked a perfect spot between two established tent sites and settled in. We gathered wood from the trailhead near our site and started a fire. The night would be our last in Yosemite but one we would share with our neighbors. Tomorrow, we would drive north on Tioga Pass and head on to the eastern side of the Sierras into Inyo National Forest.
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