Yosemite: Backpacking Day 3

The next day, we went from Cathedral Lakes and did some back-country hiking to get back onto the John Muir Trail, and then went off trail across a meadow, up the Hill of Death (dundundun), got to the top of a peak with an amazing view (you could see Half Dome!) near Tenaya Peak, then went back down to set up camp near Mildred Lake.


Before everyone else woke up. :)


Jamie and Virginia getting breakfast ready.


Everyone else still sleeping.


Going off trail for a bit! Bush-beating is fun. :)


Yay.


Cathedral Peak along the way.


Mike.


Me.


Cathedral Peak.


Back on the trail. Stopping by Upper Cathedral Lake for some water.


My new desktop picture.


Tracie and I stopped for lunch.


Indian Paintbrush! It was one of my favorite flowers as a kid ever since I read the Legend of the Indian Paintbrush.


Lupines at a place where we pumped more water.


Me on a rock.


Mike lookin' all scruffy.


While crossing the meadow.


Jeff.


Up the Hill of Death! Only one picture because it was waaay too tiring to do anything else other than push all the way up.


The view of Mildred Lake from the top of the Hill of Death!


We look tired... and Mike looks extra evil.


Half dome!


Pretty clouds. :)


Jeff, Tracie, Diana at the top.

Time to head back down... off-trail backcountry hiking/backpacking is definitely most fun.


Awesome granite hills.


On the way down.


Lookin' up.


I love clouds. :)


Mike at the lake near camp!


Chris is the only one daring enough to jump into the cold lake.


Yes, I love climbing rocks! :D


I'm happy.


Dance!


Chris as Moses. Or Jesus. Or somebody like that.


I was having too much fun.


*grin*


The beginnings of a fire!

Mike and I then decided to hike a little up a hill in order to fulfill my silly artsy dance needs. :)




It's awkward in hiking boots...


Of course you need a Chinese Dance pose in there... Dai!


Back-bends!


Another Dai pose... ...my fingers aren't together like they are supposed to be...


I might have muscle?


Half Dome!

Then we skedaddled back down for Mike's first-ever campfire.






Dishwashers!


Blurry Mike pumps water.


Huddled around fire.

The last night out camping was great. The fire was awesome, and everybody else was so interesting to listen to. It was a good night.

Yosemite: Backpacking Day 1 and 2

We arrived Thursday evening (July 17) at the Toulune Meadows campgrounds, had pack checks, pitched our tents, ate a chicken stir-fry dinner, had an orientation, and went on a moon-lit walk (it was a full moon that night) to a creek next the campsite.


Our first tent.

Then we went to sleep--or at least, tried to. Karen had talked about the bear experience she had the night before, where the bear was sniffing at her shoes in the middle of the night, so each zipper zipping and small movement made my paranoid self think that a bear was sniffing and scratching at our tent.

After finally falling asleep at 2:00 in the morning or so, our annoying neighbors decided to talk really loudly at 6:00 in the morning. Only Jeff and I were awake, so we decided to take a walk by the creek again in the morning.


Lambert Dome, a deer, and the creek.







After breakfast, we packed our backpacks, split up the food and the tents to all of our packs weighed about 35 lbs, and headed off to the Cathedral Lakes trail head on the John Muir Trail. The John Muir Trail is a 211-mile-long trail that runs from the Yosemite Valley, through the Yosemite High Country, through Kings Canyon National Park, and Sequoia National Park all the way to Mt. Whitney.


Jeff


Mike


La Dawn.


Karen, our amazing group leader.


Diana, Jeff


Beginning of the trail!

The hike to Cathedral Lakes was fairly decent. The elevation change total was about 1000 ft up, and then 272 ft down, but it was gradual enough not to destroy our legs. We had lunch near the toe of Cathedral Peak, and we drew water from a delicious spring on the way to the first camp site. The first campsite was at lower Cathedral Lake.


Mike and I.


Hiking!


The back of Cathedral Peak, also known as the Toe of the Cathedral.


A view of Fairview Dome from the spring where we got our water from!


Mike and the spring.




Meldicott Dome in the background as we crossed a meadow.


At the edge of Lower Cathedral Lake. Picture courtesy of Diana.


Mike!


Cathedral Peak.

After arriving at the campsite, some of us took a dip in the (cold) lake, pitched our tents, had dinner (Minestrone Soup!), and took a little hike up from our campsite to a tarn (a mountain lake or pool, formed in a cirque excavated by a glacier). On the way, Mike and I had some fun with the camera.


Me splashing about.


Our campsite.


The beautiful lake near sunset.


Lower Cathedral Lake.


Mike and I on the hike to the tarn, sun setting on Cathedral Peak in the background.


Glacial polish!


We didn't get to watch the sun set at the tarn, but it was setting on the way.


View from the tarn.


Shield flowers.


Tree.


Me having too much fun.


The tarn.


Hiking down with our headlights. Picture courtesy of Diana.

Afterwards, we had a night reading of great quotes, and proceeded to sleep.

Yosemite: Backpacking - The Map

Mike Ross and I decided to take a backpacking trip with REI Adventures; having never pitched a tent before, and Mike having never been around a campfire before, we decided that it would be best that our first backpacking/camping excursion with a group, and more importantly, with somebody who has had experience before. It was an amazing experience. The people were great, and Karen, our group leader, was the best. She was voted #7 best guide in the world, and #1 in the US. We lucked out.

The following picture is our map. We start out at the top right corner of the map. The first day is in black, the second in shiny blue, and the last day is in the shiny purple. Click for a larger version.