Tuolumne Meadows to Valley floor 8/24/08

My wife and I took a four day trip from Tuolumne to the Valley floor last week.

We left Tuolumne and headed up to Vogelsang on Day 1. The steepest part of this 1,300 foot elevation rise is near the beginning where you turn off of the John Muir trail to follow the Rafferty Creek trail. The Creek itself is bone dry except for a pondlette less than one mile from the Vogelsang HSC. The weather was very pleasant and the evening did not get very cold. The local bear was being frisky and climbed onto the roof of the HSC kitchen one night and ripped the vane off of the kitchen stove exhaust vent.

On Day 2 we followed Fletcher Creek down the 2,500 foot descent to Merced Lake. The Creek has lots of water flowing. Water is easily accessable to fill your water bottle between Vogelsang and Babcock Lake (after that there are a series of cascades and it is difficult to reach the creek). There are three relatively steep staircases along the way. The last two are the worst and felt like the stairs to hell when we were negotiating them.

Day 3 was spent relaxing at Merced Lake. There was some thunder in the distance. The camp bear showed up in the early morning, but was easily shooed away.

On Day 4 we left at 7:00 am for the 13 mile, 3,000 foot descent to Yosemite Valley. This was anticipated to be a challenge for my wife and I as we were hard pressed to remember when we had last walked for 13 miles in one day... The route was actual very pleasant except for one evil staircase about half way through the hike. After the stairs, we stopped at Bunnel Cascade to enjoy our lunch and soak our feet in the cold water. We took this opportunity to apply some fresh moleskin were needed and slip on some fresh socks (good advise we received from Ranger James). Water was also easily accessable along this route. In the afternoon some dark clouds rolled in along with lots of lighting and thunder (the lighting was in an adjoining valley). A light drizzle started up which lasted through the rest of the day. The most boring part of this day was the John Muir trail switchbacks at the end. These still have remnants of blacktop from when they used to pave the trails near the Valley. Most of the people on this part of the trail are daytrippers who are not as friendly as the folks on the higher sierra trails. At days end we checked into the Yosemite Lodge and enjoyed a hot shower and a nice dinner.

The next morning we took the hikers bus (leaves at 8:20 am from Yosemite Lodge) back up to our car at Tuolomne Meadows.

As always the most interesting part of these trips are the people you meet along the way. The wife of one couple we meet was a 72 year old tri-athelete who competed at a national level (within her age group). We also met three ladies in there 80's on the trail who were doing the full five HSC loop. Maybe we will be so lucky at that age!

Tom