The Tuolumne itself was flowing strong just below the meadows...
...which, still brown from winter, were flooded in parts:
Next up, Mt. Watkins. There were patches of snow near the (quarry) trailhead and heading up Watkins itself:
Nothing too deep, and certainly no reason for carrying snowshoes.
Piwyack Cascade was raging; the Tenaya Creek crossing is probably going to be deep for a few weeks:
After walking along the long, broad "summit" of Watkins for awhile, we finally saw a leaning tree that looked familiar and set up camp:
The views were generally good, except that a large rock to the south blocked our view of Illilouette Canyon...
...and one to the east hid the Cathedral Range.
The chilly breeze that had been with us since Pothole Dome calmed down a bit by sunset.
The next morning, we took a longer way back. First, down the trail (with a bit of off-trail exploring)...
...to where we might have camped a few weekends ago--or this one had the Tioga Road not opened.
After passing a few nice cascades, we returned via the North Dome trail to the Porcupine Creek T/H, where we had left a second car.
More Pictures
Red tape: BOF entrance was still self-register when we arrived (5/3), and we were told that that would be the case through mid-to-late June for all trailheads outside the valley. However, others have noted that Tuolumne was open to hand out permits. YMMV
